title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: Sicily was ruled as an independent kingdom by relatives or cadet branch of the house of Aragon until 1409 and thence as part of the Crown of Aragon. The Kingdom of Naples was ruled by the Angevin ruler René of Anjou until the two thrones were reunited by Alfonso V of Aragon, after the successful siege of Naples and the defeat of René on 6 June 1443. Alfonso of Aragon divided the two kingdoms during his rule. He gave the rule of Naples to his illegitimate son Ferdinand I of Naples, who ruled from 1458 to 1494, and the rest of the Crown of Aragon and Sicily to his brother John II of Aragon. From 1494 to 1503, successive kings of France Charles VIII and Louis XII, who were heirs of Angevins, tried to conquer Naples (see Italian Wars) but failed. Eventually, the Kingdom of Naples was reunited with the Crown of Aragon. The titles were held by the Aragonese kings of the Crown of Aragon and Kingdom of Spain until the end of the Spanish branch of the House of Habsburg in 1700.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: In 1530, in an effort to protect Rome from Ottoman invasion from the south, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, as Charles I of Spain, gave the Islands of Malta and Gozo to the Knights Hospitaller in perpetual fiefdom, in exchange for an annual fee of two Maltese falcons, which they were to send on All Souls' Day to the Viceroy of Sicily. The Maltese Islands had formed part of the county, and later the Kingdom of Sicily, since 1091. The feudal relationship between Malta and the Kingdom of Sicily was continued throughout the rule of the Knights, until the French occupation of Malta in 1798.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: The occupation was not recognized, and Malta was "de jure" part of the Kingdom of Sicily from 1798 to 1814. After the Maltese rebellion against the French, Malta was under British protection until it became a British crown colony in 1813. This was officially recognized by the Treaty of Paris of 1814, which marked the end of Malta's 700-year relationship with Sicily.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: From 1713 until 1720, the Kingdom of Sicily was ruled briefly by the House of Savoy, which had received it by the terms of the Treaty of Utrecht, which brought an end to the War of the Spanish Succession. The kingdom was a reward to the Savoyards, who were thus elevated to royal rank. The new king, Victor Amadeus II, travelled to Sicily in 1713 and remained a year before returning to his mainland capital, Turin, where his son the Prince of Piedmont had been acting as regent. In Spain, the results of the war had not been truly accepted, and the War of the Quadruple Alliance was the result. Sicily was occupied by Spain in 1718. When it became evident that Savoy had not the strength to defend as remote a country as Sicily, Austria stepped in and exchanged its Kingdom of Sardinia for Sicily. Victor Amadeus protested this exchange, Sicily being a rich country of over one million inhabitants and Sardinia a poor country of a few hundred thousand, but he was unable to resist his "allies". Spain was finally defeated in 1720, and the Treaty of the Hague ratified the changeover. Sicily belonged to the Austrian Habsburgs, who already ruled Naples. Victor Amadeus, for his part, continued to protest for three years, and only in 1723 decided to recognize the exchange and desist from using the Sicilian royal title and its subsidiary titles (such as King of Cyprus and Jerusalem).


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: In 1734, in the aftermath of the War of the Polish Succession, Naples was reconquered by King Philip V of Spain, a Bourbon, who installed his younger son, Duke Charles of Parma, as King Charles VII of Naples, starting a cadet branch of the house of Bourbon. Adding to his Neapolitan possessions, he became also King of Sicily with the name of Charles V of Sicily the next year after Austria gave up Sicily and her pretensions to Naples in exchange for the Duchy of Parma and the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. This change of hands opened up a period of economic flourishing and social and political reforms, with many public projects and cultural initiatives directly started or inspired by the king. He remained King of Sicily until his accession to the Spanish throne as Charles III of Spain in 1759, the treaties with Austria forbidding a union of the Italian domains with the Crown of Spain.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: Charles III abdicated in favour of Ferdinand, his third son, who acceded to the thrones with the names of Ferdinand IV of Naples and III of Sicily. Still a minor, Ferdinand grew up amongst pleasures and leisure while the real power was safely held by Bernardo Tanucci, the president of the regency council. During this period most of the reform process initiated by Charles came to a halt, with the king mostly absent or uninterested in the matters of state and the political helm steered by Queen Maria Carolina and prime ministers Tanucci (until 1777) and John Acton. The latter tried to distance Naples and Sicily from the influence of Spain and Austria and to place them nearer to Great Britain, then represented by ambassador William Hamilton. This is the period of the Grand Tour, and Sicily with its many natural and historical attractions is visited by a score of intellectuals from all over Europe that on one side bring to the island the winds of the Enlightenment, and on the other side will spread the fame of its beauty in the continent.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: In 1799, Napoleon conquered Naples, forcing king Ferdinand and the court to flee to Sicily under the protection of the British fleet under the command of Horatio Nelson. While Naples was formed into the Parthenopean Republic with French support and later again a kingdom under French protection and influence, Sicily became the British base of operation in the Mediterranean in the long struggle against Napoleon. Under British guidance, especially from Lord William Bentinck who was commander of British troops in Sicily, Sicily tried to modernise its constitutional apparatus, forcing the King to ratify a Constitution modeled after the British system. The island was under British occupation from 1806 to 1814. The main feature of the new system was that a two-chamber parliament was formed (instead of the three of the existing one). The formation of the parliament brought the end of feudalism in the Kingdom.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, Ferdinand repealed all reforms and even erased the Kingdom of Sicily from the map (after a history of 800 years) by creating the brand-new Kingdom of the Two Sicilies with Naples as its capital in 1816. The people of Sicily rebelled to this violation of its centuries-old statutes (which every king, including Ferdinand, had sworn to respect) but were defeated by the Neapolitan and Austrian forces in 1820. In 1848–49, another Sicilian revolution of independence occurred, which was put down by the new king Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies, who was nicknamed "Re Bomba" after his 5-day bombardment of Messina. The increased hostility of the peoples and the elites of Sicily towards Naples and the Bourbon dynasty created a very unstable equilibrium, kept under control only by an increasingly oppressive police-state, political executions and exiles.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: On 4 April 1860, the latest revolt against the Bourbon regime broke out. Giuseppe Garibaldi, funded and directed by the Piedmontese prime minister Cavour, assisted the revolt with his forces, launching the so-called Expedition of the Thousand. He arrived at Marsala on 11 May 1860 with ca. 1,000 Redshirts. Garibaldi announced that he was assuming dictatorship over Sicily in the name of King Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia. On 15 May, the Redshirts fought the Battle of Calatafimi and within weeks Palermo was freed from the troops of general Lanza, who even being superior in number, inexplicably retreated. Francis II of the Two Sicilies tried to regain control of the Kingdom. On 25 June 1860, he restored the constitution of the Kingdom, adopted the Italian tricolour as the national flag, and promised special institutions for the Kingdom.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: On 21 October 1860, a plebiscite regarding the unification with Italy was conducted. The outcome of the referendum was 432,053 (99%) in favour and only 667 in opposition to the unification. With three separate armies still fighting within the Kingdom, this outcome was far from an accurate depiction of public opinion. Substantial inconsistencies as well as the absence of secret ballot further complicate the interpretation of the referendum, which Denis Mack Smith describes as being "obviously rigged". Most Sicilians viewed the unification as acceptance of the House of Savoy, to which belonged Victor Emmanuel II, the first King of Italy.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: During the Norman Kingdom of Sicily, the local communities maintained their privileges. The rulers of the Hohenstaufen kingdom replaced the local nobility with lords from northern Italy, leading to clashes and rebellions against the new nobility in many cities and rural communities. These revolts resulted in the destruction of many agrarian areas and the rise of middle class nationalism, which eventually led to urban dwellers becoming allies of the Aragonese. This situation was continued during the short rule of the Angevin until their overthrowing during the Sicilian Vespers. The Angevin began feudalising the country, increasing the power of the nobility by granting them jurisdiction over high justice.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: At the same period, the feudalisation of the Kingdom of Sicily was intensified, through the enforcement of feudal bonds and relations among its subjects. The 1669 Etna eruption destroyed Catania. In 1693, 5% of the Kingdom's population was killed because of earthquakes. During that period, there were also plague outbreaks. The 17th and 18th century were an era of decline of the Kingdom. Corruption was prevalent among the upper and middle classes of the society. Widespread corruption and mistreatment of the lower classes by the feudal lords led to the creation of groups of brigands, attacking the nobility and destroying their fiefs. These groups, which were self-named "mafia", were the foundation of the modern Sicilian Mafia. The escalation of revolts against the monarchy eventually led to the unification with Italy.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: During the reign of Frederick II (1198-1250), the kingdom had a population of about 2.5 million. During the Hohenstaufen era, the Kingdom had 3 towns with a population of over 20,000 each. After the loss of the northern provinces in 1282 during the Sicilian Vespers and several natural disasters like the 1669 Etna eruption, the population of the Kingdom of Sicily was reduced. In 1803, the population of the Kingdom was 1,656,000. The main cities of the Kingdom at that time were Palermo, Catania, Messina, Modica, Syracuse.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: The high fertility of the land led the Norman kings to bring settlers from neighbouring regions or to resettle farmers to areas where cultivation of land was needed. This led to an increase in agricultural production. The main sources of wealth for the Kingdom of Sicily in that time were its maritime cities, most important of which were the ancient port cities of Naples and its nearby counterpart Amalfi, from which local products were exported. The main export was durum wheat, with other exports including nuts, timber, oil, bacon, cheese, furs, hides, hemp and cloth. Grain and other dry products were measured in salme, which was equivalent to 275.08 litres in the western part of the Kingdom, and 300.3 litres in the eastern part. The salma was divided in 16 tumoli. One tumolo was equivalent to 17,193 litres. Weight was measured in cantari. One cantaro was equivalent to and was divided in one hundred rottoli. Cloth was measured in canne. One canna was 2.06 meters long. By the end of the 12th century, Messina had become one of the leading commercial cities of the kingdom.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: Under the Kingdom, Sicily's products went to many different lands. Among these were Genoa, Pisa, the Byzantine Empire, and Egypt. Over the course of the 12th century, Sicily became an important source of raw materials for north Italian cities such as Genoa. As the centuries went on, however, this economic relationship became less advantageous to Sicily, and some modern scholars see the relationship as definitely exploitative. Furthermore, many scholars believe that Sicily went into decline in the Late Middle Ages, though they do not agree about when this decline occurred. Clifford Backman argues that it is a mistake to see the economic history of Sicily in terms of victimization, and contends that the decline really began in the second part of the reign of Frederick III, in contrast to earlier scholars who believed that Sicilian decline had set in earlier. Where earlier scholars saw late medieval Sicily in continuous decline, Stephen Epstein argued that Sicilian society experienced something of a revival in the 15th century.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: The feudalisation of society during the Angevin rule reduced royal wealth and treasury. The dependence of the Angevin on north Italian commerce and financing by Florentine bankers were the main factors which led to the decline of the Kingdom's economy. The continuation of the economic decline combined with the increased population and urbanization led to decrease of agrarian production.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: In 1800, one-third of the available crops was cultivated with obsolete methods, exacerbating the problem. In the later period of Spanish rule, the trading system was also inefficient compared with previous periods because of high taxes on exports and monopolising corporations which had total control of prices.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: The Norman kings in the 12th century used the tari, which had been used in Sicily from 913 as the basic coin. One tari weighed about one gram and was carats of gold. The Arab dinar was worth four tari, and the Byzantine solidus six tari. In the kingdom, one onza was equivalent to thirty tari or five florins. One tari was worth twenty grani. One grana was equivalent to six denari. After 1140, the circulation of the copper coin romesina stopped and it was replaced by the follaris. Twenty-four follari were equivalent to one Byzantine miliaresion.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: After defeating the Tunisians in 1231, king Frederick II minted the augustalis. It was minted in carats and weighed 5.28 grams. In 1490, the triumphi were minted in Sicily. They were equivalent to the Venetian ducat. One triumpho was worth aquilae. One aquila was worth twenty grani. In transactions tari and pichuli were mainly used.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: During the Norman reign, several different religious communities coexisted in the Kingdom of Sicily. These included Latin Catholics (Roman Catholics), Greek-rite Catholics (Greek Catholic), Muslims and Jews. Although local religious practices were not interrupted, the fact that Latin Catholics were in power tended to favor Latin Catholicism (Roman Catholicism). Bishops of the Greek rite were obliged to recognize the claims of the Latin Church in Sicily, while Muslim communities were no longer ruled by local emirs. Greek-speaking Christians, Latin Christians, and Muslims interacted on a regular basis, and were involved in each other's lives, economically, linguistically, and culturally. Some intermarried. Catholics living in an Arabic-speaking area might adopt Arabic or even Muslim names. In many cities, each religious community had its own administrative and judicial order. In Palermo, Muslims were allowed to publicly call for prayer in mosques, and their legal issues were settled by qadis, judges who ruled in accordance with Islamic law. Since the 12th century, the Kingdom of Sicily recognized Christianity as the state religion.


