The Book of Judith is a deuterocanonical book included in the Septuagint and the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christian Old Testament of the Bible but excluded from the Hebrew canon and assigned by Protestants to the apocrypha. It tells of a Jewish widow, Judith, who uses her beauty and charm to kill an Assyrian general who has besieged her city, Bethulia. With this act, she saves nearby Jerusalem from total destruction. The name Judith (), meaning "praised" or "Jewess", is the feminine form of Judah.

The surviving manuscripts of Greek translations appear to contain several historical anachronisms, which is why some Protestant scholars now consider the book non-historical. Instead, the book may be a parable, theological novel, or perhaps the first historical novel. The Roman Catholic Church has historically maintained that the book is an authentic history from the reign of Manasseh and that the names in the book were changed at a later date for an unknown reason. The Jewish Encyclopedia identifies the real name of "Bethulia" as Shechem and argues that the name was changed because of the feud between the Jews and Samaritans. If this is the case, it would explain why other names seem anachronistic as well.

Historical context

Original language
It is not clear whether the Book of Judith was originally written in Hebrew or Greek, as the oldest existing version is from the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures. It is most generally agreed that the book was written either in Hebrew or Aramaic. When he did his Vulgate translation, Jerome believed the book was composed in a Semitic language, specifically claiming that it was written "in Chaldean words". Carey A. Moore argued that the Greek text of Judith was a translation from a Hebrew original, and used many examples of conjectured translation errors, Hebraic idioms, and Hebraic syntax. The extant Hebrew manuscripts are very late and only date back to the Middle Ages. The two surviving Hebrew manuscripts of Judith are translated from the Greek Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate. The Hebrew versions name important figures directly, such as the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and place the events during the Hellenistic period when the Maccabees battled the Seleucid monarchs. However, because the Hebrew manuscripts mention kingdoms that had not existed for hundreds of years by the time of the Seleucids, it is unlikely that these were the original names in the text. Jeremy Corley argued that Judith was originally composed in Greek that was carefully modeled after Hebrew and pointed out "Septuagintalisms" in the vocabulary and phrasing of the Greek text.

Canonicity

In Judaism
While the author was likely Jewish, there is no evidence aside from its inclusion in the Septuagint that the Book of Judith was ever considered authoritative or a candidate for canonicity by any Jewish group. The Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible does not contain it; it is not found among the Dead Sea Scrolls or any early Rabbinic literature. Speculated reasons for its exclusion include the possible lateness of its composition, possible Greek origin, apparent support of the Hasmonean dynasty (to which the early rabbinate was opposed), and perhaps the brash and seductive character of Judith herself.

After disappearing from circulation among Jews for over a millennium, however, references to the Book of Judith and the figure of Judith herself resurfaced in the religious literature of crypto-Jews who escaped Christian persecution after the capitulation of the Caliphate of Córdoba. The renewed interest took the form of "tales of the heroine, liturgical poems, commentaries on the Talmud, and passages in Jewish legal codes." Although the text does not mention Hanukkah, it became customary for a Hebrew midrashic variant of the Judith story to be read on the Shabbat of Hanukkah as the story of Hanukkah takes place during the time of the Hasmonean dynasty.

That midrash, whose heroine is portrayed as gorging the antagonist on cheese and wine before cutting off his head, may have formed the basis of the minor Jewish tradition to eat dairy products during Hanukkah. In that respect, medieval Jewry appears to have viewed Judith as the Hasmonean counterpart to Queen Esther, the heroine of the holiday of Purim. The textual reliability of the Book of Judith was also taken for granted, to the extent that biblical commentator Nachmanides (Ramban) quoted several passages from a Peshitta (Syriac version) of Judith in support of his rendering of Deuteronomy 21:14.

In Christianity
Although early Christians, such as Clement of Rome, Tertullian, and Clement of Alexandria, read and used the Book of Judith, some of the oldest Christian canons, including the Bryennios List (1st/2nd century), that of Melito of Sardis (2nd century), and Origen (3rd century), do not include it. Jerome, when he produced his Latin translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Vulgate, counted it among the apocrypha, (though he later changed his mind, quoted it as scripture, and said he merely expressed the views of the Jews), as did Athanasius, Cyril of Jerusalem, and Epiphanius of Salamis.

Many influential fathers and doctors of the Church, including Augustine, Basil of Caesarea, Tertullian, John Chrysostom, Ambrose, Bede the Venerable and Hilary of Poitiers, considered Judith sacred scripture both before and after councils that formally declared it part of the biblical canon. In a 405 letter, Pope Innocent I declared it part of the canon. In Jerome's Prologue to Judith, he claims that the Book of Judith was "found by the Nicene Council to have been counted among the number of the Sacred Scriptures". Interestingly, no such declaration has been found in the Canons of Nicaea, and it is uncertain whether Jerome was referring to the book's use during the council's discussion or spurious canons attributed to that council. Catholic apologist Jimmy Akin speculates that Jerome was correct about the Council of Nicea establishing a canon and that the documents about this have been lost to time.

Regardless of Judith's status at Nicaea, the book was also accepted as scripture by the councils of Rome (382), Hippo (393), Carthage (397), and Florence (1442) and eventually dogmatically defined as canonical by the Roman Catholic Church in 1546 in the Council of Trent. The Eastern Orthodox Church also accepts Judith as inspired scripture; this was confirmed in the Synod of Jerusalem in 1672. The canonicity of Judith is typically rejected by Protestants, who accept as the Old Testament only those books that are found in the Jewish canon. Martin Luther viewed the book as an allegory, but listed it as the first of the eight writings in his Apocrypha. In Anglicanism, it has the intermediate authority of the Apocrypha of the Old Testament and is regarded as useful or edifying, but is not to be taken as a basis for establishing doctrine.

Judith is also referred to in chapter 28 of 1 Meqabyan, a book considered canonical in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church.

Contents

Plot summary
The story revolves around Judith, a daring and beautiful widow, who is upset with her Jewish countrymen for not trusting God to deliver them from their foreign conquerors. She goes with her loyal maid to the camp of the enemy general, Holofernes, with whom she slowly ingratiates herself, promising him information on the Israelites. Gaining his trust, she is allowed access to his tent one night as he lies in a drunken stupor. She decapitates him, then takes his head back to her fearful countrymen. The Assyrians, having lost their leader, disperse, and Israel is saved. Though she is courted by many, Judith remains unmarried for the rest of her life.

Literary structure
The Book of Judith can be split into two parts or "acts" of approximately equal length. Chapters 1–7 describe the rise of the threat to Israel, led by the evil king Nebuchadnezzar and his sycophantic general Holofernes, and is concluded as Holofernes' worldwide campaign has converged at the mountain pass where Judith's village, Bethulia, is located. Chapters 8–16 then introduce Judith and depict her heroic actions to save her people. The first part, although at times tedious  in its description of the military developments, develops important themes by alternating battles with reflections and rousing action with rest. In contrast, the second half is devoted mainly to Judith's strength of character and the beheading scene.

The New Oxford Annotated Apocrypha identifies a clear chiastic pattern in both "acts", in which the order of events is reversed at a central moment in the narrative (i.e., abcc'b'a').

Part I (1:1–7:23)

A. Campaign against disobedient nations; the people surrender (1:1–2:13)
B. Israel is "greatly terrified" (2:14–3:10)
C. Joakim prepares for war (4:1–15)
D. Holofernes talks with Achior (5:1–6.9)
E. Achior is expelled by Assyrians (6:10–13)
E'. Achior is received in the village of Bethulia (6:14–15)
D'. Achior talks with the people (6:16–21)
C'. Holofernes prepares for war (7:1–3)
B'. Israel is "greatly terrified" (7:4–5)
A'. Campaign against Bethulia; the people want to surrender (7:6–32)

Part II (8:1–16:25)

A. Introduction of Judith (8:1–8)
B. Judith plans to save Israel (8:9–10:8), including her extended prayer (9:1–14)
C. Judith and her maid leave Bethulia (10:9–10)
D. Judith beheads Holofernes (10:11–13:10a)

C'. Judith and her maid return to Bethulia (13.10b–11)
B'. Judith plans the destruction of Israel's enemy (13:12–16:20)
A'. Conclusion about Judith (16.1–25)

Similarly, parallels within Part II are noted in comments within the New American Bible Revised Edition: Judith summons a town meeting in Judith 8:10 in advance of her expedition and is acclaimed by such a meeting in Judith 13:12–13; Uzziah blesses Judith in advance in Judith 8:5 and afterwards in Judith 13:18–20.

Literary genre
Most contemporary exegetes, such as Biblical scholar Gianfranco Ravasi, generally tend to ascribe Judith to one of several contemporaneous literary genres, reading it as an extended parable in the form of a historical fiction, or a propaganda literary work from the days of the Seleucid oppression.

It has also been called "an example of the ancient Jewish novel in the Greco-Roman period". Other scholars note that Judith fits within and even incorporates the genre of "salvation traditions" from the Old Testament, particularly the story of Deborah and Jael (Judges 4–5), who seduced and inebriated the Canaanite commander Sisera before hammering a tent-peg into his forehead.

There are also thematic connections to the revenge of Simeon and Levi on Shechem after the rape of Dinah in Genesis 34.

In the Christian West from the patristic period on, Judith was invoked in a wide variety of texts as a multi-faceted allegorical figure. As a "Mulier sancta", she personified the Church and many virtues – Humility, Justice, Fortitude, Chastity (the opposite of Holofernes' vices Pride, Tyranny, Decadence, Lust) – and she was, like the other heroic women of the Hebrew scriptural tradition, made into a typological prefiguration of the Virgin Mary. Her gender made her a natural example of the biblical paradox of "strength in weakness"; she is thus paired with David and her beheading of Holofernes paralleled with that of Goliath – both deeds saved the Covenant People from a militarily superior enemy.

Main characters
Judith, the heroine of the book, introduced in chapter 8. A God-fearing woman, she is the daughter of Merari, a Simeonite, and widow of a certain Manasseh or Manasses, a wealthy farmer. She sends her maid or "waitingwoman" to Uzziah to challenge his decision to capitulate to the Assyrians if God has not rescued the people of Bethulia within five days, and she uses her charm to become an intimate friend of Holofernes, but beheads him allowing Israel to counter-attack the Assyrians. Judith's maid, not named in the story, remains with her throughout the narrative and is given her freedom as the story ends.

