Botswana is a parliamentary republic in which the President of Botswana is both head of state and head of government. The nation's politics are based heavily on British parliamentary politics and on traditional Batswana chiefdom. The legislature is made up of the unicameral National Assembly and the advisory body of tribal chiefs, the Ntlo ya Dikgosi. The National Assembly chooses the president, but once in office the president has significant authority over the legislature with only limited separation of powers. The Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) rules as a dominant party; while elections in Botswana are considered free and fair by observers, the BDP has controlled the National Assembly since independence. Political opposition in Botswana often exists between factions in the BDP rather than through separate parties, though several opposition parties exist and regularly hold a small number of seats in the National Assembly.

Botswana achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1966. The BDP led by Seretse Khama formed the first government, and continued winning elections every five years. Quett Masire became president following Khama's death in 1980, and the BDP was enveloped by factionalism in the 1990s. This factionalism persisted through the presidencies of Festus Mogae from 1998 to 2008 and Ian Khama from 2008 to 2018. Khama's successor, Mokgweetsi Masisi, became president in 2018 and developed a strong political rivalry with Khama, which came to define politics in Botswana over the following years.

Botswana has an above average human rights record, and it is recognised by human rights groups as one of the strongest democracies in Africa. Economic policy in Botswana revolves around the nation's lucrative diamond industry, which makes up a significant portion of the economy. The country has been praised as an economic success as it pursued free market policies in the 20th century, and it has since shifted to more redistributive economic policy. Wealth inequality remains high in Botswana. Welfare programs are limited, but public services and infrastructure receive strong funding. Foreign policy in Botswana has historically emphasised multilateralism and realpolitik. Apartheid-era South Africa was the nation's primary foreign policy concern until 1994 and then instability in Zimbabwe thereafter.

History

Pre-statehood
The location of present day Botswana was historically controlled by Bantu peoples, primarily the Tswana people. Many legal traditions practiced by the Tswana people, such as respect for traditional authority and protection of property rights, have played a role in the development of post-colonial Botswana politics. Centralised political structures developed prior to colonisation have also been retained. Politics of the Tswana people prior to statehood was often led by chiefs, who continue to have a role in Botswana politics. In the early-19th century, these chiefdoms developed into nation states. These nation states incorporated limited government and ethnic pluralism.

The United Kingdom began involvement in the region in the 1820s, and the region became part of the British Empire in 1885 as the Bechuanaland Protectorate. The Tswana people were made subjects of the Crown and placed under British law. The first significant movement for independence was led by the radical Bechuanaland People's Party. The Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) was formed by Seretse Khama in 1962 as part of a negotiated independence process. Botswana became self-governing in 1965, and it became an independent republic in 1966. The United Kingdom continued to invest in the country financially and pay some of its expenses through 1971. Institutions and traditions from both precolonial Tswana society and colonial British rule were retained following independence and continue to influence the politics of Botswana.

Presidency of Seretse Khama
Upon receiving self-governance, the nation held the 1965 Bechuanaland general election, in which the BDP won a large victory: of the 31 seats in the legislature, the BDP won 28. Three members of the Botswana People's Party made up the opposition, all elected from relatively urbanised constituencies. The government under the first president, Seretse Khama, was based heavily on collaborative governance similar to that of the pre-colonial tribal governments. Policies were often considered by several ministries and a commission before being adopted. Khama also ensured that foreign involvement was welcome, opposed to a nationalism that restricted opportunity.

The Botswana National Front (BNF) was founded by Kenneth Koma as a left-wing party, and it became the opposition party in the 1969 general election. While Khama was president, his vice president, Quett Masire, held considerable power as well. In addition to being the vice president, he was the minister of finance, and he was the secretary general of the BDP. He oversaw a series of National Development Plans that dispensed much of the government's policies. Regional instability prompted the creation of the Botswana Defence Force in 1977. Prior to this, the Botswana Police Service handled all of the nation's security responsibilities.

Presidency of Quett Masire
Khama served as president until his death in 1980, at which point Vice President Masire became president. The opposition gained support in the 1980s and 1990s as the country urbanised and the BDP's rural political base shrank. HIV/AIDS in Botswana became a major political issue as its severity became apparent in the 1990s, and the government took an active role in combatting it.

The Kgabo Commission, part of a corruption controversy involving Vice President Peter Mmusi and BDP Secretary General Daniel Kwelagobe, dominated the politics of Botswana in 1991 and brought about an era of factionalism in the BDP. Mmusi's resignation led to Festus Mogae being chosen as the next vice president. The incident firmly established a growing factional conflict within the BDP: Mmusi and Kwelagobe formed the Big Two while Mompati Merafhe and his supporters—namely David Magang, Bahiti Temane, Roy Blackbeard, and Chapson Butale—were identified by them as the Big Five whom they opposed. Merafhe later took on Jacob Nkate as his closest ally, and they dubbed themselves the A-Team. Although an appeal to the courts backfired against the Big Two and saw them suspended from parliament, their supporters gained power after the 1994 general election. Amid this inter-party conflict, the BNF became a significantly stronger opposition, winning thirteen seats. Kwelagobe aligned with Ponatshego Kedikilwe following Mmusi's death, and they renamed themselves the Barata-Phathi.