title: Kingdom of Sicily

text: After the establishment of Hohenstaufen authority, Latin- and Greek-speaking Catholics maintained their privileges, but the Muslim population was increasingly oppressed. The settlements of Italians brought from northern Italy (who wanted Muslim property for their own) led many Muslim communities to revolt or resettle in mountainous areas of Sicily. These revolts resulted in some acts of violence, and the eventual deportation of Muslims, which began under Frederick II. Eventually, the government removed the entire Muslim population to Lucera in Apulia and Girifalco in Calabria, where they paid taxes and served as agricultural laborers, craftsmen, and crossbowmen for the benefit of the king. The colony at Lucera was finally disbanded in 1300 under Charles II of Naples, and many of its inhabitants sold into slavery. The Jewish community was expelled after the establishment of the Spanish Inquisition from 1493 to 1513 in Sicily. The remaining Jews were gradually assimilated, and most of them converted to Roman Catholicism.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: The Liberal Party (Filipino and Spanish: "Partido Liberal"), abbreviated as the LP, is a liberal political party in the Philippines.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: Founded on January 19, 1946, by Senate President Manuel Roxas, Senate President Pro-Tempore Elpidio Quirino, and former 9th Senatorial District Senator José Avelino from the breakaway liberal wing of the old Nacionalista Party (NP), the Liberal Party remains the second-oldest active political party in the Philippines after the NP, and the oldest continually-active party. The LP served as the governing party of four Philippine presidents: Manuel Roxas, Elpidio Quirino, Diosdado Macapagal, and Benigno Aquino III. As a vocal opposition party to the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos, it reemerged as a major political party after the People Power Revolution and the establishment of the Fifth Republic. It subsequently served as a senior member of President Corazon Aquino's UNIDO coalition. Upon Corazon Aquino's death in 2009, the party regained popularity, winning the 2010 Philippine presidential election under Benigno Aquino III and returning it to government to serve from 2010 to 2016. This was the only instance the party had won the presidency since the end of the Marcos dictatorship, however, as it lost control of the office to Rodrigo Duterte of PDP–Laban in the 2016 presidential election and became the leading opposition party once again. Its vice presidential candidate Leni Robredo won in the same election, however, narrowly beating the second candidate by a small margin.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: The Liberal Party was the political party of the immediate past Vice President of the Philippines. In the 2019 midterm elections, the party remained the primary opposition party of the Philippines, holding three seats in the Senate. The LP was the largest party outside of Rodrigo Duterte's supermajority, holding 18 seats in the House of Representatives after 2019. In local government, the party held two provincial governorships and five vice governorships. The general election of 2022, however, was a setback for the party, which lost both the Presidency and Vice-Presidency, as well as all of its seats in the Senate, and saw its representation in the House of Representatives reduced.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: The Liberal Party remains an influential organization in contemporary Philippine politics. With center-left positions on social issues and centrist positions on economic issues, it is commonly associated with the post-revolution, liberal-democratic status quo of the Philippines in contrast to authoritarianism, neoconservatism, and socialism. Aside from presidents, the party has been led by liberal thinkers and progressive politicians including Benigno Aquino Jr., Jovito Salonga, Raul Daza, Florencio B. Abad Jr., Franklin Drilon, and Mar Roxas. Two of its members, Corazon Aquino and Leila de Lima, have received the prestigious Prize For Freedom, one of the highest international awards for liberal and democratic politicians since 1985 given by Liberal International. The Liberal Party is a member of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats and Liberal International.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: The Liberal Party was founded on January 19, 1946, by Manuel Roxas, the first President of the Third Philippine Republic. It was formed by Roxas from what was once the "Liberal Wing" of the Nacionalista Party. Two more Presidents of the Philippines elected into office came from the LP: Elpidio Quirino and Diosdado Macapagal. Two other presidents came from the ranks of the LP, as former members of the party who later joined the Nacionalistas: Ramon Magsaysay and Ferdinand Marcos.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: During the days leading to his declaration of martial law, Marcos would find his old party as a potent roadblock to his quest for one-man rule. Led by Ninoy Aquino, Gerry Roxas and Jovito Salonga, the LP would hound President Marcos on issues like human rights and the curtailment of freedoms. Even after Marcos' declaration of martial law silenced the LP, the party continued to oppose the regime, and many of its leaders and members would be prosecuted and even killed during this time.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: After democracy was restored after the People Power Revolution, the LP was instrumental in ending more than half a century of US military presence in the Philippines with its campaign in the 1991 senate to reject a new RP-US Bases Treaty. This ironically cost the party dearly, losing for it the elections of 1992. In 2000, it was in opposition to the Joseph Estrada administration, actively supporting the Resign-Impeach-Oust initiatives that led to People Power II.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: On March 2, members of the LP installed Manila Mayor Lito Atienza as the party president, which triggered an LP leadership struggle and party schism. The Supreme Court later proclaimed Drilon the true president of the party, leaving the Atienza wing expelled.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: The Liberal Party regained influence when it nominated as its next presidential candidate then-Senator Benigno Aquino III, the son of former President Corazon Aquino, for the 2010 Philippine presidential election after the latter's death that subsequently showed a groundswell of support for his candidacy. Even though the party had earlier nominated Sen. Manuel "Mar" Roxas II to be its presidential candidate for the 2010 Philippine general election, Roxas gave way to Aquino and instead ran for vice president. The party was able to field new members breaking away from the then-ruling party Lakas–Kampi–CMD, becoming the largest minority party in Congress. Aquino would later win by plurality, and the LP would become the majority party in Congress.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: In the 2016 presidential elections, the Liberal Party nominated Mar Roxas, former Department of Transportation and Communications (DoTC) and Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) secretary, and Leni Robredo, a representative from Naga City and widow of Jesse Robredo, the DILG secretary who preceded Roxas, as the party's presidential and vice presidential candidates. Robredo won, while Roxas lost. Most of the party's members either switched allegiance to PDP–Laban, joined a supermajority alliance but retained their LP membership (with some defecting later), joined the "recognized minority", or created an opposition bloc called "Magnificent 7".


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: As early as February 2017, the leaders of the Liberal Party chose to focus on rebuilding the party by inviting sectoral representation of non-politicians in its membership numbers. Since then the party had been inducting new members who were non-politicians, some of whom applied online through the party's website, Liberal.ph. Before the scheduled 2019 general elections, the LP formed Otso Diretso, an electoral coalition of eight candidates for the senate race; led by the party, the coalition field also comprised members of the Magdalo Party-List, Akbayan Citizens Action Party, and Aksyon Demokratiko. None of the eight senatorial candidates under Otso Diretso won a seat, however; it was the first time in the history of the current bicameral composition of the Philippine Congress under the 1987 Constitution that the opposition failed to win a seat in one of the chambers, and the second time that a Liberal Party-led coalition suffered a great loss since 1955.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: For the 2022 Philippine presidential election, the Liberal Party nominated Leni Robredo and Francis Pangilinan for the presidential and vice presidential posts, respectively.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: While the Liberal Party defines its ideology as social liberalism, the party has often been described as a "centrist" or "liberal" party. Historically, the Liberal Party has been evaluated as a "conservative" party, with an ideology similar to or indistinguishable from the Nacionalista Party's ideology, until it became the opposition party under the Marcos dictatorship, wherein it became more liberal. Being a founding member of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats and a full member of Liberal International, the Liberal Party advocates the values of "freedom, justice and solidarity ("bayanihan")," as described in the party's values charter. Although this may be deemed theoretically true since the party's founding in 1946, it became more tangible through the party's position of continuing dissent during the Marcos dictatorship.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: Since 2017, the party has opened party membership to the general public and to key sectors of society, aiming to harness a large volunteering base. According to the party, this aims to ostensibly build on "the promise of becoming a true people’s party".