Holofernes, the villain of the book. He is a dedicated soldier of his king, general-in-chief of his army, whom he wants to see exalted in all lands. He is given the task of destroying the rebels who did not support the king of Nineveh in his resistance against Cheleud and the king of Media, until Israel also becomes a target of his military campaign. Judith's courage and charm occasion his death.

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Nineveh and Assyria. He is so proud that he wants to affirm his strength as a sort of divine power, although Holofernes, his Turtan (commanding general), goes beyond the king's orders when he calls on the western nations to "worship only Nebuchadnezzar, and ... invoke him as a god". Holofernes is ordered to take revenge on those who refused to ally themselves with Nebuchadnezzar.

Achior, an Ammonite leader at Nebuchadnezzar's court; in chapter 5 he summarises the history of Israel and warns the king of Assyria of the power of their God, the "God of heaven", but is mocked. He is protected by the people of Bethulia and becomes a Jew and is circumcised on hearing what Judith has accomplished.

Bagoas, or Vagao (Vulgate), the eunuch who had charge over Holofernes' personal affairs. His name is Persian for a eunuch. He brought in Judith to recline with Holofernes and was the first one who discovered his beheading.

Uzziah or Oziah, governor of Bethulia; together with Cabri and Carmi, he rules over Judith's city. When the city is besieged by the Assyrians and the water supply dries up, he agrees to the people's call to surrender if God has not rescued them within five days, a decision challenged as "rash" by Judith.

Judith's prayer
Chapter 9 constitutes Judith's "extended prayer", "loudly proclaimed" in advance of her actions in the following chapters. This runs to 14 verses in English versions, 19 verses in the Vulgate.

Historicity of Judith

Today, it is generally accepted that the Book of Judith is ahistorical. The fictional nature "is evident from its blending of history and fiction, beginning in the very first verse, and is too prevalent thereafter to be considered as the result of mere historical mistakes."

Thus, the great villain is "Nebuchadnezzar, who ruled over the Assyrians" (1:1), yet the historical Nebuchadnezzar II was the king of Babylonia. Other details, such as fictional place names, the immense size of armies and fortifications, and the dating of events, cannot be reconciled with the historical record. Judith's village, Bethulia (literally "virginity") is unknown and otherwise unattested to in any ancient writing.

The Catholic Church has always considered the book to be a historical document. Jerome's translation for the Vulgate was based on an Aramaic manuscript and was shorter because he removed passages from the Greek that he could not understand or find in the Aramaic. The Aramaic manuscript used by Jerome has long since been lost. The original Douay-Rheims Bible and subsequent commentaries by Reverend George Leo Haydock state that the book truly is set within the rule of the Neo-Assyrian Empire during the reign of Manasseh of Judah.

As such, there have been various attempts by both scholars and clergy to understand the characters and events in the Book as allegorical representations of actual personages and historical events. Much of this work has focused on linking Nebuchadnezzar with various conquerors of Judea from different time periods and, more recently, linking Judith herself with historical female leaders, including Queen Salome Alexandra, Judea's only female monarch (76–67 BC) and its last ruler to die while Judea remained an independent kingdom.

Identification of Nebuchadnezzar with Ashurbanipal
For hundreds of years, the most generally accepted view within the Roman Catholic Church is that the book of Judith is occurs during the reign of Ashurbanipal, a notoriously cruel and brutal Assyrian king whose reign was marked by various military campaigns and invasions. Ashurbanipal ruled the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 668 to 627 B.C. The original 1610 Douay-Rheims and the Haydock Biblical commentary both state that the book occurs in the reign of King Manasseh of Judah, which would correspond with Ashurbanipal's reign. In fact, Ashurbanipal's records even name Manasseh as one of a number of vassals who assisted his campaign against Egypt. Specifically, the original Douay-Rheims and its 1738 revision by Bishop Richard Challoner both claim that "Nabuchodonosor" was known as "Saosduchin" and succeeded Asarhaddan "in the kingdom of the Assyrians". This can only possibly be Ashurbanipal.

In his comparison between the Book of Judith and Assyrian history, Catholic priest and scholar Fulcran Vigouroux (1837–1915) attempts an identification of Nabuchodonosor with Ashurbanipal and his rival Arphaxad king of the Medes with Phraortes (665–653 B.C.), the son of Deioces, founder of Ecbatana. Another prominent French Catholic apologist, Bishop Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, expressed a similar view. It is unclear where the name "Saosduchin" came from, although it is possible that it was derived from the Canon of Kings by the astronomer Claudius Ptolemy. This record is not perfect, and Ptolemy likely got Ashurbanipal confused with his older brother, Šamaš-šuma-ukin, who ruled over Babylon, not Assyria. This would be a plausible explanation for the origin of the Greek name "Saosduchin".

As argued by Vigouroux, the two battles mentioned in the Septuagint version of the Book of Judith are a reference to the clash of the two empires in 658–657 and to Phraortes' death in battle in 653, after which Ashurbanipal continued his military actions with a large campaign starting with the Battle of the Ulaya River (652 BC) on the 18th year of this Assyrian king. Contemporary sources make reference to the many allies of Chaldea (governed by Ashurbanipal's rebel brother Shamash-shum-ukin), including the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah, which were subjects of Assyria and are mentioned in the Book of Judith as victims of Ashurbanipal's Western campaign.

During that period, as in the Book of Judith, there was no king in Judah since the legitimate sovereign, Manasseh of Judah, was being held captive in Nineveh at this time. As a typical policy of the time, all leadership was thus transferred in the hands of the High Priest of Israel in charge, which was Joakim in this case (Judith 4:6). The profanation of the temple (Judith 4:3) might have been that under king Hezekiah (see 2 Chronicles, xxix, 18–19), who reigned between c. 715 and 686 BC.

Although Nebuchadnezzar and Ashurbanipal's campaigns show clear and direct parallels, the main incident of Judith's intervention has not been found in any known historical records. Additionally, the reasons for the name changes are difficult to understand, unless the text was transmitted without character names before they were added by the Greek translator, who lived centuries later. Catholic apologist Jimmy Akin argues the possibility that the book of Judith is a roman à clef, a historical record with different names for people and places. Ashurbanipal is never referenced by name in the Bible, except perhaps for the corrupt form "Asenappar" in 2 Chronicles and Ezra 4:10 or the anonymous title "The King of Assyria" in 2 Chronicles (33:11), which means his name might have never been recorded by Jewish historians, which could explain the lack of his name in the book of Judith.

Identification of Nebuchadnezzar with Artaxerxes III Ochus
The identity of Nebuchadnezzar was unknown to the Church Fathers, but some of them attempted an improbable identification with Artaxerxes III Ochus (425–338 BC), not on the basis of the character of the two rulers, but due to the presence of a "Holofernes" and a "Bagoas" in Ochus' army. This view also gained currency with scholarship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Identification of Nebuchadnezzar with Tigranes the Great
Modern scholars argue in favor of a 2nd–1st century context for the Book of Judith, understanding it as a sort of roman à clef, i.e. a literary fiction whose characters stand for some real historical figure, generally contemporary to the author. In the case of the Book of Judith, Biblical scholar Gabriele Boccaccini, identified Nebuchadnezzar with Tigranes the Great (140–56 BC), a powerful King of Armenia who, according to Josephus and Strabo, conquered all of the lands identified by the Biblical author in Judith.

Under this theory, the story, although fictional, would be set in the time of Queen Salome Alexandra, the only Jewish regnant queen, who reigned over Judea from 76 to 67 BC.

Like Judith, the Queen had to face the menace of a foreign king who had a tendency to destroy the temples of other religions. Both women were widows whose strategical and diplomatic skills helped in the defeat of the invader. Both stories seem to be set at a time when the temple had recently been rededicated, which is the case after Judas Maccabee killed Nicanor and defeated the Seleucids. The territory of Judean occupation includes the territory of Samaria, something which was possible in Maccabean times only after John Hyrcanus reconquered those territories. Thus, the presumed Sadducee author of Judith would desire to honor the great (Pharisee) Queen who tried to keep both Sadducees and Pharisees united against the common menace.

Location of Bethulia

Although there is no historically recorded "Bethulia", the book of Judith gives an extremely precise location for where the city is located, and there are several possible candidates of ancient towns in that area that are now ruins. It has widely been speculated that, based on location descriptions in the book, that the most plausible historical site for Bethulia is Shechem. Shechem is a large city in the hill-country of Samaria, on the direct road from Jezreel to Jerusalem, lying in the path of the enemy, at the head of an important pass and is a few hours south of Geba. The Jewish Encyclopedia subscribes to the theory, suggesting that it was called by a pseudonym because of the historical animosity between the Jews and Samaritans. The Jewish Encyclopedia claims that Shechem is the only location that meets all the requirements for Bethulia's location, further stating: "The identity of Bethulia with Shechem is thus beyond all question".

The Catholic Encyclopedia writes: "The city was situated on a mountain overlooking the plain of Jezrael, or Esdrelon, and commanding narrow passes to the south (); at the foot of the mountain there was an important spring, and other springs were in the neighborhood (). Moreover it lay within investing lines which ran through Dothain, or Dothan, now Tell Dothân, to Belthem, or Belma, no doubt the same as the Belamon of , and thence to Kyamon, or Chelmon, "which lies over against Esdrelon" (). These data point to a site on the heights west of Jenin (Engannim), between the plains of Esdrelon and Dothan, where Haraiq el-Mallah, Khirbet Sheikh Shibel and el-Bârid lie close together. Such a site best fulfills all requirements for the location of Bethulia.

The Madaba Map mosaic from the 6th century AD, shows a settlement named "Betylion" (Greek Β[ΗΤ]ΥΛΙΟΝ). Many believe this to be Bethulia, but this is unlikely because it is located much farther south. This Betylion is located on the Egyptian border with Gaza, in modern-day Sheikh Zuweid. It is more likely that the name "Betylion" refers to the Arab Bedouin tribe.