After the BDP's poor performance in the 1994 election, South African academic Lawrence Schlemmer was brought in by the party to provide a political strategy. He recommended replacing the long-standing members of the BDP with newer, non-factional members, with a particular focus on the presidency. Multiple constitutional reforms were enacted in Botswana following a referendum in 1997: the vice president was designated the automatic successor of the president, the voting age was lowered to eighteen, and an independent electoral commission was established. These reforms were championed by Masire, as automatic succession allowed him to anoint a successor.

1998–present
Masire stepped down as president in 1998, and Vice President Mogae became president. He chose Ian Khama as vice president, and while the two were nominally non-factional, they effectively supported the A-Team faction of Merafhe and Nkate. This caused the factional differences in the party to further escalate. A schism also formed in the oppositional BNF, which led to the creation of the Botswana Congress Party in 1998. Enough assemblymen defected that this new party became the primary opposition, but they were replaced by BNF candidates in the 1999 general election.

Mogae's tenure as president ended in 2008, and Ian Khama, the son of President Seretse Khama, became president. The BDP underwent its first split in 2010 when Khama encouraged the Barata-Phathi faction to leave the party, and they formed the Botswana Movement for Democracy, led by Gomolemo Motswaledi. Freedom House lowered Botswana's rating in the 2010s as a crackdown took place against journalists.

Khama stepped down in 2018, and Vice President Mokgweetsi Masisi became president. He immediately reversed Khama's policies and replaced top officials who had been appointed by Khama. The two former allies quickly became political rivals, and Khama defected from the Botswana Democratic Party. He instead aligned with the newly formed Botswana Patriotic Front in addition to supporting the Umbrella for Democratic Change. This made the 2019 general election the first competitive election in the nation's history, but the BDP remained in power with 52.7% of the total vote, winning 38 of the 57 seats in the assembly. The rivalry significantly escalated when Masisi's pursued criminal charges against Khama for illegal ownership of firearms in 2022, causing Khama to seek asylum in South Africa.

National government

Botswana is a parliamentary republic governed by the Constitution of Botswana. The constitution has been in effect since Botswana became independent from the United Kingdom on 30 September 1966. This makes it the longest uninterrupted democracy in Africa. Botswana operates under a blend of Roman-Dutch law, customary law, and common law. Its seat of government is in Gaborone.

Legislative branch

The legislature of Botswana is derived from the Westminster system of the United Kingdom, though it has several aspects that distinguish it from this system. Unlike in the United Kingdom, the leader of the legislature has no executive powers, and it is subject to the Constitution of Botswana. Its official function under the constitution is to "make laws for the peace, order and good government of Botswana". The legislature is responsible for serving as a check on the power of the executive. The legislature has little power to limit the actions of the executive branch, leading to concerns that it is unable to check executive power.

The legislative body of Botswana is the National Assembly, a unicameral body consisting of 63 members. 57 of these members are directly elected by their constituents and six of these members are chosen by the National Assembly. The President of Botswana and the Speaker of the National Assembly are ex officio members. For a bill to become a law, it must be approved by the National Assembly and by the president. The assembly uses a question time procedure to obtain information.

The Ntlo ya Dikgosi is an advisory body established by the constitution. Its members include eight chiefs of the Tswana people, five members appointed by the president, and 22 members chosen by the eight chiefs. Any bill that affects the constitution or traditional tribal laws must be referred to the Ntlo ya Dikgosi, where it reads the bill and passes a resolution stating its position on the bill. It has no legislative powers of its own.

Executive branch
The executive branch of Botswana is headed by the President of Botswana, who serves as both the head of state and head of government. The president is indirectly elected by members of parliament, and the position has historically been associated with a major tribe. The executive is the strongest branch of government in Botswana, and the president wields significant power, effectively heading the legislative branch of government as well. The judiciary is the only de facto check on the president's power. The president has the power to veto legislation by refusing to sign it, which returns the legislation to the National Assembly. The president is also the commander-in-chief of the nation's military. The Vice-President of Botswana and the Cabinet of Botswana operate underneath the President of Botswana. The president chooses the vice president and the members of the cabinet from the members of parliament.

Judicial branch
The highest court of Botswana is the Court of Appeal, which is constituted under section 99 of these Constitution and consists of a President and such number of Justices of Appeal as may be prescribed by Parliament. There are currently eight judges of the Court of Appeal, who are all expatriates drawn from different parts of the Commonwealth. To date, no Motswana has ever been appointed to the Court of Appeal.

The High Court is a superior court of record with unlimited original jurisdiction to hear and determine any criminal and civil cases under any law. The High Court is constituted under section 95 of the Constitution, and consists of a Chief Justice and such number of other judges of the High Court as may be prescribed by Parliament. There are currently sixteen permanent judges of the High Court. Until 1992, the judges of the High Court were expatriate judges who were appointed on short-term contracts of two to three years. In 1992 the first citizen judges were appointed to the bench. There are three High Court divisions in Lobatse, Gaborone and Francistown.

Most cases are settled by customary courts, which are presided over by tribal chiefs. These courts are often preferred by the community due to their relative simplicity. There are also Magistrates' Courts in Botswana. These courts are subordinate to the High Court and hear a range of civil, criminal and family law matters. There are nineteen Magistrates' Courts in the country, with fifty magistrates of whom seventeen are expatriate.