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: The party has declared policies geared toward inclusiveness and people empowerment. It also advocates and supports secure jobs, food, shelter, universal health care, public education access, and other social services, and is against extrajudicial killings, any challenge to the rule of law, and curtailments of human rights strictures. The party also aims to form an open government with participatory democracy, positions that have been supported by the party's recent leaders.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: Senator Leila de Lima, who led an investigation into alleged extrajudicial deaths in the early months of Duterte's war on drugs, was issued an arrest warrant in 2017 based on charges linked to the New Bilibid Prison drug trafficking scandal, which the party claimed was based on trumped-up charges, labelling the arrest "patently illegal". While on the whole, de Lima's investigation was seen by some pundits as an adversarial investigation that was a strategic mistake, others in the party simply saw it as a call to a review of the party's principles and how members have adhered to them.


title: Liberal Party (Philippines)

text: In 2019, the party, along with other groups, was accused of planning a coup against the Duterte government. The party denounced the allegation and called it a state-sponsored threat of legal abuse, demanding the government provide evidence to back the claims.


title: Whippet

text: The Whippet is a dog breed of medium size. It is a sighthound breed that originated in England, descended from the Greyhound. Whippets today still strongly resemble a smaller Greyhound. Part of the hound group, Whippets have relatively few health problems other than arrhythmia. Whippets also participate in dog sports such as lure coursing, agility, dock diving and flyball. The name is derived from an early 17th-century word, now obsolete, meaning "to move briskly".


title: Whippet

text: There has been continuity in describing Greyhound-types of different sizes: large, medium and small, recorded in hunting manuals and works on natural history from the Middle Ages. Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York confirmed in his early 15th-century translation and additions to the original late 14th-century French "Livre de chasse" the advantage of maintaining the great, the middle, and the small size of greyhound for different sorts of game. The English physician and academic John Caius refers in his 16th century "De Canibus Britannicus" to "lesser" as well as greater sorts of "Leporarius, Grehounde" (greyhound) and notably to a type which has been connected to the Whippet, the "Tumbler", a lesser sort of "mungrell Greyhounde" and excellent warren dog for catching rabbits, also recorded by the early 19th-century Scottish curator and editor Thomas Brown. The Victorian English writers describe the emerging modern breed of Whippet or "snap-dog" bred for catching rabbits, coursing competitions, straight rag-racing, and for the novel show fancy.


title: Whippet

text: This has led to Whippets being described as "the poor man's greyhound". They are a popular companion breed frequently used in amateur racing, lure coursing, and dog shows; they have the highest running speed of breeds for their weight: and are possibly the fastest-accelerating dog breed.


title: Whippet

text: Whippets were bred to hunt by sight, coursing game in open areas at high speeds. There are numerous representations of small greyhound-like hounds in art dating back to Ancient Egyptian times. In medieval England, a small Greyhound breed became popular for use as a ratting dog; the first written English use of the word "Whippet" with regard to a type of dog was in 1610.


title: Whippet

text: Whippets were commonly known as "snap dogs" for their tendency to "snap up" nearby prey. In the picture by Jean-Baptiste Oudry (1686–1755) of two dogs presented to Louis XV, they are either Whippets or small Greyhounds, but are probably related to an early form of Whippet. Oudry also painted a second painting of Misse with a different, non-sighthound dog. There is a 1758 painting by Pompeo Batoni entitled "Portrait of Charles Compton, 7th Earl of Northampton" which features a similar whippet-like dog.


title: Whippet

text: In the 19th century, Whippet racing was a popular sport in parts of England. The Whippet was held in high regard in the northern parts of England and Wales, but was generally disregarded in the rest of the country. At the time, there were two varieties of Whippet. The first type had a smooth coat, was more popular in Lancashire, Yorkshire, and the Midlands, and became the modern Whippet. The other had a rough coat from crossbreeding with Bedlington Terriers. This type was more popular in Durham and Northumberland and was frequently referred to as a "rabbit dog". Early specimens were taken from the race track by the dog fanciers of the time and exported around the world. John Taylor said that "In all the shapes and forms of dogges; of all which there are but two sorts that are useful to man's profits, which two are the mastiffe and the little curre, whippet, or house-dogge; all the rest are for pleasure and recreation."


title: Whippet

text: The age of the modern Whippet dawned in 1891 when The Kennel Club granted the breed official recognition, thus making the Whippet eligible for competition in dog shows, and commencing the recording of their pedigrees. In the United States, the Whippet was recognised in 1888 by the American Kennel Club. Whippets arrived in the United States with mill operators from England, and the first populations were established in Massachusetts. The Whippet is the 55th most popular breed according to the American Kennel Club.


title: Whippet

text: In 1964, Ch. Courtenay Fleetfoot of Pennyworth won best in show at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. In 1992, Pencloe Dutch Gold won best in show at Crufts, a Whippet known as Cobyco Call the Tune won in 2004 and in 2018 the award was achieved by Ch Collooney Tartan Tease. In 2011, GCh. Starline's Chanel, a female Whippet, was chosen as the hound Show Dog of the Year by the Westminster Kennel Club.


title: Whippet

text: Dog racing was originally an extension of hare coursing. Whippets began to be bred to race in the mid-nineteenth century. The first form of the sport was a rudimentary form of coursing known as 'ragging', and dogs who participated were said to be 'trained to the rag'. Dogs were kept on a leash by a person known as a "slip", who was frequently also the race judge. The slip would release the dogs from their collars at the same time, and they would race towards their owners, who were standing at the opposite end of the track waving towels.


title: Whippet

text: Whippet rags were a popular Sunday event in the north and Midlands at the time. There were also international events; in Australia, at a track known as Gurney's Paddock, there were races of more than 300 whippets every Saturday, and three nights a week at the White City track. Eventually, the sport evolved and dogs were divided into four groups: those who hunted rabbits, which was not governed by rules; those who coursed hare, for which a set of rules was established; those trained to the rag; and those trained to chase a mechanical lure in a fashion similar to Greyhound races. Few of the Whippets if any of the four types were purebred, as maintaining a purebred bloodline was not considered as important as breeding dogs that could win races. Many racing dogs were part-terrier, part-Greyhound, or part-Lurcher.


title: Whippet

text: In 1967, the British Whippet Racing Association was established to bring around reform and consistency in race rules and procedures for races involving non-purebred Whippets. A year later, viewing the non-purebred dogs as a threat, the Whippet Club Racing Association was established exclusively for purebred animals.


title: Whippet

text: Whippets are a medium-sized dog weighing from . There are two height ranges for Whippets, depending on whether or not the dog is being shown in North America. The Fédération Cynologique Internationale and The Kennel Club both call for heights of for males and for females. Whippets tend to be somewhat larger in the United States and Canada as the American Kennel Club and Canadian Kennel Club standards are larger; for males, and for females. Because colour is considered immaterial in judging Whippets, they come in a wide variety of colours and marking patterns, everything from solid black to solid white, with red, fawn, brindle, blue, or cream. In 2019, The Kennel Club announced it would no longer accept registrations for merle Whippets as it is not a naturally occurring colour in the breed. The coat is short, smooth and close.


title: Whippet

text: They are the fastest dog of their weight, capable of achieving speeds of up to . This is due to their ability to run in a double suspension gallop. This gait results in four of the dog's legs being off the ground twice in each stride, once when the legs are completely extended and again when they are tucked under the body.


title: Whippet

text: Whippets are quiet and reserved but also exhibit a playful side, and require regular exercise. They are generally gentle dogs and are often content to spend much of the day resting. The AKC describes them as "quiet and dignified in their owner's living room" and says they make "excellent house dogs." Whippets have been called a "poor man's racehorse" by the colliers in Lancashire and Yorkshire.


title: Whippet

text: The whippet will form a strong bond and devotion to their owner and as such can often suffer from separation anxiety like many other breeds when left alone. They do not bark often but do occasionally in the presence of intruders, making the whippet a passable watch dog similar to other small-medium dogs. However a whippet would likely never attack or guard against anyone due to their gentle and often shy demeanour.


title: Whippet

text: Whippets course, work, and race; they have been bred for these jobs for years. This has kept them a structurally sound breed which is predominantly free from the physical exaggerations that can lead to certain health problems. Whippets are, like other sighthounds, intolerant of barbiturate anesthetics. This is in part due to their low concentration of body fat and their liver's inability to metabolise the anesthetics.


title: Whippet

text: Given proper nutrition, exercise, and veterinary care, most Whippets live for 12 to 15 years. A UK breed survey puts the median lifespan at 12 years 10 months. They are generally healthy, and are not prone to the frequent ear infections, skin allergies, or digestive problems that can afflict other breeds. Genetic eye defects, though quite rare, have been noted in the breed. Because of this, the American Whippet Club recommends that breeders test for this defect in their breeding stock. Hip dysplasia is rare in Whippets, with only 1.2% of 161 evaluations performed by the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals being determined as dysplasic.


title: Whippet

text: The heart of a Whippet is large and slow beating, often being arrhythmic or even intermittent when the animal is at rest. This sometimes causes concern to the owner, or to the vet not experienced with the breed. Whippets will, however, demonstrate a regular heartbeat during exercise. In a health survey conducted by The Kennel Club, cardiac problems were shown to be the second leading cause of mortality in Whippets.