Place names specific to the Book of Judith
Whilst a number of the places referred to are familiar biblical or modern place names, there are others which are considered fictional or whose location is not otherwise known. These include:
1:5 – the territory of Ragae, possible Rages or Rhages, cf. Tobit 1:16
1:6 – the rivers Euphrates and Tigris are mentioned, as well as the Hydaspes (Jadason in the Vulgate). Hydaspes is also the Greek name for the Jhelum River in modern India and Pakistan
2:21 – the plain of Bectileth, three days' march from Nineveh
4:4 – Kona
4:4 – Belmain
4:4 – Choba
4:4 – Aesora. The Septuagint calls it Aisora, Arasousia, Aisoraa, or Assaron, depending on the manuscript.
4:4 – The valley of Salem
4:6 and several later references – Bethulia, a gated city (Judith 10:6). From the gates of the city, the valley below can be observed (Judith 10:10)
4:6 – Betomesthaim or Betomasthem. Some translations refer to "the people of Bethulia and Betomesthaim" as a unit, which "faces (singular) Esdraelon opposite the plain near Dothan. The Encyclopaedia Britannica refers to the "Plain of Esdraelon" as the plain between the Galilee hills and Samaria.
4:6 – A plain near Dothan (Dothian in the Vulgate)
7:3 – Cyalon or Cynamon, also facing Esdraelon. The Encyclopedia of the Bible notes that "some scholars have felt that this name is a corruption for Jokneam", but its editors argue that there is "little evidence to support this conjecture".
7:18 – Egrebeh, which is near Chubi, beside the Wadi Mochmur.
8:4 – Balamon. Some versions state that Manasseh, Judith's husband, had been buried in a field between Dothan and Balamon (Jerusalem Bible, New Revised Standard Version); others state that he was buried in Bethulia where he had died (Vulgate, Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition).
15:4 – Along with Betomesthaim, some authorities also mention Bebai.

Later artistic renditions
The character of Judith is larger than life, and she has won a place in Jewish and Christian lore, art, poetry and drama. Her name, which means "she will be praised" or "woman of Judea", suggests that she represents the heroic spirit of the Jewish people, and that same spirit, as well as her chastity, have endeared her to Christianity.

Owing to her unwavering religious devotion, she is able to step outside of her widow's role, and dress and act in a sexually provocative manner while clearly remaining true to her ideals in the reader's mind, and her seduction and beheading of the wicked Holofernes while playing this role has been rich fodder for artists of various genres.

In literature

The first extant commentary on The Book of Judith is by Hrabanus Maurus (9th century). Thenceforth her presence in medieval European literature is robust: in homilies, biblical paraphrases, histories and poetry. An Old English poetic version is found together with Beowulf (their epics appear both in the Nowell Codex). "The opening of the poem is lost (scholars estimate that 100 lines were lost) but the remainder of the poem, as can be seen, the poet reshaped the biblical source and set the poem's narrative to an Anglo–Saxon audience."

At the same time she is the subject of a homily by the Anglo-Saxon abbot Ælfric. The two conceptual poles represented by these works will inform much of Judith's subsequent history.

In the epic, she is the brave warrior, forceful and active; in the homily she is an exemplar of pious chastity for cloistered nuns. In both cases, her narrative gained relevance from the Viking invasions of the period. Within the next three centuries Judith would be treated by such major figures as Heinrich Frauenlob, Dante, and Geoffrey Chaucer.

In medieval Christian art, the predominance of church patronage assured that Judith's patristic valences as "Mulier Sancta" and Virgin Mary prototype would prevail: from the 8th-century frescoes in Santa Maria Antigua in Rome through innumerable later bible miniatures. Gothic cathedrals often featured Judith, most impressively in the series of 40 stained glass panels at the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris (1240s).

In Renaissance literature and visual arts, all of these trends were continued, often in updated forms, and developed. The already well established notion of Judith as an exemplum of the courage of local people against tyrannical rule from afar was given new urgency by the Assyrian nationality of Holofernes, which made him an inevitable symbol of the threatening Turks. The Italian Renaissance poet Lucrezia Tornabuoni chose Judith as one of the five subjects of her poetry on biblical figures.

A similar dynamic was created in the 16th century by the confessional strife of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. Both Protestants and Catholics draped themselves in the protective mantle of Judith and cast their "heretical" enemies as Holofernes.

In 16th-century France, writers such as Guillaume Du Bartas, Gabrielle de Coignard and Anne de Marquets composed poems on Judith's triumph over Holofernes. Croatian poet and humanist Marko Marulić also wrote an epic on Judith's story in 1501, the Judita. Italian poet and scholar Bartolomeo Tortoletti wrote a Latin epic on the Biblical character of Judith (Bartholomaei Tortoletti Iuditha uindex e uindicata, 1628). The Catholic tract A Treatise of Schisme, written in 1578 at Douai by the English Roman Catholic scholar Gregory Martin, included a paragraph in which Martin expressed confidence that "the Catholic Hope would triumph, and pious Judith would slay Holofernes". This was interpreted by the English Protestant authorities at the time as incitement to slay Queen Elizabeth I. It served as the grounds for the death sentence passed on printer William Carter who had printed Martin's tract and who was executed in 1584.

In painting and sculpture

The subject is one of the most commonly shown in the Power of Women topos. The account of Judith's beheading of Holofernes has been treated by several painters and sculptors, most notably Donatello and Caravaggio, as well as Sandro Botticelli, Andrea Mantegna, Giorgione, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Titian, Horace Vernet, Gustav Klimt, Artemisia Gentileschi, Jan Sanders van Hemessen, Trophime Bigot, Francisco Goya, Francesco Cairo and Hermann-Paul. Also, Michelangelo depicts the scene in multiple aspects in one of the Pendentives, or four spandrels on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Judy Chicago included Judith with a place setting in The Dinner Party.

In music and theatre
The famous 40-voice motet Spem in alium by English composer Thomas Tallis, is a setting of a text from the Book of Judith. The story also inspired oratorios by Antonio Vivaldi, W. A. Mozart and Hubert Parry, and an operetta by Jacob Pavlovitch Adler. Marc-Antoine Charpentier has composed, Judith sive Bethulia liberata H.391, oratorio for soloists, chorus, 2 flutes, strings, and continuo (? mid-1670s). Elisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre (EJG.30) and Sébastien de Brossard have composed a cantate Judith.

Alessandro Scarlatti wrote an oratorio in 1693, La Giuditta, as did the Portuguese composer Francisco António de Almeida in 1726; Juditha triumphans was written in 1716 by Antonio Vivaldi; Mozart composed in 1771 La Betulia Liberata (KV 118), to a libretto by Pietro Metastasio. Arthur Honegger composed an oratorio, Judith, in 1925 to a libretto by René Morax. Operatic treatments exist by Russian composer Alexander Serov, Judith, by Austrian composer Emil von Reznicek, Holofernes, and Judith by German composer Siegfried Matthus. The French composer Jean Guillou wrote his Judith-Symphonie for Mezzo and Orchestra in 1970, premiered in Paris in 1972 and published by Schott-Music.

In 1840, Friedrich Hebbel's play Judith was performed in Berlin. He deliberately departs from the biblical text:

I have no use for the biblical Judith. There, Judith is a widow who lures Holofernes into her web with wiles, when she has his head in her bag she sings and jubilates with all of Israel for three months. That is mean, such a nature is not worthy of her success [...]. My Judith is paralyzed by her deed, frozen by the thought that she might give birth to Holofernes' son; she knows that she has passed her boundaries, that she has, at the very least, done the right thing for the wrong reasons.

The story of Judith has been a favourite of latter-day playwrights; it was brought alive in 1892 by Abraham Goldfaden, who worked in Eastern Europe. The American playwright Thomas Bailey Aldrich's Judith of Bethulia was first performed in New York, 1905, and was the basis for the 1914 production Judith of Bethulia by director D. W. Griffith. A full hour in length, it was one of the earliest feature films made in the United States. English writer Arnold Bennett in 1919 tried his hand at dramaturgy with Judith, a faithful reproduction in three acts; it premiered in spring 1919 at Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne. In 1981, the play "Judith among the Lepers" by the Israeli (Hebrew) playwright Moshe Shamir was performed in Israel. Shamir examines the question why the story of Judith was excluded from the Jewish (Hebrew) Bible and thus banned from Jewish history. In putting her story on stage he tries to reintegrate Judith's story into Jewish history. English playwright Howard Barker examined the Judith story and its aftermath, first in the scene "The Unforeseen Consequences of a Patriotic Act", as part of his collection of vignettes, The Possibilities. Barker later expanded the scene into a short play Judith.

Notes

References

Further reading

External links

 The Book of Judith Full text (also available in Arabic)
 Craven, Toni Judith: Apocrypha, The Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women 31 December 1999 at Jewish Women's Archive
 Toy, Crawford Howell; Torrey, Charles C.JUDITH, BOOK OF at The Jewish Encyclopedia, 1906

Book of Judith
Deuterocanonical books
Ancient Hebrew texts
Historical novels
Jewish apocrypha
Biblical women in ancient warfare
Historical books

Book of Judith


The Vintage Vehicle Show, produced by Tim Stansbury and hosted by Lance Lambert, is dedicated to custom cars, hot rods and classics, although cars from vintage to present have been featured on the program.

Each episode focuses on an automotive museum, a car show, or a private collection somewhere in the United States although most episodes are located in the western United States. The program began on one station in Seattle in 1993 and is currently syndicated throughout the U.S. on 101 stations and in 27 foreign markets. As of 6/26/14 over 450 new episodes have been produced.

References
http://www.hotrodhotline.com/feature/guestcolumnists/lancelambert/

External links

Automotive television series
2000s American television series
2010s American television series
1993 American television series debuts

The Vintage Vehicle Show


Lip synching is when a person moves his or her lips at the same time as a recorded sound or with another person.  Some artists lip sync a live performance because they are not as confident and want to avoid hitting possible bad notes.

Lip syncing by singers can be controversial to fans attending concert performances who expect to view a live performance.

The word synch is short for synchronize, meaning to do something at the same time.

Music industry

Lip synching


Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia (born 17 July 1945), is the head of the House of Karađorđević, the former royal house of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and its predecessor the Kingdom of Serbia.

Family and personal life
Alexander is the only child of King Peter II and his wife, Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark. He was the crown prince of Yugoslavia for the first four-and-a-half months of his life, until the monarchy was abolished.

Born and raised in the United Kingdom, he enjoys close relationships with his relatives in the British royal family. His godparents were King George VI and his daughter, the then-Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II).

Through his father, Alexander is a direct descendant of Queen Victoria, through his great-great-grandfather Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Victoria's second eldest son. Maternally, he is also a direct descendant of Queen Victoria, through his great-great-grandmother Victoria, German Empress, Victoria's eldest daughter.

Political views
Alexander is known for his humanitarian work. He is also known for supporting the idea that Serbia should become a monarchy again, with himself as the king. Numerous political parties also support this idea, as does the Serbian Orthodox Church. Public surveys in Serbia show that many people would also support the monarchy.