Local and tribal government
Botswana's government is centralised, and the powers of local government are determined by national law. Local government is authorised under the Local Government (District Councils) Act, 1965. The smallest division of government in Botswana is the local council. Cities in Botswana are under the jurisdiction of a mayor and a city council, which is led by a council chairperson. Smaller towns also have town councils, while rural areas are collected under district councils. These councils are primarily responsible for education, health, roads, water, local development, and general welfare. Local governmental bodies do not collect significant funds, and nearly all local spending is funded by the national government.

Tribes are led by tribal chiefs, who often have significant influence over the affairs of local government. Chiefs are responsible for chairing kgotlas, traditional tribal meetings of the community, and for presiding over customary courts. Kgotlas predate Botswana's independence and represent the traditional mode of government in which a chief ruled as the first among equals. Tswana chiefs were historically more accountable to the people than in other African societies, as the region's main industry, cattle farming, allowed farmers more mobility and independence than would be provided by growing crops. Tribal land is held and allocated by Land Boards. These Land Boards are made up of members chosen by the tribal community and members appointed by the Minister of Lands.

Botswana is divided into 28 districts. Each district is under the jurisdiction of a district administration, led by a district commissioner.

Political parties

Botswana is a dominant-party state led by the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP). This party was formed by Seretse Khama in 1962 during the nation's movement toward independence, and it has ruled with a majority in every government since. A multi-party system allows several opposition parties to stand for election and seek representation in the legislature. Despite never holding a majority, opposition parties in Botswana wield more power than those of most other African countries, as there are no legal barriers to restrict the creation or growth of an opposition party.

Historically, the Botswana National Front has been the strongest opposition party, advocating left-wing politics. The opposition in the Botswana legislature has often been fragmented, with several parties competing with one another in addition to challenging the BDP. The opposition has mainly been supported by urbanites, tribes outside of the majority Tswana population, and certain tribal chiefs. Increasing urbanisation has given more strength to opposition parties.

Factionalism is common in Botswana political parties, and several parties have split from the Botswana National Front, including the Botswana Congress Party that became another significant opposition party after its creation in 1998. Some attempts have been made to create alliances between opposition parties, though none have ever prevented the BDP from achieving a majority in the legislature. In 2019, the Botswana National Front, the Botswana Congress Party, the Botswana Movement for Democracy, and the Botswana People's Party joined together as the Umbrella for Democratic Change.

Elections

Botswana has held regular elections since its independence at five year intervals, all of which have been won by the Botswana Democratic Party. Elections are overseen by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).  Elections in Botswana use first-past-the-post voting in which the winner is the candidate that receives a majority or plurality of votes. Botswana is rare among African countries in that its elections have never been associated with widespread political violence.

The independence of Botswana's elections have been the subject of scrutiny. While elections are free and opposition parties are unrestrained, the incumbent party has access to other advantages. Prior to the creation of the IEC, the ruling party controlled elections through the Office of the Supervisor of Elections. The creation of the IEC has mitigated this to some extent, though its power to regulate elections is questioned.

Human rights

Freedom House considers Botswana to be free with a score of 72/100 in its 2022 Freedom in the World report. It scored high in political rights, though Freedom House expressed concerns regarding the representation of women and minorities and the lack of freedom of information laws. It also scored high in civil rights, though Freedom House expressed concerns regarding freedom of the press and the right to strike. Transparency International has regularly recognised Botswana as the least corrupt country in Africa, and it is often described as comparable to the liberal democracies of Western Europe. One potential issues for human rights in Botswana is the lack of strong checks and balances in the government, which allows the president to exercise wide latitude over policy and arbitrarily curtail free speech. Early focus on public works projects after Botswana's independence rather than militarisation is credited for early legitimacy of the government, permitting stability in the nation's politics.

Conceptions of human rights in Botswana are shaped by collectivist traditions such as botho rather than individualist traditions. Confrontational approaches to human rights such as protest, strike action, and public condemnation are often seen as uncivil foreign inventions. Activism in Botswana instead focuses mainly on providing goods and services to those in need. Human rights non-governmental organizations are relatively uncommon in Botswana. Among the most active is the Botswana Network on Ethics, Law and HIV/AIDS, which emphasises response to HIV but also addresses other areas such as the rights of women, children, and LGBT people.

Policy issues

Economic policy

Botswana is an upper middle income country with a mixed economy, and it has one of the strongest economies in Africa. The foundation of Botswana's economic policy was set by the first post-independence government in the 1960s, incorporating a self-sustaining budget system through a series of national development plans. There is significant income inequality in Botswana, particularly between the relatively developed urban areas and the poorer rural areas. The unemployment rate in Botswana was 20% as of 2015. Botswana's dependence on the diamond industry has led to diversification of the economy becoming one of the nation's major economic policy goals throughout its history. Government programs such as the National Development Bank, the Botswana Development Corporation, the Financial Assistance Policy, and the Economic Diversification Drive have been implemented to spur economic growth in other industries, but they have not significantly decreased the nation's dependence on its diamond industry.

The economy of colonial Bechuanaland focused on cattle farming, and this was the primary industry for the first decade of Botswana's independence. As most of the nation was involved with this field in some form, there was little cause for class conflict in the predominantly rural population. While land distribution was sometimes an issue, there was enough unclaimed land that cattle farmers could operate as nomads, further reducing disagreement over economic issues. In 1967, diamond deposits were found in Botswana. This incentivised the government to pursue a commodity economy from mining, supplemented with smaller industries such as beef farming, manufacturing, and tourism. The country's economic success is attributed to neoliberal policies of free markets and private property protections, significantly increasing the population's post-independence living standards. Botswana was one of the only sub-Saharan governments that did not engage in significant regulatory or redistributive policy following decolonisation. This, as well as its fiscally responsible management of the diamond industry, led to some of the world's largest economic growth over the following decades. More recent development has emphasised welfare statehood through redistributive economic policy.