title: Whippet

text: A 2007 study identified a myostatin mutation particular to Whippets that is significantly associated with their athletic performance. Whippets with a single copy of this mutation are generally unaffected; those with two copies have disproportionately large musculature and are known as "bully whippets". These bully whippets experience no significant health problems beyond those experienced by a normal whippet, but may be more prone to muscle cramping. The mutation has not been seen in Greyhounds or other sighthound breeds, or in heavily muscled dogs such as Bullmastiffs, Bulldogs, Rottweilers or American Staffordshire Terriers.


title: Whippet

text: Jim the Whippet played a central role in a trilogy of canal travel books by Terry Darlington. Described as a 'narrow dog' he lent his name to the book's titles - "Narrow Dog to Carcassonne", "Narrow Dog to Indian River" and "Narrow Dog to Wigan Pier".


title: Highway to Hell

text: Highway to Hell is the sixth studio album by Australian hard rock band AC/DC, released on 27 July 1979. It was the last album featuring lead singer Bon Scott, who would die early the following year on 19 February 1980.


title: Highway to Hell

text: By 1978, AC/DC had released five albums internationally and had toured Australia and Europe extensively. In 1977, they landed in America and, with virtually no radio support, began to amass a live following. The band's most recent album, the live "If You Want Blood", had reached number 13 in the United Kingdom, and the two albums previous to that, 1977's "Let There Be Rock" and 1978's "Powerage", had seen the band find their raging, blues-based hard rock sound. Although the American branch of Atlantic Records had rejected the group's 1976 LP "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap", it now believed the band was poised to strike it big in the States if only they would work with a producer who could give them a radio-friendly sound. Since their 1975 Australian debut "High Voltage", all of AC/DC's albums had been produced by George Young and Harry Vanda. According to the book "AC/DC: Maximum Rock & Roll", the band was not enthusiastic about the idea, especially guitarists Angus Young and Malcolm Young, who felt a strong sense of loyalty to their older brother George:


title: Highway to Hell

text: The producer Atlantic paired the band with was South African-born Eddie Kramer, best known for his pioneering work as engineer for Jimi Hendrix but also for mega-bands Led Zeppelin and Kiss. Kramer met the band at Criteria Studios in Miami, Florida but, by all accounts, they did not get on. Geoff Barton quotes Malcolm Young in "Guitar Legends" magazine: "Kramer was a bit of a prat. He looked at Bon and said to us, 'Can your guy sing?' He might've sat behind the knobs for Hendrix, but he's certainly not Hendrix, I can tell you that much." Former AC/DC manager Michael Browning recalls in the 1994 book "Highway to Hell: The Life and Times of AC/DC Legend Bon Scott", "I got a phone call from Malcolm in Florida, to say, 'This guy's hopeless, do something, he's trying to talk us into recording that Spencer Davis song,' 'Gimme Some Lovin',' 'I'm a Man,' whatever it was." Browning turned to Zambian-born producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange to step in. Lange was best known for producing the Boomtown Rats number-one hit "Rat Trap" and post-pub rock bands like Clover, City Boy, and Graham Parker. In 1979, singer Bon Scott told "RAM" magazine, "Three weeks in Miami and we hadn't written a thing with Kramer. So one day we told him we were going to have a day off and not to bother coming in. This was Saturday, and we snuck into the studio and on that one day we put down six songs, sent the tape to Lange and said, 'Will you work with us?'" The band had also signed up with new management, firing Michael Browning and hiring Peter Mensch, an aggressive American who had helped develop the careers of Aerosmith and Ted Nugent.


title: Highway to Hell

text: Recording commenced at the Roundhouse Recording Studios in Chalk Farm, north London in March 1979. In his book "Highway to Hell", Clinton Walker writes, "The band virtually moved into the Roundhouse Studios in Chalk Farm, spending the best part of three months there. That, to start with, was a shock to AC/DC, who had never previously spent more than three weeks on any one album... Sessions for the album—15 hours a day, day-in day-out, for over two months—were gruelling. Songs were worked and reworked." Lange's no-nonsense approach was appreciated by the band, whose own work ethic had always been solid. In an article by "Mojo"s Sylvie Simmons, Malcolm Young stated that Lange "liked the simplicity of a band. We were all minimalist. We felt it was the best way to be... He knew we were all dedicated so he sort of got it. But he made sure the tracks were solid, and he could hear if a snare just went off." In the same article Angus Young added, "He was meticulous about sound, getting right guitars and drums. He would zero in—and he was good too on the vocal side. Even Bon was impressed with how he could get his voice to sound." Tour manager, Ian Jeffery, who was present during recordings recalled:


title: Highway to Hell

text: In "AC/DC: Maximum Rock & Roll", Arnaud Durieux writes that Lange, a trained singer, showed Scott how to breathe so he could be a technically better singer on songs like "Touch Too Much" and would join in on background vocals himself, having to stand on the other side of the studio because his own voice was so distinctive. The melodic backing vocals was a new element to the band's sound, but the polish that Lange added did not detract from the band's characteristic crunch, thereby satisfying the band and Atlantic Records at the same time.


title: Highway to Hell

text: Lange also taught Angus some useful lessons, instructing him to play his solos while sitting next to the producer. "Mutt said: 'Sit here and I'll tell you what I want you to play'," recalls Jeffery. "Angus was like, 'You fucking will, will ya?' But he sat next to Mutt and Mutt didn't force it on him, just kind of pointed at the fretboard and, 'Here, this...' and 'Hold that...' and 'Now go into that...' It was the solo from "Highway To Hell". It was fantastic! And that really stood them all to attention on Mutt too. He wasn’t asking them to do anything he couldn’t do himself, or getting on their case saying it’s been wrong in the past; nothing like that. He really massaged them into what became that album".


title: Highway to Hell

text: The album's most famous song is its title track. From the outset, Atlantic Records hated the idea of using the song as the album title, with Angus recalling to "Guitar World"'s Alan Di Perna:


title: Highway to Hell

text: The words to "Highway to Hell" took on a new resonance when Scott drank himself to death in 1980. AllMusic's Steve Huey observes:


title: Highway to Hell

text: Scott's lyrics on "Highway to Hell" deal almost exclusively with lust ("Love Hungry Man", "Girls Got Rhythm"), sex ("Beating Around the Bush", "Touch Too Much", "Walk All Over You"), and partying on the town ("Get It Hot", "Shot Down in Flames"). In his 2006 band memoir, Murray Engelheart reveals that Scott felt the lyrics of songs like "Gone Shootin'" from the preceding "Powerage" were "simply too serious."


title: Highway to Hell

text: "Touch Too Much" had been first recorded in July 1977, with a radically different arrangement and lyrics from its "Highway to Hell" incarnation. The final version was performed by Scott and AC/DC on the BBC music show "Top of the Pops" a few days before the singer's death in 1980. The song "If You Want Blood (You've Got It)" borrowed the title of the band's live album from the previous year and stemmed from Scott's response to a journalist at the Day on the Green festival in July 1978: when asked what they could expect from the band, Scott replied, "Blood".


title: Highway to Hell

text: The opening guitar riff of "Beating Around the Bush" has been referred to by journalist Phil Sutcliffe as "almost a tribute... a reflection, I hesitate to say a copy" of "Oh Well" by Fleetwood Mac.


title: Highway to Hell

text: Asked "What's the worst record you've ever made?", Angus replied, "There's a song on "Highway to Hell" called 'Love Hungry Man' which I must have written after a night of bad pizza – you can blame me for that."


title: Highway to Hell

text: Perhaps the album's most infamous song is "Night Prowler", mainly due to its association with serial killer Richard Ramírez. In June 1985, a highly publicised murder case began, revolving around Ramirez, who was responsible for brutal killings in Los Angeles. Nicknamed the "Night Stalker", Ramírez was a fan of AC/DC, particularly "Night Prowler". Police also claimed that Ramirez left an AC/DC hat at one of the crime scenes. During the trial, Ramírez said "Hail Satan" and showed off the pentagram drawn on his palm with the numbers 666 below it. This brought extremely bad publicity to AC/DC, whose concerts and albums faced protests by parents in Los Angeles. On VH1's "Behind the Music" on AC/DC, the band maintained that the song had been given a murderous connotation by Ramírez, but is actually about a boy sneaking into his girlfriend's bedroom at night while her parents are asleep, in spite of lyrics such as "And you don't feel the steel, till it's hanging out your back". The final words spoken by Scott on the song are "Shazbot, na-nu na-nu", phrases from the popular American sitcom, "Mork and Mindy", by lead character Mork (a visiting extraterrestrial played by Robin Williams). The phrase closed the album.


title: Highway to Hell

text: "Highway to Hell" was originally released on 29 July 1979 by Albert Productions, who licensed the album to Atlantic Records for release outside of Australia, and was then re-released by Epic Records in 2003 as part of the "AC/DC Remasters" series. On 25 May 2006, "Highway to Hell" was certified 7× Platinum by the RIAA. In Australia, "Highway to Hell" was originally released with a slightly different album cover, featuring flames and a drawing of a bass guitar neck superimposed over the same group photo used on the international cover. Also, the AC/DC logo is a darker shade of maroon, but the accents are a bit lighter. Additionally, the East German release had different and much plainer designs on the front and back, apparently because the authorities were not happy with the sleeve as released elsewhere. Two songs from the album, "Highway to Hell" was featured in the 2003 film "Final Destination 2" and 2010 film, "" and "If You Want Blood (You've Got It)" is featured in five films; "Empire Records", "The Longest Yard", "Shoot Em Up", "Final Destination 5" and finally, "The Dukes of Hazzard". The song "Walk All Over You" is featured in the movie "Grown Ups". "Touch Too Much" is featured on the soundtrack for the video game "". it was also used for the World Wrestling Federation SummerSlam (1998) theme song. In October 2010, "Highway to Hell" was listed in the top 50 in the book, "100 Best Australian Albums" with "Back in Black" at No. 2.