1945 births
Living people

Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia


The Advanced Gas-cuiled Reactor (AGR) is a teep o nuclear reactor designed an operated in the Unitit Kinrick. These are the second generation o Breetish gas-cuiled reactors, usin graphite as the neutron moderator an caurbon dioxide as coolant. They have been the backbone o the UK's nuclear generation fleet since the 1980s.

The AGR was developed from the Magnox reactor, the UK's first-generation reactor design. The first Magnox reactors had been optimised for generating plutonium and, for this reason, they incorporated a nummer o features that are not necessarily the best for economic performance. Primary among these requirements was the Magnox's ability to run on natural uranium, which demanded the use o a cuilant wi a low neutron cross section, in this case caurbon dioxide (CO2), and an efficient neutron moderator, graphite. Magnox also ran relatively cool compared tae other power-producing designs, which made it less efficient in extracting pouer from the reactor core.

The AGR retained the Magnox's graphite moderator an CO2 cuilant but increased its operatin temperature tae improve efficiency o steam production. The characteristics o the steam it produced were deliberately identical to those from a coal-fired plant, allowin the same steam turbines an generation equipment tae be used. Durin the initial design stages, it was necessary tae switch the tubin enclosing the fuel pellets from beryllium to stainless steel. Steel has a higher cross section and this change demanded the switch tae enriched uranium fuel tae maintain criticality. As part o this change, the new design had higher burnup o 18,000 MWt-days per tonne o fuel, requirin less frequent refuelling.

The first prototype AGR became operational in 1962 but the first commercial AGR did not come online until 1976. A total o fourteen AGR reactors at sax sites wir biggit atween 1976 an 1988. All o these are configured wi two reactors in a single building. Each reactor has a design thermal pouer output o 1,500 MWt driving a 660 MWe turbine-alternator set. The various AGR stations produce outputs in the range 555 MWe tae 670 MWe though some run at lower than design output due tae operational restrictions.

AGR sites in the UK
    Dungeness Nuclear Pouer Station
    Hartlepool Nuclear Pouer Station
    Heysham nuclear pouer station
    Hinkley Point B Nuclear Pouer Station
    Hunterston B nuclear pouer station
    Torness Nuclear Pouer Station

Nuclear pouer reactor teeps

Advanced Gas-cuiled Reactor


The 2004 Sri Lanka tsunami train wreck was the largest single rail disaster in history (by death toll). It was caused by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

Train
Train #50, the Matara Express, also known as the "Queen of the Sea" line, was a regular train between the Sri Lankan capital Colombo and Matara. The train, overcrowded with 1800+ passengers, left Colombo on 26 December 2004.

Tsunami strikes the train
At 9:30 am in the village of Peraliya, the beach saw the gigantic waves arriving towards. The first wave flooded the carriages and caused panic among the passengers. The next wave arrived after 10 minutes. It was huge and washed away the train and smashed it against trees and houses which were nearby.

Casualties
The huge waves of tsunami had destroyed the train and only 150 passengers out of 1800+ survived. About 1700 were reported dead, even though only 900 bodies were recovered. The  Sri Lankan authorities do not know where the train was washed to. After 4 pm, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa's helicopter identified it. Even though rescue operations was held not more than 150 people survived and the village was also washed away by the deadly waves.

References

2004 in Asia
2004 train wreck
December events
2000s disasters in Asia
Railway accidents in Asia
2004 disasters

2004 Sri Lanka tsunami train wreck


The Maastricht Academy of Music, Dutch: Conservatorium Maastricht, located in the city of Maastricht, is one of nine music academies in the Netherlands. The academy is a faculty of the Zuyd University of Applied Sciences (Hogeschool Zuyd in Dutch) for the Bachelor programme and the "Zuid Nederlandse Hogeschool voor Muziek" for the Master programme, in co-operation with the Fontys Academy of Music and Performing Arts. The academy provides advanced vocational training.

The music academy collaborates with the two other art faculties of the Zuyd University: the Maastricht Academy of Dramatic Arts and the Maastricht Academy of Fine Arts and with the Faculty of Arts and Culture of Maastricht University.

Programs and degrees offered

The Maastricht Academy of Music has departments for European classical music, Jazz, Musical composition, and Opera. The academy proposes a 4 years Bachelor's programme (BMus and BMus ed.) and a two years Master's programme (MMus).

From 2009, the Maastricht Academy of Music will offer a joint master's degree with the Maastricht University.

International orientation

The number of foreign students is ca. 65% from more than 45 different countries and many international members of teaching staff. The principal language of education is English and Dutch students may request to take exams in Dutch.

The academy collaborates and has international exchange programmes with leadings music schools in Europe, such as the Hochschule für Musik Köln (Cologne), (Germany); the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, (Belgium); the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien; and the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Graz, (Austria).

History
 1962: Founding of the academy.
 1965: New building at Bonnenfantenstraat 15, Maastricht (architect: P.H. Dingemans).
 2001: The academy becomes a faculty of the Zuyd University.
 200?: Creation of the Zuid Nederlandse Hogeschool voor Muziek for the Postgraduate programme in co-operation with the Fontys Conservatorium.
 2009: Start of a joint master's degree with the Maastricht University.

Festivals and competitions

Since 1990, the Conservatorium organizes an annual festival. Themes were:
2005: Korea
2006: Shostakovich and Lutyens
2007: Schubert | Webern

Since 2001, the conservatorium organizes the Music Awards Maastricht, an annual competition, in collaboration with the Rotary International.

Conservatorium Maastricht people

Faculty

Boris Belkin: Violin
Mirel Iancovici: Cello
Michael Kugel: Viola
Arno Piters: Clarinet
Robert HP Platz: Composition
Carlo Marchione: Guitar
Will Sanders: Horn
Avi Schönfeld: Piano
Robert Szreder: Violin
Arjan Tien: Conducting
Axel Everaert: Vocal and opera studies

Alumni

 Marc Clear, singer
 Marcin Dylla, guitarist
 Margriet Ehlen, composer and conductor
 Turid Karlsen, soprano
 Goran Krivokapić, guitarist
 Marjon Lambriks, soprano
 André Rieu, violinist and conductor
 Will Sanders, horn player
 Glenn Corneille, jazz pianist
 Carmen Monarcha, singer
 David Satian, composer and jazz pianist
 Carla Maffioletti, singer

References

External links
 Maastricht Academy of Music website
 European Association of Conservatoires (AEC)
 Overview of Professional Music Training System in The Netherlands. European Association of Conservatoires (AEC).
 Opleidingsprofiel, Muziek, Netwerk Muziek, oktober 2002, PDF (Dutch)
 Conservatories in Transition, October 2004.
 The Nederlands-Vlaamse Accreditatie Organisatie (NVAO)
 HBO-raad

Music schools in the Netherlands
Education in Maastricht
Zuyd University of Applied Sciences
1962 establishments in the Netherlands

Maastricht Academy of Music


LoJack is a stolen vehicle recovery and IoT connected car system that utilizes GPS and cellular technology to locate users' vehicles, view trip history, see battery levels, track speeding, and maintain vehicle health via a native app. Prior to selling a vehicle, LoJack dealers can use the system to manage and locate inventory, view and manage battery health, and recover stolen inventory.

Previous generation of the system utilized radio tracking signal. The system used a hidden mounted transceiver and a tracking computer installed in police cars and aircraft.

History
The original LoJack system was created and patented in 1979 by William Reagan, a former Medfield, Massachusetts police commissioner, who went on to establish LoJack Corporation in Medfield. Reagan served as the company's first CEO and Chairman. The name "LoJack" was coined to be the "antithesis of hijack", wherein "hijack" refers to the theft of a vehicle through force.

Legacy radio based system
The original LoJack was a hardware and radio based system designed to prevent theft of a vehicle and aid in the vehicle's recovery by transmitting vehicle location to the LoJack receiver.

It was installed in the vehicle and connected to the starting mechanism such that only the original key would start the vehicle.  It could also include the incorporation of a scheme whereby an additional step was required to activate the ignition.  Prior to starting, it would require the activation of any number of the usual vehicle features such as the radio, headlight switch, or other switched device.  Without knowledge of the proper procedure, it would be almost impossible to activate the ignition.

The core of the legacy LoJack system is a small, silent radio transceiver that is discreetly installed in a vehicle.  Once installed, the unit and the vehicle's VIN are registered in a database that interfaces with the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) system used by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies throughout the United States. In the event of a theft, a customer reports the incident to the police, who make a routine entry into the state police crime computer, including the stolen vehicle's VIN. This theft report is automatically processed by LoJack network computers, triggering a remote command to the specific LoJack unit in the stolen vehicle.

The command activates the LoJack unit to start sending out signals to LoJack police tracking computers on board some police cars. Every police car so-equipped within a 3-5 mile radius of the signal source will be alerted. The tracking units will display an alphanumeric reply code and an indication of the approximate direction and distance to the stolen vehicle. Based on the reply code, the police can obtain a physical description of the vehicle, including make (brand), model, color, VIN and license plate number. Police aircraft can also be equipped with tracking computers; airborne units can receive the (line-of-sight) signals from further away than ground-based units. The signal is received in equipped police vehicles, utilizing a phased array antenna system, hence the four distinctive antennas on the roof. This provides the directional location tracking capabilities of the system.

In addition to automobile theft recovery, LoJack systems are used to recover stolen construction equipment and motorcycles.

In 1998, the company began offering its tracking system to the heavy machinery and construction industry, including entering into an agreement with Caterpillar.

By 2013, the LoJack system was reportedly operating in 28 states and the District of Columbia and in more than 30 countries. The company reported that more than 1,800 U.S. law enforcement agencies had LoJack tracking computers in their police vehicles. In November 2013, the company announced they were expanding tracking capabilities to parents, auto makers and insurance companies.

In March 2016, the company was acquired for $134 million by CalAmp, an Irvine, California-based provider of Internet of things (IoT) software applications, cloud services, data intelligence and telematics products and services.

Frequency
LoJack transmits on a radio (RF) carrier frequency of 173.075 MHz. Vehicles with the system installed send a 200 millisecond (ms) chirp every fifteen seconds on this frequency. When being tracked after reported stolen, the devices send out a 200 ms signal once per second.  The radio frequency transmitted by LoJack is near the VHF spectrum used in North America by digital television channel 7, although there is said to be minimal interference due to the low power of radiation, brief chirp duration, and long interval between chirps.