Foreign policy

The president is responsible for the foreign policy of Botswana, overseeing the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Botswana's political and economic success relative to other countries in Africa has led it to play a larger role in regional and global affairs. By the end of the 20th century, Botswana had begun sending financial and military support to neighbouring countries and international organisations. Botswana has emphasised multilateralism in its foreign policy. Its landlocked territory and export-driven economy have incentivised it to maintain strong diplomatic ties with other countries, and it's low population and proximity to unstable governments have caused Botswana to work closely with international organisations for security and resources.

From 1966 to 1994, the countries bordering Botswana were unstable or otherwise hostile to Botswana. It did not establish relations with its largest neighbour, South Africa, during the latter's discriminatory apartheid rule. In its first years, Botswana had no military. The Botswana Defence Force was eventually created in response to regional instability. As South Africa liberalised, Botswana's primary foreign policy concern became the instability in neighbouring Zimbabwe.

For much of its history as an independent country, Botswana practiced realpolitik foreign policy. During the presidency of Ian Khama, it shifted to an idealist foreign policy, in which it routinely criticised governments for human rights violations. During this period, it was often the only member of the African Union to support the International Criminal Court or to condemn human rights violations in autocratic nations.

Social policy
Botswana's relative wealth compared to other countries in the region has allowed for high spending in public services such as education, health, and infrastructure. As of 2014, the Ministry of Education and Skills Development had the largest budget of any government initiative. Approximately 10,000 kilometres of road were paved in the first fifty years of the country's independence, compared to the 50 kilometres that existed before independence.

Welfare programs in Botswana are relatively limited and subject to means testing, and there is no national level social security. The country's predominantly arid environment results in droughts becoming a frequent public welfare concern. HIV/AIDS is the most serious healthcare issue in the country, and the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Botswana is one of the most severe outbreaks in the world. Botswana received less foreign aid when combating the epidemic in the 1990s, allowing it to spread.

References

Bibliography

External links
 Judgments of the Botswana Court of Appeal
 Judgments of the Botswana High Court
 Republic of Botswana - Government portal

Politics of Botswana


Fifteen Minutes: A Tribute to the Velvet Underground was an album released by Imaginary Records in the UK in 1994. The album consisted of contemporary artists performing cover versions of songs by the Velvet Underground. All the tracks had previously appeared on the three-volume Heaven & Hell series of covers of Velvet Underground tracks.

Track listing
Nirvana – "Here She Comes Now"
Swervedriver – "Jesus"
Lee Ranaldo – "Stephanie Says (1.15.91)"
Buffalo Tom – "All Tomorrow's Parties"
New F.A.D.S. – "I'm Set Free"
The Fatima Mansions – "Lady Godiva's Operation"
James – "Sunday Morning"
Eleventh Dream Day – "Ocean"
Echo & the Bunnymen – "Foggy Notion"
Screaming Trees – "What Goes On"
The Wedding Present – "She's My Best Friend"
Half Japanese – "I Heard Her Call My Name"
The Mock Turtles – "Pale Blue Eyes"
Ride – "European Son"

References

The Velvet Underground tribute albums
1994 compilation albums
Imaginary Records compilation albums
Rock compilation albums

Fifteen Minutes: A Tribute to The Velvet Underground


The Green Berets is a 1968 American war film directed by John Wayne and Ray Kellogg and starring John Wayne, David Janssen and Jim Hutton, based on the 1965 novel by Robin Moore. Much of the film was shot in the summer of 1967. Parts of the screenplay bear little relation to the novel, although the portion in which a woman seduces a North Vietnamese communist general and sets him up to be kidnapped by Americans is from the book.

The Green Berets is strongly anti-communist and pro-South Vietnam. It was released at the height of American involvement in the Vietnam War, the same year as the Tet Offensive against the largest cities in South Vietnam. John Wayne was so concerned by the anti-war sentiment  in the United States, he wanted to make this film to present the pro-military position. He requested and obtained full military cooperation and materiel from 36th President Lyndon B. Johnson and the United States Department of Defense. John Wayne bought the film rights to Robin Moore's book for $35,000 and 5% of undefined profits of the film.

The film was a financial success at the box office, but received almost universally negative reviews from critics.

Plot
Reporter George Beckworth attends a Special Forces briefing about the reasons for American military involvement in the Vietnam War. When Beckworth doubts the value of U.S. intervention, Green Beret Colonel Mike Kirby asks him if he has ever been to Vietnam, which influences him to report on events there.

Meanwhile, Kirby is assigned to assist the South Vietnamese forces. As he prepares to depart, he catches Spc. Petersen appropriating supplies, but decides to utilise his skills on his team. Arriving in South Vietnam, they meet Beckworth, whom Kirby allows to accompany them to their camp. Despite signs of humanitarian work, he remains unconvinced of the need to be in Vietnam.

At the camp, they meet a young war-orphan, Ham Chuck, whose family was slaughtered. Ham Chuck, along with his dog Jamoke, takes a liking to Sgt. Peterson. Peterson takes him in as if he were his own son.