title: Highway to Hell

text: "Highway to Hell" became AC/DC's first LP to break the US Top 100, eventually reaching number 17, and it propelled the band into the top ranks of hard rock acts. It is the second highest selling AC/DC album (behind "Back in Black") and is generally considered one of the greatest hard rock albums ever made. Greg Kot of "Rolling Stone" writes, "The songs are more compact, the choruses fattened by rugby-team harmonies. The prize moment: Scott closes the hip-grinding 'Shot Down in Flames' with a cackle worthy of the Wicked Witch of the West." In a 2008 "Rolling Stone" cover story, David Fricke notes: "Superproducer 'Mutt' Lange sculpted AC/DC's rough-granite rock into chart-smart boogie on this album." AllMusic calls the song "Highway to Hell" "one of hard rock's all-time anthems." In 2003, the album was ranked number 199 on "Rolling Stone" magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, and 200 in a 2012 revised list.


title: Highway to Hell

text: In 2013, AC/DC fans Steevi Diamond and Jon Morter (who was behind the Rage Against the Machine Facebook campaign in 2009) spearheaded a Facebook campaign to get the title track to become a UK Christmas number one in the UK Singles Chart, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of AC/DC, and to prevent "The X Factor" from achieving another number one hit single. The campaign raised proceeds to Feel Yourself, a testicular cancer awareness charity. The single peaked at number four in the Official UK Charts, scoring AC/DC's first ever UK Top 10 single.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: The Defenestrations of Prague (, , ) were three incidents in the history of Bohemia in which people were defenestrated (thrown out of a window). Though already existing in Middle French, the word "defenestrate" ("out of the window") is believed to have first been used in English in reference to the episodes in Prague in 1618 when the disgruntled Protestant estates threw two royal governors out of a window of the Hradčany Castle and wrote an extensive apologia explaining their action. In the Middle Ages and early modern times, defenestration was not uncommon—the act carried elements of lynching and mob violence in the form of murder committed together.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: The first governmental defenestration occurred in 1419, second in 1483 and the third in 1618, although the term "Defenestration of Prague" more commonly refers to the third. Often, however, the 1483 event is not recognized as a "significant defenestration", which leads to some ambiguity when the 1618 defenestration is referred to as the "second Prague defenestration". The first and third defenestrations helped to trigger a prolonged religious conflict inside Bohemia (the Hussite Wars, 1st defenestration) or beyond (Thirty Years' War, 3rd defenestration), while the second helped establish a religious peace in the country for 31 years (Peace of Kutná Hora, 2nd defenestration).


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: The First Defenestration of Prague involved the killing of seven members of the city council by a crowd of Czech Hussites on 30 July 1419.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: Jan Želivský, a Hussite priest at the church of the Virgin Mary of the Snows, led his congregation on a procession through the streets of Prague to the New Town Hall (Novoměstská radnice) on Charles Square. The town council members had refused to exchange their Hussite prisoners. While they were marching, a stone was thrown at Želivský from the window of the town hall and allegedly hit him. This enraged the mob and they stormed the town hall. Once inside the hall, the group defenestrated the judge, the burgomaster, and several members of the town council. They were all killed by the fall.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia, after hearing the news, was stunned and died shortly after, supposedly due to shock.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: The procession was a result of the growing discontent at the contemporary direction of the Church and the inequality between the peasants, the Church's prelates, and the nobility. This discontent combined with rising feelings of nationalism increased the influence of preachers such as Jan Želivský, influenced by John Wycliffe, who saw the state of the Catholic Church as corrupt. These preachers urged their congregations to action, including taking up arms, to combat these perceived transgressions.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: The First Defenestration was thus the turning point between talk and action leading to the prolonged Hussite Wars. The wars broke out shortly afterward and lasted until 1436.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: This defenestration took place on 24 September, 1483 during the storms of the Prague population during the reign of King Vladislaus II of Hungary. He was king of Bohemia at that time but he became the king of Moravia and Hungary only after Matthias Corvinus died in 1490. It was then that the party of the Communion under both kinds, fearing for their influence, carried out a violent coup in the Old and New Towns and Lesser Town. The Old Town Burgomaster and the dead bodies of seven New Town councilors were defenestrated from the respective town halls. The coup in Prague contributed to the limitation of ruling power and prevented the resumption of pre-Hussian conditions. On October 6, 1483, three Prague municipalities signed a treaty on unity and common action, which brought the dominion of the Utraquism. The development then led to religious reconciliation and the declaration of equality of both churches at the Kutná Hora Assembly in 1485.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: In 1555, the Peace of Augsburg had settled religious disputes in the Holy Roman Empire by enshrining the principle of "Cuius regio, eius religio", allowing a prince to determine the religion of his subjects. The Kingdom of Bohemia since 1526 had been governed by Habsburg kings, who did not force their Catholic religion on their largely Protestant subjects. In 1609, Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia (1576–1612), increased Protestant rights. He was increasingly viewed as unfit to govern, and other members of the Habsburg dynasty declared his younger brother, Matthias, to be family head in 1606. Matthias began to gradually wrest territory from Rudolf, beginning with Hungary. In 1609, to strengthen his hold on Bohemia, Rudolf issued the "Letter of Majesty", which granted Bohemia's largely Protestant estates the right to freely exercise their religion, essentially setting up a Protestant Bohemian state church controlled by the estates, "dominated by the towns and rural nobility". Upon Rudolf's death, Matthias succeeded in the rule of Bohemia (1612–1619) and extended his offer of more legal and religious concessions to Bohemia, relying mostly on the advice of his chancellor, Bishop Melchior Klesl.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: Conflict was precipitated by two factors: Matthias, already aging, and without children, made his cousin Ferdinand of Styria his heir and had him elected king in 1617. Ferdinand was a proponent of the Catholic Counter-Reformation and not likely to be well-disposed to Protestantism or Bohemian freedoms. Bohemian Protestants opposed the royal government as they interpreted the Letter of Majesty to extend not only to the land controlled by the nobility or self-governing towns but also to the King's own lands. Whereas Matthias and Klesl were prepared to appease these demands, Ferdinand was not; in 1618 he forced the Emperor to order the cessation of construction of some Protestant chapels on royal land. When the Bohemian estates protested against this order, Ferdinand had their assembly dissolved.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: On 23 May, 1618, four Catholic Lords Regent, Count Jaroslav Bořita of Martinice, Count Vilem Slavata of Chlum, Adam II von Sternberg (who was the supreme burgrave), and Matthew Leopold Popel Lobkowitz (who was the grand prior), arrived at the Bohemian Chancellory at 8:30 am. After preparing the meeting hall, members of the dissolved assembly of the three main Protestant estates gathered at 9:00 am, led by Count Thurn, who had been deprived of his post as castellan (burgrave) of Karlštejn Castle by the Emperor. The Protestant lords' agenda was to clarify whether the four regents present were responsible for persuading the Emperor to order the cessation of Protestant church construction on royal lands. According to count of Martinice himself:


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: Before the regents gave any answer, they requested that the Protestants give them the opportunity to confer with their superior, Adam von Waldstein, who was not present. If they were given the opportunity, the Protestants were to receive an official answer to their grievance by the next Friday (the encounter took place on the eve of Ascension Day, and they all had to observe the holy day). The Protestant lords, however, demanded an immediate answer. Two regents, Adam II von Sternberg and Matthew Leopold Popel Lobkowitz, were declared innocent by the Protestant Estate holders, deemed to be too pious to have any responsibility in the preparation of the Emperor's letter. They were removed from the room; before leaving, Adam II von Sternberg made it clear that they "did not advise anything that was contrary to the Letter of Majesty". This left Count Vilem Slavata of Chlum and Count Jaroslav Bořita of Martinice (who had replaced Thurn as castellan), both known Catholic hard-liners, and Philip Fabricius, the secretary to the regents. They eventually acknowledged responsibility for the letter and, presuming they would only be arrested, welcomed any punishment the Protestants had planned.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: Count von Thurn turned to both Martinice and Slavata and said, "You are enemies of us and of our religion, have desired to deprive us of our Letter of Majesty, have horribly plagued your Protestant subjects... and have tried to force them to adopt your religion against their wills or have had them expelled for this reason." Then to the crowd of Protestants, he continued, "Were we to keep these men alive, then we would lose the Letter of Majesty and our religion... for there can be no justice to be gained from or by them". Shortly thereafter, the two regents and their secretary were defenestrated, but they survived the fall from the third floor. Catholics maintained the men were saved by angels or by the intercession of the Virgin Mary, who caught them; later Protestant pamphleteers asserted that they survived due to falling onto a dung heap, a story unknown to contemporaries and probably coined in response to divine intervention claims. Philip Fabricius was later ennobled by the emperor and granted the title "Baron von Hohenfall" (literally "Baron of Highfall").


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: Immediately after the defenestration, the Protestant estates and Catholic Habsburgs started gathering allies for war. After the death of Matthias in 1619, Ferdinand II was elected Holy Roman Emperor. At the same time, the Bohemian estates deposed him as King of Bohemia and replaced him with Frederick V, Elector Palatine, a leading Calvinist and son-in-law of the Protestant James VI and I, King of Scotland, England and Ireland.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: Because they deposed a properly chosen king, the Protestants could not gather the international support they needed for war. Just two years after the defenestration, Ferdinand and the Catholics regained power in the Battle of White Mountain on November 8, 1620. This became known as the first battle in the Thirty Years' War.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: There was plundering and pillaging in Prague for weeks following the battle. Several months later, twenty-seven nobles and citizens were tortured and executed in the Old Town Square. Twelve of their heads were impaled on iron hooks and hung from the Bridge Tower as a warning. This contributed to the resentment that gave rise to the Thirty Years' War.