Modern system
Modern transponder key based systems made the original LoJack starting system obsolete. The system marketed under the LoJack brand since 2021 is a cell phone/GPS based stolen vehicle tracking and recovery system.   the device transmits data to the LoJack base and includes speed, location, and other data to aid in the vehicle's recovery.  Such information is also simultaneously sent to the vehicle owner's computer or cell phone.

In March 2021, the vehicle intelligence company Spireon announced it had acquired the LoJack U.S. Stolen Vehicle Recovery business from CalAmp, joining LoJack users with "nearly 4 million active subscribers from over 20,000 current Spireon customers". CalAmp would still retain and continue to expand LoJack International, which operates as a subscription-based SaaS business, while also retaining ownership of the LoJack patents and trademarks. Under Spireon, LoJack technology moved from RF-based location to GPS and cellular-based technology, growing availability of the solution throughout the U.S. and Hawaii and expanding the solution from only stolen vehicle recovery into connected car technology for both dealers and consumers.

In 2023, a group of security researchers announced discovery of multiple software bugs affecting vehicles from nearly all major car brands, potentially enabling hackers to take full control of the affected cars. The most serious vulnerabilities were found in Spireon's fleet management software, which spans 15 million connected vehicles, and could have allowed remote control over a wide range of fleet vehicles, including those used by law enforcement. All identified bugs have since been fixed.

See also
Carjacking
Comparison of device tracking software
Connected car
LoJack for Laptops
Motor vehicle theft
Radio direction finder
Vehicle tracking system

References

Further reading

Automotive accessories
Companies based in Massachusetts
Motor vehicle theft
Security technology
Wireless locating
Geopositioning
Technology companies based in Massachusetts

LoJack


The Fokker D.XIV was a fighter aircraft developed in the Netherlands in the mid-1920s but which was only produced as a single prototype. It was a low-wing, cantilever monoplane with fixed tailskid undercarriage, the basic concept of which was derived from the Fokker V.25 that had been developed during World War I. The pilot sat in an open cockpit aft of the wing's trailing edge. Flight testing revealed excellent performance, but development was ceased when the prototype crashed, killing the test pilot.

Specifications

References

 Уголок неба

1920s Dutch fighter aircraft
D 14
Aircraft first flown in 1925

Fokker D.XIV


Sweave is a function in the statistical programming language R that enables integration of R code into LaTeX or LyX documents. The purpose is "to create dynamic reports, which can be updated automatically if data or analysis change".

The data analysis is performed at the moment of writing the report, or more exactly, at the moment of compiling the Sweave code with Sweave (i.e., essentially with R) and subsequently with LaTeX. This can facilitate the creation of up-to-date reports for the author.

Because the Sweave files together with any external R files that might be sourced from them and the data files contain all the information necessary to trace back all steps of the data analyses, Sweave also has the potential to make research more transparent and reproducible to others. However, this is only the case to the extent that the author makes the data and the R and Sweave code available. If the author only publishes the resulting PDF document or printed versions thereof, a report created using Sweave is no more transparent or reproducible than the same report created with other statistical and text preparation software.

See also
 knitr (an alternative to Sweave in R)
 LaTeX
 Literate programming
 LyX
 Reproducible research
 The R Programming wikibook

References

External links

 Pweave

R (programming language)
Free statistical software
Free TeX software
Literate programming

Sweave


Cryptocarya triplinervis is a rainforest tree growing in eastern Australia. Common names include the three veined laurel, three veined cryptocarya and the brown laurel.

Cryptocarya triplinervis var. triplinervis grows in littoral rainforests on sandy soils. Another variety var. pubens grows at higher altitude by streams, on volcanic or alluvial soil.

The natural range of distribution is from Smoky Cape (30° S), near South West Rocks, New South Wales to the Daintree River (16° S) in tropical Queensland. It also occurs on Lord Howe Island where it is known as blackbutt.

Description
Cryptocarya triplinervis is a small tree, occasionally reaching 20 metres in height and with a trunk diameter of 60 cm. The bark is grey brown, mostly smooth with lines of vertical bumps running up the trunk.

Leaves alternate, small and broad with a prominent tip. Dark glossy green above, paler and hairy below. Three veined with an easily seen mid vein, which is depressed on the upper side and raised on the lower side of the leaf.  Net veins easily seen on the underside. Leaves  long. Leaf stalks  long.

Pale green fragrant flowers form on short stemmed panicles from September to December. Fruit ripens from February to May. Being a black drupe,  across, with a single large seed inside. The fruit is somewhat longitudinally ribbed. Like most Australian Cryptocarya fruit, removal of the aril is advised to assist seed germination. Around 80% of the seeds will germinate, taking between three and six months. Plants generally take around 5 years to fruit in Brisbane Qld .

Taxonomy
The species was formally described in 1810 by botanist Robert Brown. Three subspecies are currently recognised:
 C. triplinervis var. pubens B.Hyland
 C. triplinervis var. riparia B.Hyland
 C. triplinervis R.Br. var. triplinervis

Gallery

References

External links

Trees of Australia
Flora of New South Wales
Flora of Queensland
Flora of Lord Howe Island
Laurales of Australia
triplinervis
Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)

Cryptocarya triplinervis


Bird Observation & Conservation Australia (BOCA) was a club established on 12 April 1905 by members of the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union (RAOU) in Melbourne, Victoria, as the Bird Observers Club.  Although inactive for many years, in 1927 it was revived and subsequently active until the end of 2011 when it merged with Birds Australia to form BirdLife Australia.  It published a quarterly journal, Australian Field Ornithology, and a quarterly newsletter, the Bird Observer.  It had a cooperative relationship with the Land for Wildlife program, a voluntary conservation scheme for private land in Victoria, which was instigated by two prominent club members, Ellen McCulloch and Reg Johnson, established in 1981, and coordinated by the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment.

In 1991 the club expanded its name to become the Bird Observers Club of Australia (BOCA) to give itself a national rather than a local focus.  In May 2007, at the Annual General Meeting, the membership voted to change the name of the organisation again to Bird Observation & Conservation Australia to "more properly present it and the work it does", while retaining the familiar acronym BOCA.  Its head office was in Nunawading (an eastern suburb of greater Melbourne) in Victoria, but it had sub-groups across eastern Australia.

By 2011 BOCA had 49 branches and affiliated groups, mainly in the eastern states of Australia, as well as a specialist group (PhotoBOCA) for those interested in bird photography.  It also owned and managed the Clarkesdale Bird Sanctuary at Linton, Victoria.

Merger
During 2009 discussions commenced with Birds Australia with a view to merging the two organisations.  On 21 May 2011 members of both BOCA and Birds Australia voted by an overwhelming majority at their respective Annual General Meetings to merge the two organisations into one entity to be named BirdLife Australia.

References

Further reading
 Hunter, Richard. (2007). Inside BOCA. Bird Observer 848: 4–5.

External links
 Birdlife Australia

Ornithological organisations in Australia
1905 establishments in Australia
2011 disestablishments in Australia
Bird conservation organizations


Vilen Nikolaevich Ivanov (born July 6, 1934 in Poltava, Soviet Union) – a Russian sociologist, Ph.D., Professor, corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS); since October, 2005 he has been a RAS adviser; member of the Bureau for Social Sciences under the RAS; Vice-President of the Russian Academy of Social Sciences; Editor-in-Chief of the Nauka. Kultura. Obshchestvo Journal; member of the Presidium of Moscow Sociological Association; honorary member of the Russian Association of Sociologists; full member of the Belarusian Academy of Social Sciences; Vice-President of the International Academy of Russia-Belarus Union; member of the Union of Russian Writers; full member of the Academy of Literature (since 2006).
V. Ivanov is the author of more than 400 scientific publications (monographs, manuals, brochures) and of 11 collections of poems.
He graduated from the Lenin Political-Military Academy with honours.
From 1983 to September 1988 V. Ivanov was Director of the Institute of Sociological Research under the Academy of Sciences of the USSR.
From 1991 to 2005 he was the first Deputy Director of the Institute of Socio-Political Research of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ISPR RAS)
At present time he is Deputy Head of the Sociology Department for National Security and Federalism under the ISPR RAS.

Awards and Prizes
Order of Friendship (1986);
Medal for Serving the Motherland, 2nd degree
The Order "Renascence of Russia, 21st century";
Gold Medal for the Assembly of Russian Peoples.

See also
Institute of Socio-Political Research

External links
The Institute of Socio-Political Research (in Russian)
Official site of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Sources
V.N. Ivanov's biography (in Russian)

1934 births
Living people
Writers from Poltava
Russian sociologists
Corresponding Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Lenin Military Political Academy alumni

Vilen Ivanov


Halewood is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in Merseyside, England. It lies near the city of Liverpool's southeastern boundary. It is bordered by the suburbs of Netherley, Hunt's Cross and Woolton. Halewood was historically a part of Lancashire.

Population
At the 2001 Census, the population of the civil parish was 20,309. It was similar at the 2011 Census. The combined population of Halewood's four local government wards was 29,217.

Transport
Halewood railway station opened in 1988. An earlier station, a few hundred metres further east, closed in 1951.

Towns in Merseyside
Civil parishes in Merseyside

Halewood


Hadi Sabzavari () or Hajj Molla Hadi Sabzavari (1797–1873 CE / 1212 - 1289 AH) was an Iranian philosopher, mystic theologian and poet.

Historical background
Molla Hadi lived in the Qajar period. According to his description, this period was along with descend of Hikmah; he also complained of his period for the sake of lacking knowledge and philosophy. This kind of thinking was common among Islamic philosophers. There was an intellectual and spiritual turmoil in the Qajar period. In fact, in this period, Iranian encountered with new European thought and revival of traditional thinking; also in this period we can see the diverse developments in beliefs like Shaykhism, Babism and Bahá'í and at the same time weakness and disappearance of Shiite.
Molla Hadi is counted as one of the four prominent masters of the Tehran philosophical school, along with Aqa 'Ali Mudarris, Aqa Muhammad Riza Qumshihi, Mirza Abul Hasan Jelveh.