Following an enemy attack, Sergeant Muldoon notices a South Vietnamese soldier acting suspiciously and knocks him out, allowing Nghiem to interrogate him. After Beckworth sees Nghiem torture a confession from the soldier, he confronts Kirby, who justifies the act by telling Beckworth that their enemies are ruthless killers who deserve no legal protections of any sort in this new kind of war.

A few days later, while accompanying Kirby and his team on a patrol in the nearby mountains, Beckworth finds that the family of a village chief he had befriended earlier have been tortured and executed by the Viet Cong for cooperating with the Americans.

The next night, Viet Cong and North Vietnamese troops launch a massive attack on the camp, and Beckworth is forced to fight alongside the Green Berets; he also helps move villagers into the camp to protect them from the crossfire.

Eventually, enemy sappers breach the perimeter by blowing openings in the barbed wire fences around the camp, and the Green Berets and South Vietnamese are forced to fall back to the inner perimeter. Nghiem sets off hidden explosives which kill the spies, but soon dies afterwards after being hit by a mortar.

Due to the intense attack, Kirby orders a retreat from the camp, and U.S. helicopters arrive to evacuate the refugees. Petersen puts Ham Chuck on one and promises to return for him in Da Nang. With the base in enemy hands, Kirby requests an airstrike by an AC-47 gunship, callsign Puff the Magic Dragon, which annihilates the Viet Cong guerrillas and North Vietnamese Army regulars within Camp A-107. With the enemy having taken major casualties, Kirby and his team re-occupy the destroyed camp.

Beckworth tells Kirby he will file a story supporting U.S. involvement in the war and returns to Da Nang. Back at headquarters, Kirby meets with his superior, Colonel Morgan, and his South Vietnamese counterpart, Colonel Cai. They tell him about a top secret mission to capture North Vietnamese General Pha Son Ti, allowing them to end the war on South Vietnamese terms, as well as disrupting enemy leadership. Colonel Cai uses his sister-in-law Lin, a fashion model, as a honey trap to lure General Ti to a former French colonial mansion in a well-guarded valley in North Vietnam.

Among those Cai selects (and accompanies) are Kirby, Muldoon, and Peterson. Muldoon, Doc McGee, and two of Cai's men stay behind at a bridge over a river to set explosives to blow it up to stop pursuit by the enemy forces, while Kirby and the rest of the team head towards the plantation. After eliminating the plantation's guards, the group subdue Ti with Lin's help, and put him in the trunk of his car. Kirby, Cai, Petersen, Watson, and Lin drive away, but the rest of the team is killed by the guards while attempting to escape.

At dawn, the survivors cross the bridge; it is destroyed, but McGee is seriously wounded as he and Muldoon escape, while the others airlift Ti out of the area by a Skyhook device. While Kirby and the team advance through the jungle to their extraction point, Petersen is killed by a booby-trap, and the others are forced to leave his body behind.

At Da Nang, Beckworth watches as Ham Chuck runs from helicopter to helicopter, desperately searching for Petersen. Eventually, Kirby tells him of Petersen's death and comforts him, before the two walk along the beach into the sunset.

Cast

Production

Pre-production
Columbia Pictures, having bought the book's pre-publication film rights, was not able to produce a script that the Army would approve, while producer David L. Wolper, who also tried to buy the same rights, could not obtain financing to make the movie. A screenplay was written by George Goodman who had served with the Special Forces in the 1950s as a military intelligence officer and had written a 1961 article about the Special Forces called The Unconventional Warriors in Esquire magazine. Columbia sent Goodman to South Vietnam for research. Robin Moore felt the Pentagon pressured Wolper into breaking an agreement with Moore. Wolper acquired the rights to film The Devil's Brigade, an account of the World War II 1st Special Service Force, in 1965 and produced that film instead.

The final film's origins began in June 1966 with a trip by John Wayne to South Vietnam, and his subsequent decision to produce a film about the Army special forces deployed there as a tribute to them. Wayne was a steadfast supporter of American involvement in the war in Vietnam. He co-directed the film, and turned down the "Major Reisman" role in The Dirty Dozen to do so.

Screenplay
Although The Green Berets portrays the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army as sadistic tyrants, it also depicts them as a capable and highly motivated enemy. The film shows the war as one with no front lines, meaning that the enemy can show up and attack at almost any position, anywhere. It shows the sophisticated spy ring of the VC and NVA that provided information about their adversaries. Like A Yank in Viet-Nam, it gave a positive view of South Vietnam and their anti-communist allies.

The US Army had objections to James Lee Barrett's initial script. The first was that the Army wanted to show that South Vietnamese soldiers were involved in defending the base camp. That was rectified. The Army also objected to the portrayal of the raid where they kidnap a NVA general because in the original script this involved crossing the border into North Vietnam. Robin Moore has stated that while all of the other stories in his book are roman à clefs of actual Special Forces missions and incidents, the mission to capture General Ti was completely fictitious.

Wayne wished the screenplay to have more development of the characters, but Warner Bros. made it clear they wanted more action and less talk, as The Alamo was heavily criticized for having too much dialogue. Scenes shot with Vera Miles as the wife of Wayne's character were jettisoned. (However, Miles was again cast as the Duke's wife in Wayne's next film Hellfighters).