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: More events of defenestration have occurred in Prague during its history, but they are not usually called "defenestrations of Prague".


title: Defenestrations of Prague

text: Sometimes, the name "the fourth" or "the third defenestration of Prague" is used, although it has no standard meaning. For example, it has been used to describe the death of Jan Masaryk, who was found below the bathroom window of the building of the Czechoslovak Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 10 March 1948. The official report listed the death as a suicide. However, it was widely believed he was murdered, either by the nascent Communist government in which he served as a non-partisan Foreign Minister, or by the Soviet secret services. A Prague police report in 2004 concluded after forensic research that at least one other person was involved in Masaryk's death. This report was seemingly corroborated in 2006 when a Russian journalist said that his mother knew the Russian intelligence officer who defenestrated Masaryk. However, a more recent investigation opened in 2019 again called those findings into question, with new research claiming that Masaryk fell not from the bathroom window, but from the adjacent exterior ledge. That investigation was shelved in 2021, with investigators citing a continuing lack of sufficient evidence to make conclusive determinations regarding the events of Masaryk's death.


title: Fraction

text: A fraction (from , "broken") represents a part of a whole or, more generally, any number of equal parts. When spoken in everyday English, a fraction describes how many parts of a certain size there are, for example, one-half, eight-fifths, three-quarters. A "common", "vulgar", or "simple" fraction (examples: formula_1 and formula_2) consists of a numerator, displayed above a line (or before a slash like ), and a non-zero denominator, displayed below (or after) that line. Numerators and denominators are also used in fractions that are not "common", including compound fractions, complex fractions, and mixed numerals.


title: Fraction

text: In positive common fractions, the numerator and denominator are natural numbers. The numerator represents a number of equal parts, and the denominator indicates how many of those parts make up a unit or a whole. The denominator cannot be zero, because zero parts can never make up a whole. For example, in the fraction , the numerator 3 indicates that the fraction represents 3 equal parts, and the denominator 4 indicates that 4 parts make up a whole. The picture to the right illustrates of a cake.


title: Fraction

text: A common fraction is a numeral which represents a rational number. That same number can also be represented as a decimal, a percent, or with a negative exponent. For example, 0.01, 1%, and 10 are all equal to the fraction 1/100. An integer can be thought of as having an implicit denominator of one (for example, 7 equals 7/1).


title: Fraction

text: Other uses for fractions are to represent ratios and division. Thus the fraction can also be used to represent the ratio 3:4 (the ratio of the part to the whole), and the division (three divided by four). The non-zero denominator rule, which applies when representing a division as a fraction, is an example of the rule that division by zero is undefined.


title: Fraction

text: We can also write negative fractions, which represent the opposite of a positive fraction. For example, if represents a half-dollar profit, then − represents a half-dollar loss. Because of the rules of division of signed numbers (which states in part that negative divided by positive is negative), −, and all represent the same fraction negative one-half. And because a negative divided by a negative produces a positive, represents positive one-half.


title: Fraction

text: In mathematics the set of all numbers that can be expressed in the form , where "a" and "b" are integers and "b" is not zero, is called the set of rational numbers and is represented by the symbol Q, which stands for quotient. A number is a rational number precisely when it can be written in that form (i.e., as a common fraction). However, the word "fraction" can also be used to describe mathematical expressions that are not rational numbers. Examples of these usages include algebraic fractions (quotients of algebraic expressions), and expressions that contain irrational numbers, such as formula_3 (see square root of 2) and (see proof that π is irrational).


title: Fraction

text: In a fraction, the number of equal parts being described is the numerator (from , "counter" or "numberer"), and the type or variety of the parts is the denominator (from , "thing that names or designates"). As an example, the fraction amounts to eight parts, each of which is of the type named "fifth". In terms of division, the numerator corresponds to the dividend, and the denominator corresponds to the divisor.


title: Fraction

text: Informally, the numerator and denominator may be distinguished by placement alone, but in formal contexts they are usually separated by a fraction bar. The fraction bar may be horizontal (as in ), oblique (as in 2/5), or diagonal (as in ). These marks are respectively known as the horizontal bar; the virgule, slash (US), or stroke (UK); and the fraction bar, solidus, or fraction slash. In typography, fractions stacked vertically are also known as "en" or "nut fractions", and diagonal ones as "em" or "mutton fractions", based on whether a fraction with a single-digit numerator and denominator occupies the proportion of a narrow "en" square, or a wider "em" square. In traditional typefounding, a piece of type bearing a complete fraction (e.g. ) was known as a "case fraction", while those representing only part of fraction were called "piece fractions".


title: Fraction

text: The denominators of English fractions are generally expressed as ordinal numbers, in the plural if the numerator is not 1. (For example, and are both read as a number of "fifths".) Exceptions include the denominator 2, which is always read "half" or "halves", the denominator 4, which may be alternatively expressed as "quarter"/"quarters" or as "fourth"/"fourths", and the denominator 100, which may be alternatively expressed as "hundredth"/"hundredths" or "percent".


title: Fraction

text: When the denominator is 1, it may be expressed in terms of "wholes" but is more commonly ignored, with the numerator read out as a whole number. For example, may be described as "three wholes", or simply as "three". When the numerator is 1, it may be omitted (as in "a tenth" or "each quarter").


title: Fraction

text: The entire fraction may be expressed as a single composition, in which case it is hyphenated, or as a number of fractions with a numerator of one, in which case they are not. (For example, "two-fifths" is the fraction and "two fifths" is the same fraction understood as 2 instances of .) Fractions should always be hyphenated when used as adjectives. Alternatively, a fraction may be described by reading it out as the numerator "over" the denominator, with the denominator expressed as a cardinal number. (For example, may also be expressed as "three over one".) The term "over" is used even in the case of solidus fractions, where the numbers are placed left and right of a slash mark. (For example, 1/2 may be read "one-half", "one half", or "one over two".) Fractions with large denominators that are "not" powers of ten are often rendered in this fashion (e.g., as "one over one hundred seventeen"), while those with denominators divisible by ten are typically read in the normal ordinal fashion (e.g., as "six-millionths", "six millionths", or "six one-millionths").


title: Fraction

text: A simple fraction (also known as a common fraction or vulgar fraction, where vulgar is Latin for "common") is a rational number written as "a"/"b" or formula_4, where "a" and "b" are both integers. As with other fractions, the denominator ("b") cannot be zero. Examples include formula_1, formula_6, formula_7, and formula_8. The term was originally used to distinguish this type of fraction from the sexagesimal fraction used in astronomy.


title: Fraction

text: "Common fractions" can be positive or negative, and they can be proper or improper (see below). Compound fractions, complex fractions, mixed numerals, and decimals (see below) are not "common fractions;" though, unless irrational, they can be evaluated to a common fraction.


title: Fraction

text: Common fractions can be classified as either proper or improper. When the numerator and the denominator are both positive, the fraction is called proper if the numerator is less than the denominator, and improper otherwise. The concept of an "improper fraction" is a late development, with the terminology deriving from the fact that "fraction" means "a piece", so a proper fraction must be less than 1. This was explained in the 17th century textbook "The Ground of Arts".


title: Fraction

text: In general, a common fraction is said to be a proper fraction, if the absolute value of the fraction is strictly less than one—that is, if the fraction is greater than −1 and less than 1. It is said to be an improper fraction, or sometimes top-heavy fraction, if the absolute value of the fraction is greater than or equal to 1. Examples of proper fractions are 2/3, −3/4, and 4/9, whereas examples of improper fractions are 9/4, −4/3, and 3/3.


title: Fraction

text: The reciprocal of a fraction is another fraction with the numerator and denominator exchanged. The reciprocal of formula_11, for instance, is formula_12. The product of a fraction and its reciprocal is 1, hence the reciprocal is the multiplicative inverse of a fraction. The reciprocal of a proper fraction is improper, and the reciprocal of an improper fraction not equal to 1 (that is, numerator and denominator are not equal) is a proper fraction.


title: Fraction

text: When the numerator and denominator of a fraction are equal (for example, formula_13), its value is 1, and the fraction therefore is improper. Its reciprocal is identical and hence also equal to 1 and improper.


title: Fraction

text: Any integer can be written as a fraction with the number one as denominator. For example, 17 can be written as formula_14, where 1 is sometimes referred to as the "invisible denominator". Therefore, every fraction or integer, except for zero, has a reciprocal. For example. the reciprocal of 17 is formula_15.


title: Fraction

text: A ratio is a relationship between two or more numbers that can be sometimes expressed as a fraction. Typically, a number of items are grouped and compared in a ratio, specifying numerically the relationship between each group. Ratios are expressed as "group 1 to group 2 ... to group "n"". For example, if a car lot had 12 vehicles, of which


title: Fraction

text: then the ratio of red to white to yellow cars is 6 to 2 to 4. The ratio of yellow cars to white cars is 4 to 2 and may be expressed as 4:2 or 2:1.


title: Fraction

text: A ratio is often converted to a fraction when it is expressed as a ratio to the whole. In the above example, the ratio of yellow cars to all the cars on the lot is 4:12 or 1:3. We can convert these ratios to a fraction, and say that of the cars or of the cars in the lot are yellow. Therefore, if a person randomly chose one car on the lot, then there is a one in three chance or probability that it would be yellow.


title: Fraction

text: A decimal fraction is a fraction whose denominator is not given explicitly, but is understood to be an integer power of ten. Decimal fractions are commonly expressed using decimal notation in which the implied denominator is determined by the number of digits to the right of a decimal separator, the appearance of which (e.g., a period, an interpunct (·), a comma) depends on the locale (for examples, see decimal separator). Thus, for 0.75 the numerator is 75 and the implied denominator is 10 to the second power, namely, 100, because there are two digits to the right of the decimal separator. In decimal numbers greater than 1 (such as 3.75), the fractional part of the number is expressed by the digits to the right of the decimal (with a value of 0.75 in this case). 3.75 can be written either as an improper fraction, 375/100, or as a mixed number, formula_16.


title: Fraction

text: Decimal fractions can also be expressed using scientific notation with negative exponents, such as , which represents 0.0000006023. The represents a denominator of . Dividing by moves the decimal point 7 places to the left.


title: Fraction

text: Decimal fractions with infinitely many digits to the right of the decimal separator represent an infinite series. For example, = 0.333... represents the infinite series 3/10 + 3/100 + 3/1000 + ...