Life
He was born in Sabzevar, Iran to a family of land-owning merchants. His formal education started at a young age under his cousin, Molla Hosayn Sabzavari, and he wrote a small treatise at the age of seven. His father died when he was seven or eight years old and his uncle Molla Ḥosayn Sabzavari, became his caretaker. When he reached the age of ten, he was taken by his cousin to Mashhad. There, he resided in the Hajj Hasan madrasa near the mausoleum of Imam Reza, where he studied Arabic, Islamic Jurisprudence, logic, and the principles of religion and law with Molla Hosay for a period of ten years. When he turned twenty, he returned to his hometown of Sabzavar. From there, he prepared his plans for the Hajj and set out in the direction of Isfahan. During this period, Isfahan was an important intellectual center of Iran, where philosophy and intellectual mysticism ('Erfan) flourished.

Among the important masters of these tradition at the time, the names of Mollā ʿAli Nuri (died 1830–31) and Mollā Esmāʿil Eṣfahāni, a student of Nuri, were prominent. They taught Islamic philosophy, mostly of Sadr al-Din Shirazi  and his school. He remained in Isfahan for around eight or nine years, where he studied under these two undisputed masters of Mulla Sadra's school of philosophy. He concentrated on the main works of Mulla Sadra, such as the Asfar and Al-Shawahed al-Robubiya. Simultaneously, he also studied Islamic jurisprudence with Aqa Mohammad 'Ali Najafi, one of the major Shia scholars of Isfahan. In Isfahan, Sabzevari lived a life of piety despite having received a substantial inheritance. According to the orientalist Edward Browne, "he used to take pains to discover which of the students stood most in need of pecuniary help, and would then secretly place sums of money in their room during their absence, without leaving any clue that would lead to the identification of the donor. In this way he is said to have expended no less than 100,000 tumáns (about 30,000 Pounds Sterling), while he was in Isfahan, leaving himself only so much as he deemed necessary for his own maintenance".

In In 1826–27, Sabzavari returned to Mashhad. There he began to teach in the Hājj Hasan madrasa although the scholars in Mashhad did not have the same interest in philosophy as Isfahan. The atmosphere of Mashhad was not as open as Isfahan for the pursuit of intellectual sciences. However, he continued to teach both the transmitted science as well as the intellectual sciences. He thought the intellectual sciences based on his work al-Manzuma, which he must have composed in Isfahan. His commentary on this important work of his however was completed in 1845. In 1831–32, he set out for Sabzavar where he made preparation for the Hajj. He left for Mecca in 1832–33 where he performed the rites of the pilgrimage. He returned to Iran in 1834–35 during the interval of the death of Fath Ali Shah Qajar. During this period of anarchy, traveling within Iran had become dangerous. Having lost his wife in Hajj, he settled in Kerman while waiting for calmer conditions to return to Khorasan. During the year he spent in Kerman, he was engaged in asceticism while agreeing to sweep the religious school for its keeper who provided him a room to live in. He married the keeper's daughter that year who was later to accompany him to Sabzavar. At this time, no one knew his real identity and degree of knowledge.

In 1836–37, Sabzavari set to Sabzavar and established a center for the study of Islamic philosophy and gnosis. The school he established rivaled with the schools of Tehran and Isfahan due to his personality. For a period of 10 months, he also taught in Mashhad. However, the rest of time was spent in Sabzevar where he made the Fasihiya school the center of teaching. This school became known as Madrasa-ye Ḥāji, where part of it still survives till this day.  Scholars and students began to flock from all over Persia, Iraq, Turkey, Caucasus, India and even Tibet. His name became widespread all over Iran so much so that in 1857–58, when Naser al-Din Shah Qajar made a pilgrimage to Mashhad, he stopped in Sabzavar and paid a visit to hakim Sabzavari. The Qajar King became very impressed by the philosopher and asked his royal photographer Aqa Reza 'Akkas-Bashi to photograph the hakim.  The picture, which is widely available, is the oldest picture of an Islamic philosopher.  The Qajar king also requested from him a book in Persian containing the complete theory and cycle of traditional philosophy. Sabzavari obliged and composed the two Persian books: the Asrāral-ḥekam, which he dedicated to Naser al-Din Shah and also another book titled Hedāyat al-ṭālebin.  Sabzavari died suddenly in 1872, probably as a result of heart failure. The date of his death is recorded in several chronographs, including the numerical value of the couplet ka namord zendatar shod ("He did not die but became more alive after his passing") which was composed by one of his students.

Works
Sabzavari wrote some fifty-two works of prose and poetry in both Arabic and Persian.  He wrote the Asrar al-hikmah ("The Secrets of Wisdom"), which, together with his Arabic treatise Sharh-i manzumah ("A Treatise on Logic in Verse"), remains a basic text for the study of hikmat doctrines in Iran. Not limited to philosophy, he also wrote poetry under the name of Asrar and completed a commentary on the Masnavi of Jalal ad-Din ar-Rumi, the great mystic poet of Islam.

For philosophy in the reign of Nasir al-Din Shah Qajar (1848–1896), he was what Mulla Sadra had been in the reign of Shah Abbas I. He was also the faithful interpreter of Mulla Sadra and Transcendent Theosophy. He played a part in making Mulla Sadra the 'master thinker' of the Iranian philosophers. It could even be said that circumstances permitted him, to a greater extent than Mulla Sadra, to give free rein to his genius as a mystical theosopher, because there was greater freedom of self-expression during the Safavid epoch.

Books
Sabzevari wrote numerous works in Persian and Arabic.  He wrote works dealing with an array of subjects from prosody to logic to theology. However, the majority of his works deal with philosophy and mysticism.

Šarḥ al-manẓuma, is a work in Arabic also known as Ḡorar al-farāʾed. It is one of his more notable books which was completed around 1845. Till this day, it is still taught in religious seminaries in Iran with numerous later commentaries. The work is a versified summary and commentary of the transcendence philosophy of Mulla Sadra.
Asrār al-ḥekam fi'l-moftataḥ wa'l-moḵtatam
Šarḥ-e abyāt-e moškela-ye Maṯnawi in Persian is a commentary of the Mathnawi of Mowalana Jalal al-Din Rumi
Hedāyat al-ṭālebin, a book composed in Persian at the request of Nasir al-Din Shah Qajar
Ta'liqat
Asrar ol-Ebadah
Aljabr wal ekhtiar
Osul ad-Din
Nebrās al-hodā
A poem cycle

Asrār al-ḥekam fi'l-moftataḥ wa'l-moḵtatam
This book was written for Naser al-Din Shah after the Shah while passing through Sabzavār asked Mulla Hadi Sabzevari to write a him a book about man's origin and destination in Persian together with the mysteries of God's oneness.  The book was completed in 1868 and it deals with concepts of illuminative wisdom (ešrāq) and peripatetic philosophy, and is rich in intuitive and mystic insights.

The gnosis of Sabzavari falls into three categories which are: (1) knowledge of God, consisting of knowledge of the beginning and knowledge of the end; (2) knowledge of one's self; (3)  knowledge of God's commands, consisting of knowledge of every rule of divine law (šarīʿa) and knowledge of the spiritual path (ṭarīqa). On the basis of this classification, the book is divided into two parts.

Part I of the book consists of seven chapters:
proof of the Necessarily Existent (wāǰeb al-woǰūd),
knowledge of God's attributes
God's actions
knowledge of one's self and psychology (maʿāref-e nafs)
knowledge of man's origin and destination,
absolute prophethood
Imamate

Part II comprises four chapters
ritual purity (ṭahāra)
prayer (ṣalāt)
alms
fasting (ṣīām).

The most important part of the book is on the proof of the Necessarily Existent (i.e., God).

Translations
 The Metaphysics of Sabzvârî, tr. from the Arabic by Mehdi Mohagheg and Toshihico Izutso, Delmar, New York, 1977.

See also
Mulla Sadra
Suhrawardi
Avicenna
Hossein Nasr
Islamic philosophy

References

Works cited

Further reading

 The Metaphysics of Sabzvârî, tr. from the Arabic by Mehdi Mohagheg and Toshihico Izutso, Delmar, New York, 1977.
 Seyyed Hossein Nasr, "HĀDI SABZAVĀRI" in Encyclopaedia Iranica

19th-century Iranian poets
Islamic philosophers
19th-century Muslim scholars of Islam
Iranian Shia scholars of Islam
People from Sabzevar
1797 births
1873 deaths
19th-century Iranian philosophers
Iranian Muslim mystics

Hadi Sabzavari


Robert Baratheon is a fictional character in the A Song of Ice and Fire series of epic fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin, and its television adaptation Game of Thrones, where he is portrayed by English actor Mark Addy.

Introduced in 1996's A Game of Thrones, Robert is the eldest son and heir of Lord Steffon Baratheon. He is a close friend to Ned Stark, both being wards of Lord Jon Arryn. After his betrothed Lyanna Stark was allegedly kidnapped by prince Rhaegar Targaryen, Robert, Ned and Jon started a rebellion against the "Mad King" Aerys II Targaryen. After crushing the Targaryen dynasty and winning the war, during which Lyanna died, Robert took the Iron Throne. He married Tywin Lannister's daughter Cersei to ensure political stability. Although Robert's reign is relatively peaceful, he proves to be an ineffective ruler. He is unhappy in both his marriage to Cersei, whom he abuses, and his responsibilities as king, and lives a life of infidelity and wanton excess. He fathers many bastards, and is unaware that his three children with Cersei had been fathered by her twin brother Jaime Lannister.

Although Robert dies in the first novel, the legacy of his rebellion and reign continues to have a great impact on the contemporary events of Westeros. His death creates a power vacuum in which his brothers and Cersei's eldest son Joffrey fight for control of the Seven Kingdoms while Robb Stark and Balon Greyjoy fight for secession, known as the War of Five Kings.

Character background
Robert Baratheon was the oldest son and heir of Lord Steffon Baratheon and Lady Cassana Estermont. In his youth, he was the ward of Jon Arryn and was raised at the Eyrie alongside Eddard Stark, with whom he was closer than his brothers. When he was 16, his parents drowned and died during a storm, and he became the Lord of Storm's End. He was betrothed to Ned's younger sister Lyanna, with whom he was madly (and unrequitedly) in love. After Lyanna disappeared with Rhaegar Targaryen, and the execution of Eddard's father, Rickard and brother, Brandon Stark King Aerys II called for Robert and Ned's heads. Jon Arryn refused and began what is now called Robert's Rebellion. Robert played a key role in the downfall of the Targaryen dynasty and killed Rhaegar in single combat.  He married Cersei Lannister to ensure House Lannister's support for his rule.