Filming
Much of the film was shot in the summer of 1967 (before the Tet Offensive) at Fort Benning, Georgia. Department of Defense cooperation with the film was extensive, with the United States Army providing several UH-1 Huey attack helicopters and a C-7 Caribou light transport. The United States Air Force supplied two C-130 Hercules transports and two A-1 Skyraider attack aircraft as well as film footage of an AC-47 Puff the Magic Dragon gunship and an HC-130 Hercules employing the Skyhook Fulton recovery system for use in the film.  The Army also provided authentic uniforms for use by the actors, including the OG-107 green and "Tiger Stripe" tropical combat uniform (jungle fatigues), with correct Vietnam War subdued insignia and name tapes.

John F. Schultz played pivotal roles as an extra as a U.S. soldier and a North Vietnamese Regular. He said of John Wayne, "At lunch, the producers were going to feed us peons hamburgers and hotdogs while the main characters ate steak. John Wayne said '...we all get steak or nobody does.'

Colonel Lamar Asbury "Bill" Welch, the actual commander of the United States Army Airborne School at Fort Benning in 1967, makes a brief cameo Skeet Shooting with John Wayne. Welch wears a 1960s US Army Fatigue Baseball Cap (common issue during the Vietnam War) in the scene while the actors wear green berets. Soldiers exercising on the drill field – that Wayne shouts to – were actual Army airborne recruits in training.

The film's large set-piece battle is loosely based on the Battle of Nam Dong on 5–6 July 1964 when two Viet Cong battalions and the PAVN attacked a CIDG camp at Nam Dong near the Laotian border in  South Vietnam's Central Highlands. For five hours, a mixed force of Americans, Australians and South Vietnamese troops fought off a force three times its size. The movie camp set, which was constructed on an isolated hill within Fort Benning, had barbed wire trenches, punji sticks, sandbagged bunkers, mortar pits, towers, support buildings and hooches. Several tons of dynamite and black powder were then used to largely destroy the set during the filming of the battle sequence. Other realistic "Vietnamese village" sets were left intact after the shooting ended so they could be reused by the Army for training troops destined for South East Asia.

Music
The original choice for scoring the film, Elmer Bernstein, a friend and frequent collaborator with John Wayne, turned the assignment down due to his political beliefs. As a second choice, the producers contacted Miklós Rózsa then in Rome.  When asked to do The Green Berets for John Wayne, Rózsa replied: "I don't do Westerns". Rózsa was told "It's not a Western, it's an 'Eastern'". As a title song, the producers used a Ken Darby choral arrangement of Barry Sadler's 1966 hit song  Ballad of the Green Berets, which had been co-written by Robin Moore, author of the original Green Berets novel. Rózsa provided a strong and varied musical score including a night club vocal by a Vietnamese singer Bạch Yến; however, bits of Onward Christian Soldiers were deleted from the final film.

Reception

Critical reception
Upon its cinema release, movie critic Roger Ebert gave it zero stars and cited extensive use of cliches, depicting the war in terms of "cowboys and Indians", and being a "heavy-handed, remarkably old-fashioned film." It is on his "Most Hated" list. His then-rival at the Chicago Tribune, Clifford Terry, described the film as "both predictable and tedious" and added that its "most fatal mistake" was "presenting the United States' most complex war in the simplest of terms."

The San Francisco Examiner'''s critic, Stanley Eichelbaum, observed the film thus:

Reviewing for The New York Times, Renata Adler wrote, "The Green Berets is a film so unspeakable, so stupid, so rotten and false in every detail that it passes through being fun, through being funny, through being camp, through everything and becomes an invitation to grieve, not for our soldiers or for Vietnam (the film could not be more false or do a greater disservice to either of them), but for what has happened to the fantasy-making apparatus in this country."

The screenplay for Oliver Stone's anti-war film Platoon was written partially as a reaction to The Green Berets. It is mocked in the Gustav Hasford novel The Short-Timers in a scene where Joker and Rafter Man find the Lusthog Squad watching it at a movie theater. "The audience of Marines roars with laughter. This is the funniest movie we have seen in a long time."

John Pilger, a strong critic of American foreign policy, described his reaction to The Green Berets in a 2007 speech he gave criticising the media for its coverage of the Vietnam War. "I had just come back from Vietnam, and I couldn't believe how absurd this movie was. So I laughed out loud, and I laughed and laughed. And it wasn't long before the atmosphere around me grew very cold. My companion, who had been a Freedom Rider in the South, said, 'Let's get the hell out of here and run like hell.'"

Film commentator Emanuel Levy noted in his review that Wayne was not attempting to promote the cause of the Vietnam War as much as he was trying to portray the Special Forces in their unique role in the military: "Wayne said his motive was to glorify American soldiers as the finest fighting men 'without going into why we are there, or if they should be there.' His 'compulsion' to do the movie was based on his pride of the Special Forces, determined to show 'what a magnificent job this still little-known branch of service is doing.' ... 'I wasn't trying to send a message out to anybody,' he reasoned, 'or debating whether it is right or wrong for the United States to be in this war.'"

Levy also notes that Wayne acknowledged that war is generally not popular, but the soldiers who serve face the risks and dangers of combat nonetheless, and must be prepared to sacrifice themselves, regardless of their personal will or judgment. Levy quotes Wayne: "What war was ever popular for God's sake? Those men don't want to be in Vietnam any more than anyone else. Once you go over there, you won't be middle-of-the-road."The Green Berets holds a 23% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on thirteen reviews.