title: Fraction

text: Another kind of fraction is the percentage (from , meaning "per hundred", represented by the symbol %), in which the implied denominator is always 100. Thus, 51% means 51/100. Percentages greater than 100 or less than zero are treated in the same way, e.g. 311% equals 311/100, and −27% equals −27/100.


title: Fraction

text: The related concept of "permille" or "parts per thousand" (ppt) has an implied denominator of 1000, while the more general parts-per notation, as in 75 "parts per million" (ppm), means that the proportion is 75/1,000,000.


title: Fraction

text: Whether common fractions or decimal fractions are used is often a matter of taste and context. Common fractions are used most often when the denominator is relatively small. By mental calculation, it is easier to multiply 16 by 3/16 than to do the same calculation using the fraction's decimal equivalent (0.1875). And it is more accurate to multiply 15 by 1/3, for example, than it is to multiply 15 by any decimal approximation of one third. Monetary values are commonly expressed as decimal fractions with denominator 100, i.e., with two decimals, for example $3.75. However, as noted above, in pre-decimal British currency, shillings and pence were often given the form (but not the meaning) of a fraction, as, for example, "3/6" (read "three and six") meaning 3 shillings and 6 pence, and having no relationship to the fraction 3/6.


title: Fraction

text: A mixed numeral (also called a "mixed fraction" or "mixed number") is a traditional denotation of the sum of a non-zero integer and a proper fraction (having the same sign). It is used primarily in measurement: formula_17inches, for example. Scientific measurements almost invariably use decimal notation rather than mixed numbers. The sum can be implied without the use of a visible operator such as the appropriate "+". For example, in referring to two entire cakes and three quarters of another cake, the numerals denoting the integer part and the fractional part of the cakes can be written next to each other as formula_18instead of the unambiguous notation formula_19 Negative mixed numerals, as in formula_20, are treated like formula_21 Any such sum of a "whole" plus a "part" can be converted to an improper fraction by applying the rules of adding unlike quantities.


title: Fraction

text: This tradition is, formally, in conflict with the notation in algebra where adjacent symbols, without an explicit infix operator, denote a product. In the expression formula_22, the "understood" operation is multiplication. If is replaced by, for example, the fraction formula_23, the "understood" multiplication needs to be replaced by explicit multiplication, to avoid the appearance of a mixed number.


title: Fraction

text: An Egyptian fraction is the sum of distinct positive unit fractions, for example formula_30. This definition derives from the fact that the ancient Egyptians expressed all fractions except formula_1, formula_32 and formula_33 in this manner. Every positive rational number can be expanded as an Egyptian fraction. For example, formula_34 can be written as formula_35 Any positive rational number can be written as a sum of unit fractions in infinitely many ways. Two ways to write formula_36 are formula_37 and formula_38.


title: Fraction

text: In a complex fraction, either the numerator, or the denominator, or both, is a fraction or a mixed number, corresponding to division of fractions. For example, formula_39 and formula_40 are complex fractions. To reduce a complex fraction to a simple fraction, treat the longest fraction line as representing division. For example:


title: Fraction

text: If, in a complex fraction, there is no unique way to tell which fraction lines takes precedence, then this expression is improperly formed, because of ambiguity. So 5/10/20/40 is not a valid mathematical expression, because of multiple possible interpretations, e.g. as


title: Fraction

text: A compound fraction is a fraction of a fraction, or any number of fractions connected with the word "of", corresponding to multiplication of fractions. To reduce a compound fraction to a simple fraction, just carry out the multiplication (see the section on multiplication). For example, formula_33 of formula_34 is a compound fraction, corresponding to formula_49. The terms compound fraction and complex fraction are closely related and sometimes one is used as a synonym for the other. (For example, the compound fraction formula_50 is equivalent to the complex fraction formula_51.)


title: Fraction

text: Nevertheless, "complex fraction" and "compound fraction" may both be considered outdated and now used in no well-defined manner, partly even taken synonymously for each other or for mixed numerals. They have lost their meaning as technical terms and the attributes "complex" and "compound" tend to be used in their every day meaning of "consisting of parts".


title: Fraction

text: Like whole numbers, fractions obey the commutative, associative, and distributive laws, and the rule against division by zero.


title: Fraction

text: Multiplying the numerator and denominator of a fraction by the same (non-zero) number results in a fraction that is equivalent to the original fraction. This is true because for any non-zero number formula_52, the fraction formula_53 equals formula_54. Therefore, multiplying by formula_53 is the same as multiplying by one, and any number multiplied by one has the same value as the original number. By way of an example, start with the fraction formula_1. When the numerator and denominator are both multiplied by 2, the result is formula_57, which has the same value (0.5) as formula_1. To picture this visually, imagine cutting a cake into four pieces; two of the pieces together (formula_57) make up half the cake (formula_1).


title: Fraction

text: Dividing the numerator and denominator of a fraction by the same non-zero number yields an equivalent fraction: if the numerator and the denominator of a fraction are both divisible by a number (called a factor) greater than 1, then the fraction can be reduced to an equivalent fraction with a smaller numerator and a smaller denominator. For example, if both the numerator and the denominator of the fraction formula_4 are divisible by formula_62 then they can be written as formula_63 and formula_64 and the fraction becomes formula_65, which can be reduced by dividing both the numerator and denominator by formula_66 to give the reduced fraction formula_67


title: Fraction

text: If one takes for the greatest common divisor of the numerator and the denominator, one gets the equivalent fraction whose numerator and denominator have the lowest absolute values. One says that the fraction has been reduced to its "lowest terms".


title: Fraction

text: If the numerator and the denominator do not share any factor greater than 1, the fraction is already reduced to its lowest terms, and it is said to be "irreducible", "reduced", or "in simplest terms". For example, formula_68 is not in lowest terms because both 3 and 9 can be exactly divided by 3. In contrast, formula_69 "is" in lowest terms—the only positive integer that goes into both 3 and 8 evenly is 1.


title: Fraction

text: As another example, since the greatest common divisor of 63 and 462 is 21, the fraction formula_71 can be reduced to lowest terms by dividing the numerator and denominator by 21:


title: Fraction

text: Comparing fractions with the same positive denominator yields the same result as comparing the numerators:


title: Fraction

text: If the equal denominators are negative, then the opposite result of comparing the numerators holds for the fractions:


title: Fraction

text: If two positive fractions have the same numerator, then the fraction with the smaller denominator is the larger number. When a whole is divided into equal pieces, if fewer equal pieces are needed to make up the whole, then each piece must be larger. When two positive fractions have the same numerator, they represent the same number of parts, but in the fraction with the smaller denominator, the parts are larger.


title: Fraction

text: One way to compare fractions with different numerators and denominators is to find a common denominator. To compare formula_4 and formula_77, these are converted to formula_78 and formula_79 (where the dot signifies multiplication and is an alternative symbol to ×). Then "bd" is a common denominator and the numerators "ad" and "bc" can be compared. It is not necessary to determine the value of the common denominator to compare fractions – one can just compare "ad" and "bc", without evaluating "bd", e.g., comparing formula_32 ? formula_1 gives formula_82.


title: Fraction

text: For the more laborious question formula_83 ? formula_84 multiply top and bottom of each fraction by the denominator of the other fraction, to get a common denominator, yielding formula_85 ? formula_86. It is not necessary to calculate formula_87 – only the numerators need to be compared. Since 5×17 (= 85) is greater than 4×18 (= 72), the result of comparing is formula_88.


title: Fraction

text: Because every negative number, including negative fractions, is less than zero, and every positive number, including positive fractions, is greater than zero, it follows that any negative fraction is less than any positive fraction. This allows, together with the above rules, to compare all possible fractions.


title: Fraction

text: The first rule of addition is that only like quantities can be added; for example, various quantities of quarters. Unlike quantities, such as adding thirds to quarters, must first be converted to like quantities as described below: Imagine a pocket containing two quarters, and another pocket containing three quarters; in total, there are five quarters. Since four quarters is equivalent to one (dollar), this can be represented as follows:


title: Fraction

text: To add fractions containing unlike quantities (e.g. quarters and thirds), it is necessary to convert all amounts to like quantities. It is easy to work out the chosen type of fraction to convert to; simply multiply together the two denominators (bottom number) of each fraction. In case of an integer number apply the invisible denominator formula_90


title: Fraction

text: First, convert formula_93 into fifteenths by multiplying both the numerator and denominator by three: formula_94. Since formula_95 equals 1, multiplication by formula_95 does not change the value of the fraction.


title: Fraction

text: Second, convert formula_97 into fifteenths by multiplying both the numerator and denominator by five: formula_98.


title: Fraction

text: This algebraic method always works, thereby guaranteeing that the sum of simple fractions is always again a simple fraction. However, if the single denominators contain a common factor, a smaller denominator than the product of these can be used. For example, when adding formula_33 and formula_103 the single denominators have a common factor formula_104 and therefore, instead of the denominator 24 (4 × 6), the halved denominator 12 may be used, not only reducing the denominator in the result, but also the factors in the numerator.


title: Fraction

text: The smallest possible denominator is given by the least common multiple of the single denominators, which results from dividing the rote multiple by all common factors of the single denominators. This is called the least common denominator.


title: Fraction

text: The process for subtracting fractions is, in essence, the same as that of adding them: find a common denominator, and change each fraction to an equivalent fraction with the chosen common denominator. The resulting fraction will have that denominator, and its numerator will be the result of subtracting the numerators of the original fractions. For instance,


title: Fraction

text: To explain the process, consider one third of one quarter. Using the example of a cake, if three small slices of equal size make up a quarter, and four quarters make up a whole, twelve of these small, equal slices make up a whole. Therefore, a third of a quarter is a twelfth. Now consider the numerators. The first fraction, two thirds, is twice as large as one third. Since one third of a quarter is one twelfth, two thirds of a quarter is two twelfth. The second fraction, three quarters, is three times as large as one quarter, so two thirds of three quarters is three times as large as two thirds of one quarter. Thus two thirds times three quarters is six twelfths.