Personality and description
Robert is in his mid-thirties when the events of the books begin.  Although being a quarter Targaryen (through his paternal grandmother Rhaelle), Robert has the classical Baratheon look: black hair and bright blue eyes, with dense black body hair on his chest and around his sex.  He is a very tall man, with Eddard estimating his height to be .  As a young adult, Robert was handsome, clean-shaven, strong and powerful, and muscled "like a maiden's fantasy".  However, after he won the Iron Throne, Robert becomes very obese due to excessive feasting and drinking, gaining at least  of weight, and turns into an often red-faced man with dark circles underneath his eyes and appears half-drunk and sweating when walking, with a wild, thick, fierce beard that hides his double chin.

In his youth, Robert is fearless in battle with a powerful voice, wielding a large spiked iron war hammer too heavy for Eddard Stark to lift, and was a formidable warrior well-loved by soldiers.  Though headstrong, rash, and impatient, Robert can be merciful towards his enemies as long as they are honest and brave, and can inspire loyalty and friendship in even enemies via charisma alone.  Although deconditioned after becoming king due to weight gain and frequent drinking, Jaime Lannister still believes that Robert is stronger than him.

Robert is a jovial man of huge appetites and knows to indulge in pleasures.  He is quite promiscuous, having fathered multiple bastard children (17 according to the prophecy by Lannisport fortuneteller Maggy the Frog) with whores or any women he encounters, and his lusts are the subject of ribald drinking songs throughout the realms.  As king, Robert is known to impose upon the hospitality (voluntarily or not) of his subjects, but at the same time also possesses a rather careless generosity.  A proud man, Robert rarely backs down on words spoken in a drunken rant. As king, Robert is no longer used to someone disagreeing with him, which makes him vulnerable to manipulation by others. Robert loathes his responsibilities as king and frequently expresses his preference to winning the throne in battle rather than sitting on it. He has never truly loved his wife and is unaware that none of his three children with her are his, but instead Jaime Lannister's. Under his reign, the realm has been bankrupted, and Robert is deeply in debt to his wife's family. Tyrion Lannister considers Robert to be "a great blustering oaf", while Varys describes him as a fool.  His queen wife, Cersei Lannister, considers him to be an ignorant, dumb, slow-witted, drunken brute who does not have the ruthless streak she believes a king requires.  According to Petyr Baelish, Robert is practised at closing his eyes to things he would rather not see.

Storylines

Robert Baratheon is not a point of view character in the novels, so his actions are mainly witnessed and interpreted through the eyes of Ned Stark.  He only appears in the first book of the series A Game of Thrones, though he is mentioned numerous times in the later books by characters such as Cersei Lannister.

A Game of Thrones

King Robert has come to Winterfell to appoint his close friend Eddard Stark the Hand of The King, after the untimely death of Jon Arryn. He was unaware that Cersei's three children were fathered by her twin brother Jaime.  More interested in food, drink, and tourneys than in governance, Robert has squandered the royal treasury, leaving the crown heavily in debt.  After a hunting accident orchestrated by Cersei, Robert is mortally wounded by a wild boar and appoints Eddard as the regent for his son Joffrey.  After Robert's death, Eddard loses the political struggle against the Lannisters and is later publicly executed by beheading. The kingdoms plunge into civil war known as the War of the Five Kings (which encompasses the entirety of the following two books) in which Robert's two brothers Renly and Stannis Baratheon both declare themselves the rightful kings. Eddard's vengeful son Robb and later Balon Greyjoy also secede and declare kingships.

Family tree of House Baratheon

TV adaptation
Mark Addy plays Robert Baratheon in the television adaption of the book series. According to showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, Addy's audition for the role was the best they had seen and he was the easiest actor to cast for the show. Brian Cox said he turned down the role because the "money was not all that great" and the character would be killed off early in the series.

Season 1

Robert's storyline is the same in the show as it is in the novels. However, his wife Cersei reveals that she had one stillborn son by him, which is not the case in the novels, where Cersei uses guile and trickery to prevent him from ever actually engaging in sexual intercourse with her while drunk.

Season 2
After his death, Robert's bastards are ordered to be killed by his heir Joffrey Baratheon, Robert's supposed legal heir and the new king; Gendry, subsequently flees the capital.

Seasons 6 & 7
In seasons six and seven, Bran Stark's gift of vision as the Three-Eyed Raven reveals to him the truth of Rhaegar and Lyanna's relationship, that Lyanna willingly fled with Rhaegar and married him in secret, and states that "Robert's Rebellion was built on a lie," even though it was the Mad King's crimes against House Stark that started the rebellion in the first place.

Season 8
Following the Night King's defeat and the destruction of the White Walkers and the army of the dead, Daenerys Targaryen legitimizes Gendry as Gendry Baratheon, naming him Robert's lawful son and the new Lord of Storm's End.

References

External links

A Song of Ice and Fire characters
Fiction about regicide
Fictional alcohol abusers
Fictional murdered people
Literary characters introduced in 1996
Fictional characters who committed familicide
Fictional domestic abusers
Fictional rapists
Fictional hunters
Fictional kings
Fictional knights
Fictional lords and ladies
Fictional revolutionaries
Fictional war veterans
Male characters in literature
Male characters in television
Mariticide in fiction
Television characters introduced in 2011
Deaths due to boar attacks

Robert Baratheon


The 9th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

History

Shortly after the Battle of Fort Sumter, President Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers. They were to serve for three months. The state of Illinois put out a call to form units. Six companies came from St. Clair County. Madison County sent three companies. Montgomery county sent one company. All nine companies met at Springfield, Illinois on April 23, 1861. There they were formed into the 9th Regiment, Illinois volunteer infantry. There were rumors that the Confederates intended to invade at Cairo, Illinois. In response, orders were issued for the 9th Infantry to occupy Cairo. They arrived and set up camp on May 1, 1861.

The first few months were spent on the Mississippi river guarding Cairo. Their three-month enlistments were up in July. Most of the men reenlisted for three years. In September the regiment moved to Paducah, Kentucky. There they did little more than drill practice. On February 15, 1862 they joined the fighting at the Battle of Fort Donelson. Their losses included 36 killed and 165 wounded, out of a total strength of 600. After the Confederates surrendered, they were transported by riverboats up the Tennessee River. They left the boats at Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee and camped nearby. On April 6, 1862 they woke up to the sound of cannons. While they were waiting to join the battle, new orders were given. They were ordered to exchange their gray coats for Union blue. This way they would not be mistaken for Confederate troops. They then joined the battle of Shiloh. They fought most of the day. At Shiloh the 9th Illinois had the highest casualties of any Illinois unit. They lost 366 of their comrades They also fought at the Second Battle of Corinth. The regiment was changed to the 9th Illinois Volunteer Mounted Infantry Regiment on March 15, 1863. On July 9, 1865 the 9th Illinois Infantry was mustered out (released from military service) at Louisville, Kentucky.

Total strength and casualties

The regiment suffered 5 officers and 211 recruited men killed in action or mortally wounded. 1 officer and 200 enlisted men died of disease. In total there were 417 casualties (persons killed or wounded).

Uniforms

The 9th Illinois volunteers, along with the 8th, 11th, and 12th, all wore gray coats trimmed in blue.  They also wore Zouave caps.  In 1862, they changed to the same blue uniforms as other Union Army regiments.  Most of the Illinois infantry regiments used Springfield Model 1861 muskets.

Commanders
Colonel Augustus Mersy - Mustered out with the regiment

Notes

References

Other websites
The Civil War Archive

Union Army

9th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment


The Theban Cycle () is a collection of four lost epics of ancient Greek literature which tells the mythological history of the Boeotian city of Thebes. They were composed in dactylic hexameter verse and believed to be recorded between 750 and 500 BC. The epics took place before the Trojan War and centered around the Theban royal family.

The epics of the Theban Cycle were the Oedipodea, the Thebaid, the Epigoni, and the Alcmeonis.

Overview
In the collection, the precise sequence of events and the handling of characters and plots are difficult to reconstruct. There are very few fragments for the Oedipodea and the Epigoni which there are less than ten and only three verbatim fragments totaling four lines. In addition, unlike the poetry of the Trojan cycle, there is no prose summary.

 The Oedipodea: There are a total of 6,600 verses in which different sources attribute Cinaethon of Sparta to this lost epic. It is treated as the opening poem of the Theban Cycle.
 The Thebaid: contain 7,000 verses, also known as Thebais or the Cyclic Thebaid. It is an ancient Greek epic whose author's true identity cannot be determined. Ancient Greek elegiac poet Callinus believed that Homer is the author of the epic, and this statement is widely recognized.
 The Epigoni: consists of 7,000 lines of verse. Some scholars believed it is a sort of sequel to the Thebais. The poem was attributed to Homer, but doubts existed. There is another saying that Antimachus of Teos is the author. The poem raises many unresolved issues concerning its origin, age, arrangement, and relationship with other epics includes Thebaid, Alcmeonis, Trojan that are now lost.
 The Alcmeonis: It is the fourth epic in the Theban Cycle with the least information that existed. The author, verses, and even the written period are unknown.

Plot summary

Oedipodea

It related to the story of Oedipus and the Sphinx, in the story, Oedipus was the king of Thebes, while the Sphinx was a treacherous and cruel female evil creature.

One of the two fragments of Oedipodeia in the epic cluster mentions the sphinx. From the existing fragments, it cannot be sure whether the sphinx set riddle.

The fragment also shows that after Epicaste died, Oedipus remarried. Nevertheless, the four children were born by Epicaste rather than the result of incest.

Thebaid

As a chronicle, it records the quarrel between the two brothers Eteocles and Polynices, sons of Oedipus, which led to the war of the Seven against Thebes.

When Oedipus gave up the throne in Thebes, his sons Eteocles and Polynices reached an agreement on the inheritance of his father; Polynices took possession of the material property while Eteocles claimed the title of the royal family. Later, the exiled Polynices and Tydeus arrived at Argos at the same time and a fight breaks out. Adrastus, king of Argos, predicted that his daughter would marry a lion and a wild boar, which represents Polynices and Tydeus. To help Polynices regain the throne, Adrastus sent troops to assist him. However, Polynices and six other commanders failed in their expedition to Thebes. At the end of the poem, both Eteocles and Polynices were killed.

Epigoni

The Epigoni was closely related to the Thebaid because it focused on the second expedition to Thebes by the sons of the Seven after 10 years. In other words, it centered on the family of Oedipus, especially the generation of grandsons. The sons of the seven warriors were unsuccessful in surrounding Thebes. Instead, Epigones captured the city and destroyed it.