Box office
Despite the poor reviews, and despite being protested and picketed in the United States and abroad,New Approaches to Rhetoric, George N. Dionisopoulos, Chapter 8: John Wayne, the Green Berets, and the Containment Doctrine it went on to be a commercial success, which Wayne attributed in part to the negative reviews from the press, which he saw as representing criticism of the war rather than the film.

"The critics overkilled me, the picture and the war", said Wayne. "As a result, so many people went to see it that I had a cheque from the distributors for $8 million within three months. That's the cost of the picture, so we moved into profit the next day." The Green Berets'' earned rentals of $8.7 million in North America during 1968.

Accolades
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
 2005: AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes:
 Col. Mike Kirby: "Out here, due process is a bullet." — Nominated

See also

List of American films of 1968
 John Wayne filmography
 List of film director and actor collaborations

References

External links

1968 films
1960s war adventure films
1960s English-language films
American war adventure films
American anti-communist propaganda films
Films directed by Mervyn LeRoy
Batjac Productions films
Warner Bros. films
War films based on actual events
Vietnam War films
Cold War films
Films directed by John Wayne
Films produced by John Wayne
Films scored by Miklós Rózsa
Films shot in Georgia (U.S. state)
Films based on American novels
Films shot in California
Films shot in Alabama
Films about United States Army Special Forces
Films set in Saigon
Films set in Da Nang
1960s American films

The Green Berets (film)


First Lieutenant Harry Linn Martin (January 4, 1911 – March 26, 1945) was a United States Marine Corps officer who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his actions on Iwo Jima on March 26, 1945.

Biography
Harry Linn Martin was a member of the Ohio National Guard and graduated from Bucyrus High School and from Michigan State College in East Lansing, Michigan, where he majored in business administration. At State, he was on the football and wrestling teams and did some boxing and skiing. He was a member of Sigma Alpha fraternity and served two years in the Cavalry unit of the ROTC. Following graduation in 1936, he worked in Honolulu, Hawaii, as an office manager for the Hawaiian Construction Tunnel Company.

On August 25, 1943, he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps Reserve. Following schooling at Quantico, Virginia, 2dLt Martin completed the Engineers School at New River, North Carolina, and was designated an Engineer Officer on March 13, 1944. Assigned to 2nd Battalion, 16th Marines, engineer regiment of the 5th Marine Division, he joined Company C when the designation of the battalion was changed to 5th Pioneer Battalion.

Second Lieutenant Martin went overseas with his unit in the summer of 1944 and went into training at Hawaii. On February 19, 1945, he landed on Iwo Jima in the Volcano Islands and before the day ended he had already sustained a slight wound. He was promoted to first lieutenant on March 1, 1945, twenty-five days before his death.

A few minutes before dawn on the morning of March 26, the day the Iwo campaign officially closed, the Japanese launched a concentrated attack and penetrated the Marine lines in the area where 1st Lt Martin's platoon was bivouacked. He immediately organized a firing line among the men in the foxholes closest to his own, and temporarily stopped the headlong rush of the enemy. Several of his men were lying wounded in positions overrun by the enemy and the lieutenant was determined to rescue them. In the action which followed, he was severely wounded twice but continued to resist the enemy until he fell mortally wounded by a grenade.

The Medal of Honor and citation were presented to his parents by Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal at a ceremony in the Navy Department on May 6, 1946.

First Lieutenant Martin was buried in the 5th Division Cemetery at Iwo Jima. At the request of his mother, his remains were returned to Ohio in 1948 for private burial in Oakwood Cemetery, Bucyrus, Ohio.

Medal of Honor citation
The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously to

for service as set forth in the following CITATION:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as Platoon Leader attached to Company C, Fifth Pioneer Battalion, Fifth Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands, 26 March 1945. With his sector of the Fifth Pioneer Battalion bivouac area penetrated by a concentrated enemy attack launched a few minutes before dawn, First Lieutenant Martin instantly organized a firing line with the Marines nearest his foxhole and succeeded, in checking momentarily the headlong rush of the Japanese. Determined to rescue several of his men trapped in positions overrun by the enemy, he defied intense hostile fire to work his way through the Japanese to the surrounded Marines. Although sustaining two severe wounds, he blasted the Japanese who attempted to intercept him, located his beleaguered men and directed them to their own lines. When four of the infiltrating enemy took possession of an abandoned machine-gun pit and subjected his sector to a barrage of hand grenades, First Lieutenant Martin alone and armed only with a pistol, boldly charged the hostile position and killed all its occupants. Realizing that his remaining comrades could not repulse another organized attack, he called to his men to follow and then charged into the midst of the strong enemy force, firing his weapon and scattering them until he fell, mortally wounded by a grenade. By his outstanding valor, indomitable fighting spirit and tenacious determination in the face of overwhelming odds, First Lieutenant Martin permanently disrupted a coordinated Japanese attack and prevented a greater loss of life in his own and adjacent platoons and his inspiring leadership and unswerving devotion to duty reflect the highest credit upon himself and the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life in service of his country.
/S/ HARRY S. TRUMAN

Honors

The United States Navy Maritime prepositioning ship , is named in his honor.