title: Fraction

text: A short cut for multiplying fractions is called "cancellation". Effectively the answer is reduced to lowest terms during multiplication. For example:


title: Fraction

text: A two is a common factor in both the numerator of the left fraction and the denominator of the right and is divided out of both. Three is a common factor of the left denominator and right numerator and is divided out of both.


title: Fraction

text: Since a whole number can be rewritten as itself divided by 1, normal fraction multiplication rules can still apply.


title: Fraction

text: When multiplying mixed numbers, it is considered preferable to convert the mixed number into an improper fraction. For example:


title: Fraction

text: In other words, formula_18 is the same as formula_112, making 11 quarters in total (because 2 cakes, each split into quarters makes 8 quarters total) and 33 quarters is formula_113, since 8 cakes, each made of quarters, is 32 quarters in total.


title: Fraction

text: To divide a fraction by a whole number, you may either divide the numerator by the number, if it goes evenly into the numerator, or multiply the denominator by the number. For example, formula_114 equals formula_32 and also equals formula_116, which reduces to formula_32. To divide a number by a fraction, multiply that number by the reciprocal of that fraction. Thus, formula_118.


title: Fraction

text: To change a common fraction to a decimal, do a long division of the decimal representations of the numerator by the denominator (this is idiomatically also phrased as "divide the denominator into the numerator"), and round the answer to the desired accuracy. For example, to change to a decimal, divide by (" into "), to obtain . To change to a decimal, divide by (" into "), and stop when the desired accuracy is obtained, e.g., at decimals with . The fraction can be written exactly with two decimal digits, while the fraction cannot be written exactly as a decimal with a finite number of digits. To change a decimal to a fraction, write in the denominator a followed by as many zeroes as there are digits to the right of the decimal point, and write in the numerator all the digits of the original decimal, just omitting the decimal point. Thus formula_119


title: Fraction

text: Decimal numbers, while arguably more useful to work with when performing calculations, sometimes lack the precision that common fractions have. Sometimes an infinite repeating decimal is required to reach the same precision. Thus, it is often useful to convert repeating decimals into fractions.


title: Fraction

text: A conventional way to indicate a repeating decimal is to place a bar (known as a vinculum) over the digits that repeat, for example = 0.789789789... For repeating patterns that begin immediately after the decimal point, the result of the conversion is the fraction with the pattern as a numerator, and the same number of nines as a denominator. For example:


title: Fraction

text: If a non-repeating set of decimals precede the pattern (such as ), one may write the number as the sum of the non-repeating and repeating parts, respectively:


title: Fraction

text: In addition to being of great practical importance, fractions are also studied by mathematicians, who check that the rules for fractions given above are consistent and reliable. Mathematicians define a fraction as an ordered pair formula_120 of integers formula_121 and formula_122 for which the operations addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division are defined as follows:


title: Fraction

text: These definitions agree in every case with the definitions given above; only the notation is different. Alternatively, instead of defining subtraction and division as operations, the "inverse" fractions with respect to addition and multiplication might be defined as:


title: Fraction

text: is an equivalence relation of fractions. Each fraction from one equivalence class may be considered as a representative for the whole class, and each whole class may be considered as one abstract fraction. This equivalence is preserved by the above defined operations, i.e., the results of operating on fractions are independent of the selection of representatives from their equivalence class. Formally, for addition of fractions


title: Fraction

text: In the case of fractions of integers, the fractions with and coprime and are often taken as uniquely determined representatives for their "equivalent" fractions, which are considered to be the "same" rational number. This way the fractions of integers make up the field of the rational numbers.


title: Fraction

text: More generally, "a" and "b" may be elements of any integral domain "R", in which case a fraction is an element of the field of fractions of "R". For example, polynomials in one indeterminate, with coefficients from some integral domain "D", are themselves an integral domain, call it "P". So for "a" and "b" elements of "P", the generated "field of fractions" is the field of rational fractions (also known as the field of rational functions).


title: Fraction

text: An algebraic fraction is the indicated quotient of two algebraic expressions. As with fractions of integers, the denominator of an algebraic fraction cannot be zero. Two examples of algebraic fractions are formula_132 and formula_133. Algebraic fractions are subject to the same field properties as arithmetic fractions.


title: Fraction

text: If the numerator and the denominator are polynomials, as in formula_132, the algebraic fraction is called a "rational fraction" (or "rational expression"). An "irrational fraction" is one that is not rational, as, for example, one that contains the variable under a fractional exponent or root, as in formula_133.


title: Fraction

text: The terminology used to describe algebraic fractions is similar to that used for ordinary fractions. For example, an algebraic fraction is in lowest terms if the only factors common to the numerator and the denominator are 1 and −1. An algebraic fraction whose numerator or denominator, or both, contain a fraction, such as formula_136, is called a complex fraction.


title: Fraction

text: The field of rational numbers is the field of fractions of the integers, while the integers themselves are not a field but rather an integral domain. Similarly, the rational fractions with coefficients in a field form the field of fractions of polynomials with coefficient in that field. Considering the rational fractions with real coefficients, radical expressions representing numbers, such as formula_137 are also rational fractions, as are a transcendental numbers such as formula_138 since all of formula_139 and formula_140 are real numbers, and thus considered as coefficients. These same numbers, however, are not rational fractions with "integer" coefficients.


title: Fraction

text: The term partial fraction is used when decomposing rational fractions into sums of simpler fractions. For example, the rational fraction formula_141 can be decomposed as the sum of two fractions: formula_142 This is useful for the computation of antiderivatives of rational functions (see partial fraction decomposition for more).


title: Fraction

text: A fraction may also contain radicals in the numerator or the denominator. If the denominator contains radicals, it can be helpful to rationalize it (compare Simplified form of a radical expression), especially if further operations, such as adding or comparing that fraction to another, are to be carried out. It is also more convenient if division is to be done manually. When the denominator is a monomial square root, it can be rationalized by multiplying both the top and the bottom of the fraction by the denominator:


title: Fraction

text: The process of rationalization of binomial denominators involves multiplying the top and the bottom of a fraction by the conjugate of the denominator so that the denominator becomes a rational number. For example:


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Duck Dynasty is an American reality television series that aired on A&E from 2012 to 2017. The series portrays the lives of the Robertson family, who became successful from their family-operated business, Duck Commander. The West Monroe, Louisiana business makes products for duck hunters, primarily a duck call called "Duck Commander". The Robertson men—brothers Phil and Si, and Phil's sons Alan, Jase, Willie, and Jep—are known for their long beards and their conservative, Evangelical Christian views which is why the show is often considered to be a part of Christian media. The family was previously featured on the series "Benelli Presents Duck Commander" and its spin-off, "Buck Commander", on the Outdoor Channel; Outdoor Channel acquired rerun rights to "Duck Dynasty" in 2016. In 2020 Fox Nation acquired the streaming rights to the show, a 2022 follow-up series called "Duck Family Treasure" was released by Fox on Fox Nation as well.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: The fourth-season premiere drew 11.8 million viewers; the most-watched nonfiction cable series in history.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: The show earned $80 million in advertising sales for the first nine months of 2013, and merchandise has generated another $400 million in revenue. After 11 seasons, the series concluded on March 29, 2017, with the hour-long finale "End of an Era", the episode concluded with Si Robertson performing the show's theme song "Sharp Dressed Man" alongside ZZ Top.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: "Duck Dynasty"'s success launched spin-off series, including "Jep & Jessica: Growing the Dynasty" and "Going Si-Ral". Like past shows, many Robertson family members, co-workers, and friends appear in these spin-offs. Various on-going podcasts continue to prominently feature the Robertsons as well: Phil and Jase host "Unashamed," which is independently produced by Alan; BlazeTV produces the show "In the Woods with Phil"; Sadie hosts "WHOA That's Good Podcast"; and Duck Commander produces "Duck Call Room" with Si, Martin, and Godwin.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Phil, born , is the family patriarch and creator of the Duck Commander duck call. He was a standout quarterback at Louisiana Tech (actually starting ahead of future Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw) and was contacted by the Washington Redskins after his junior year. He chose instead to quit football because it interfered with duck hunting season.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Phil graduated from Louisiana Tech with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Education and later received a Masters of Arts degree in Education via night classes while working as a schoolteacher. Phil went through a "dark period" while running a bar that led to his separation from his wife. It was at this low point he reports that he found Christ and reconciled with his wife. It was then that he invented his duck call, and founded the Duck Commander Company in 1973.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Phil is known for his dislike of modern technology, calling himself "a low-tech man in a high-tech world," and his concern that his grandchildren are becoming "yuppies". At the end of each episode, the family is shown at the dining table, usually with Phil praying over the meal.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Kay Robertson (née Carroway), born , married Phil on January 11, 1966. She is usually addressed as "Miss Kay" by her husband and sons. Kay married Phil at age 15. She is the mother of Alan, Jase, Willie, and Jep.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Alan is Phil and Kay's eldest son. He left the family business to become a preacher, but rejoined the family both doing public relations at Duck Commander and appearing on the show since Season 4. He wanted to join the show to spread the Word of God to more people. Alan married Lisa Robertson, ("née" Gibson) on November 9, 1984, and is the only adult male in the family without a beard.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Jase is Phil and Miss Kay's second son. He is in charge of the manufacturing aspects at Duck Commander. Along with other employees, Jase tunes the duck calls by hand. He and his wife Missy have three children.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Reed, the eldest child and first son of Jase and Missy, attended Ouachita Christian High School, playing football and baseball. His graduation is shown in Season 6. He is currently attending Harding University, and is married to Brighton Thompson; their wedding is shown in Season 11. He started a music career in Nashville. In June 2021, it was announced that he and Brighton are expecting a baby girl.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Cole, the second son of Jase and Missy, attended Ouachita Christian High School and played baseball. His graduation is shown in Season 10.


title: Duck Dynasty

text: Mia is the youngest child and only daughter of Jase and Missy. She was born with a cleft lip and palate and, as of the end of Season 9, has had six surgeries to correct it.