There was an extremely limited fragment in the poem. In fact, only the first line is known: "But now, Muses, let us begin on the younger men."

Alcmeonis

Only seven records of Alcmeonis are found in ancient literature. It tells the story of Alcmaeon killing his mother, Eriphyle, because she arranged for the death of his father Amphiaraus, whose murder is told in Thebaid.

There is a lot of debate about whether to include the Alcmeonis in the epic cycle. However, Alcmaeon is an outstanding figure within the Theban saga. He is the son of Amphiaraus. His father was one of the seven people who failed the attack on Thebes (related to the Thebaid), and he himself was one of Epigonoi (the son of seven people) who destroyed Thebes in the subsequent campaign. The legend of Alcmaeon corresponds to the theme of the Ancient Greek epic.

Significance and influence
The collection of four lost epics along with other ancient Greek literature influenced literature creation afterward.

A series of famous examples is the Theban play created by Sophocles, one of three ancient Greek tragedians. In particular, the plot of Oedipus Rex, one of the representative works in the Greek tragedy, includes that the protagonist Oedipus defeated the Sphinx by solving puzzles. Oedipus gradually established an image of superior intelligence. The Oedipodea may be a reference for the Oedipus Rex. The evolution of the image of Oedipus and Sphinx also reflects the face of Greek society at that time. To say, in the era of tragedy, civil society may put forward higher demands on the knowledge of the king rather than the force. Therefore, the Oedipus portrayed by Sophocles is an image that relies on knowledge and reasoning.

Later, Sophocles created Epigoni again in the form of tragedy. Unfortunately, the complete script has been lost for centuries and only a few fragments remain.

Last but not least, The Thebaid is associated with another Latin epic with the same title. The Latin poem was also written in dactylic hexameter and described the struggle of the Polynices and Eteocles for the throne of Thebes. Despite being criticized that there is a feeling of exaggeration, it receives popularity in the Middle Ages and Renaissance and helps the promotion of further literature creation.

Modern adaptation
The epics of the Theban Cycle were converted into plays in ancient Greece. The drama was produced in contemporary world.

 Theban Cycle (2002) presented by the Düsseldorf Schauspielhaus. It is a production of four interconnected Greek plays: The Bacchae by Euripides, Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, Seven Against Thebes by Aeschylus, and Antigone by Sophocles.

Select editions and translations

Critical editions
 .
 .
 .
 .

Translations
 . Greek text with facing English translation

References

Bibliography
 Baumann, R. (n.d.). Photios, Bibliotheca, 239: Proclus' "Grammatical Chrestomathy". Retrieved December 18, 2020, from https://ryanfb.github.io/photios-bibliotheca/239
Cingano, E. (2015). Epigonoi. In M. Fantuzzi & C. Tsagalis (Eds.), The Greek Epic Cycle and its Ancient Reception: A Companion (pp. 244–260). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Cingano, E. (2015). Oedipodea. In M. Fantuzzi & C. Tsagalis (Eds.), The Greek Epic Cycle and its Ancient Reception: A Companion (pp. 213–225). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Debiasi, A. (2015). Alcmeonis. In M. Fantuzzi & C. Tsagalis (Eds.), The Greek Epic Cycle and its Ancient Reception: A Companion (pp. 261–280). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Jeffrey Henderson. (2003, January 1). Greek Epic Fragments. The Theban Cycle. Retrieved December 18, 2020, from https://www.loebclassics.com/search?q=theban+cycle
Malcolm, D. (2015). The Theban Epics. Chapter 4. Epigoni. Hellenic Studies Series 69. Washington, DC: Center for Hellenic Studies. Retrieved December 18, 2020, from https://chs.harvard.edu/CHS/article/display/5910.4-epigoni\
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2020, February 1). Statius. Retrieved December 18, 2020, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Statius
Torres-Guerra, J. (2015). Thebaid. In M. Fantuzzi & C. Tsagalis (Eds.), The Greek Epic Cycle and its Ancient Reception: A Companion (pp. 226–243). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
West, M.L. (2003), Greek Epic Fragments, Loeb Classical Library, no. 497, Cambridge, MA, .

8th-century BC books
7th-century BC books
6th-century BC books
Lost poems

Theban Cycle


The Windham Village Historic District is one of two historic districts in Windham, Vermont, encompassing the dispersed rural village near the town's geographic center.  The area was principally developed in the early decades of the 19th century, and has had only modest alterations since then.  It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

Description and history
Windham Village is a dispersed rural settlement, extending along Windham Hill Road between Harrington Road and Stone Bridge Road.  The focal point of the village is the Congregational Church, located at the junction with Harrington Road, which was built in 1802 and given Greek Revival styling in 1825.  There are twelve other primary buildings, of which ten are historically significant, in an area of about .  All of these are residences, typically 1-1/2 or  stories in height, with wood-frame construction and either vernacular Greek or Gothic Revival style.  Most were built before 1858—there are only a few 20th century houses in the area, and they are sympathetic in style and scale to the older buildings.

The town of Windham was chartered in the early 1770s, but settlement of this, its central village, did not begin until the 1780s.  The village is unusual in the state as a well-preserved and still-occupied high hill villages, many of which were abandoned in the 19th century and early 20th centuries.  At the middle of the 19th century, when the town population was at its peak, the village included a small commercial complex, which declined and collapsed in the 1940s, its building materials eventually salvaged by area residents.

See also
National Register of Historic Places listings in Windham County, Vermont

References

Geography of Windham County, Vermont
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Vermont
Windham, Vermont
National Register of Historic Places in Windham County, Vermont

Windham Village Historic District


The Veterinary Council of India (VCI) is a statutory body which regulates veterinary practice in India. Established under the Ministry of Agriculture of the Government of India in 1984, and based in New Delhi, the council is governed by the Indian Veterinary Council Act, 1984. The first members were nominated in 1989. The first elections to the council took place in 1999. Since May 2019 after the creation of Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying the Veterinary Council of India is functional as a statutory body under this ministry.

It derives its funding from grants-in-aid from the Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying of the Ministry of Agriculture.

Composition
The council has twenty-seven members (fourteen nominated, eleven elected and two ex officio).

More precisely, according to the council's website, it consists of:

 Five Members to be nominated by the Central Government from amongst the Directors of Animal Husbandry (by whatever name called) of those States to which the Act extends,
 Four Members to be nominated by the Central Government from amongst the heads of Veterinary Institutions in the States to which the Act extends.
 One Member to be nominated by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.
 Animal Husbandry Commissioner, Government of India, ex officio;
 One Member to be nominated by the Central Government to represent the Ministry of the Central Government dealing with Animal Husbandry;
 One Member to be nominated by the Indian Veterinary Association;
 Eleven members are elected from amongst the persons enrolled in the Indian Veterinary Practitioners Register;
 One Member to be nominated by the Central Government from amongst the Presidents of the State Veterinary Councils of those States to which the Act extends;
 One Member to be nominated by the Central Government from amongst the Presidents of the State Veterinary Associations of those States to which the Act extends;

Secretary, Veterinary Council of India, ex officio.

Objectives
The Veterinary Council's website names the following objectives:

To prepare and maintain the Indian Veterinary Practitioners' Register containing the names of all persons who possess the recognized veterinary qualifications and who are for the time being enrolled on a State Veterinary Register of the State to which Indian Veterinary Council Act extends.
To lay down minimum standards of veterinary education required for granting recognized veterinary qualifications by veterinary institutions.
To recommend recognition or withdrawal of recognition of veterinary qualifications granted by veterinary institutions in India.
To lay down the standards of professional conduct, etiquette and code of ethics to be observed by veterinary practitioners
To negotiate with institutions located in other countries imparting training in veterinary education for recognition of their qualifications on reciprocal basis.
To regulate veterinary practice in the country.
To advise the Central and the State Governments on all regulatory matters concerning veterinary practice and education.
To frame regulations
To implement the provisions of the Act, and Rules and Regulations framed thereunder.

Veterinary Council of India (Registration) Regulations

These regulations came into force on 24 February 1994.

Definition

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires:-

 'Act' means the Indian Veterinary Council Act, 1984(52 of 1984).
 'Form' means a form appended to these regulations.
 'Recognised Veterinary College' means a veterinary college affiliated to a university and recognised by Veterinary Council of India.

Register

The Register shall be maintained in such form specified in the Appendix annexed to these regulations.

Direct Registration in the Register

Any registered practitioner desirous of having his/her name entered in the Register under Section 24 of the Act may apply directly to Secretary in form A.  The Secretary shall verify the antecedents of the applicant and verify that the applicant has a recognised veterinary qualification.

Registration of Additional Qualification

Any registered practitioner may apply to the Secretary on an application in Form B on obtaining any degree or diploma in veterinary science in addition to his/her registered qualification.

Alteration of names in the Register

Application for alteration of name in the register is not entertained unless accompanied by following:-

 Notification in the official Gazette relating to such alteration.
 A Notification in the official Gazette relating to change in name an affidavit regarding such alteration of name affirmed and authenticated before a Judicial Magistrate of the First Class or Metropolitan Magistrate in original, along with two attested copies thereof.

Notification about change of place or residence

It shall be the duty of every registered practitioner to intimate his or her changed address to the Veterinary Council or the State Veterinary Council concerned.

Certificate of Registration

The certificate of Registration is given in Form 'C'.

Renewal, revision and publication of register

After every five years from the first publication of the register in the Official Gazette, the Secretary shall cause a general notice in Form 'D' to be published in the leading newspapers having wide circulation in the country and on such dates as the Secretary may, with the approval of the President of the Veterinary Council of India, decide, call upon all registered practitioners to apply to the Secretary without payment of any fee and within the specified period, for continuation of their names in the Register.

Issue of Duplicate Certificate

Issue of Duplicate certificate can be applied to Secretary in Form 'G' only if the original certificate of the registered practitioner has been lost or destroyed by paying a fee of Rs. 10/-

Appeal

Any aggrieved by an order under sub-section (1) of Section 49 of the Act may appeal within 60 days to the Council in Form H.

See also
 Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI)

References

1334697

External links
Veterinary Council of India, Official website
Registration Regulation
Act

Veterinary organizations
Government agencies of India
1984 establishments in Delhi
Veterinary medicine in India
Regulatory agencies of India
Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare
Organisations based in Delhi

Veterinary Council of India