See also

List of Medal of Honor recipients for World War II
List of Medal of Honor recipients for the Battle of Iwo Jima

Notes

References

External links

1911 births
1945 deaths
United States Marine Corps personnel killed in World War II
United States Marine Corps Medal of Honor recipients
United States Marine Corps officers
Battle of Iwo Jima
People from Bucyrus, Ohio
World War II recipients of the Medal of Honor

Harry L. Martin


The Supreme Ruler of Russia (), also referred to as the Supreme Leader of Russia, was the head of state and supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian State, an anti-Bolshevik government established by the White Movement during the Russian Civil War. For nearly two years from November 1918 until April 1920, the armies of the White Movement were nominally united under the administration of the Russian State, during which the Russian State claimed to be the sole legal government of Russia. The office's sole holder for most of its existence, and the only one to officially adopt the titles and functions of the Supreme Ruler, was Admiral Alexander Kolchak, who was elected to the position by the All-Russian Council of Ministers following the November 18 coup which overthrew the Directory.

All commanders of the White armies in the south and west of Russia, as well as in Siberia and the Far East recognized the Supreme Ruler; at the turn of May — June 1919, the generals Anton Denikin, Yevgeny Miller, and Nikolai Yudenich voluntarily submitted to Alexander Kolchak and officially recognized his Supreme Command over all armies in Russia. The Supreme Commander at the same time confirmed the powers of commanders. For nearly two years, Alexander Kolchak served as Russia's internationally recognized Head of State, and was supported both diplomatically and militarily by the former Allied Powers of World War I. On 4 January 1920, Kolchak announced his resignation, granting the office of Supreme Ruler to Anton Denikin. Denikin served as the final acting Supreme Ruler of the Russian State, though he accepted neither the titles or functions of the office, which was finally declared extinct on 4 April 1920.

Background

On September 23, 1918, the "Act on the Formation of the All-Russian Supreme Power" of the Ufa State Conference created the Provisional All-Russian Government (the "Ufa Directory") and established that this government would be "until the convocation of the All-Russian Constituent Assembly ... the only bearer of supreme power throughout the Russian state". On November 4, 1918 the executive body of the Directory was formed - the All-Russian Council of Ministers.

Establishment

The Directory ceased to function as a result of the events of the night of November 17–18, 1918, when a group of Cossack troops deployed in Omsk arrested the Director of the Directory, N. D. Avksentiev, a member of the Directory, V. M. Zenzinov, and a deputy member of Directory A. A. Argunov, as well as a Deputy Minister of the Interior, head of the secret service, E. F. Rogovsky. All those arrested were members of the Party of Socialist Revolutionaries (SRs).

On the morning of November 18, the Council of Ministers convened at an emergency meeting with the participation of two members of the Directory - P.V. Vologodsky and V.A. Vinogradov, discussing the situation, recognized the Directory as non-existent, announced that it would assume the fullness of the supreme authority, and concluded that it was necessary to invest "The full concentration of military and civil power in the hands of one person with an authoritative name in the military and public circles." A decision was made in principle "to transfer temporarily the exercise of supreme power to one person, relying on the assistance of the Council of Ministers, assigning such a person the name of the Supreme Ruler", after which a "Regulation on the temporary arrangement of state power in Russia" (the so-called "constitution of November 18"), which established, in particular, the relationship between the Supreme Ruler and the Council of Ministers.

According to the memoirs of Vologodsky, the title "Supreme Ruler" was adopted at a meeting of the Council of Ministers without any preliminary discussions and disputes: "When we got to the question of who to choose as Head of State, we decided to give him the name "Supreme Ruler" and arrange constitutional guarantees".

By secret ballot of the members of the Council of Ministers, Vice Admiral A.V. Kolchak, who was simultaneously promoted to full admiral, was elected to the post of Supreme Ruler. Kolchak declared his agreement with the election, and as his first order in the army announced the assumption of the title of Supreme Commander-in-Chief and determined the main directions of the forthcoming work as the Supreme Ruler:

The Russian government was formed, which worked until January 4, 1920.

Powers of Office

The powers of the Supreme Ruler largely copied the pre-revolutionary Russian legislation. According to Article 47 of the Code of Basic Laws, "The Governor of the State relied on the Council of Government; and both the Ruler without the Council, and the Council without the Ruler cannot exist. " According to article 48, members of the Council were appointed by the Ruler himself. The competence of the Council fell into "all cases without withdrawal, subject to the decision of the Emperor himself and all those that come both to Him and to His Council" (under Article 50, all matters relating to the direction of domestic and foreign policy). According to Article 51, "The Ruler has a decisive vote" when discussing all issues.

According to the "Constitution of November 18, 1918", legislative power and initiative were carried out by the Supreme Ruler and the Council of Ministers "collectively". The Council of Ministers was charged with conducting preliminary discussions of all laws, and not a single law could enter into force without its approval. At the same time, the Supreme Ruler had the right to "absolute veto".

Symbols of the Supreme Ruler

On May 9, 1919, the Russian government approved the symbols of the Supreme Ruler - a flag and a pennant with a double-headed eagle, but without the signs of "royal" power.

Abolition

On June 24, 1919, in order to "ensure the continuity and continuity of the High Command", the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces in the South of Russia, Lieutenant General A. I. Denikin, was appointed.

In early December 1919, A. V. Kolchak raised with his government the question of "renunciation in favor of Denikin." On December 22, the Council of Ministers of the Russian Government adopted the following decree: "In order to ensure the continuity and succession of all-Russian power, the Council of Ministers decided: to assign the duties of the Supreme Ruler in the event of a serious illness or death of the Supreme Ruler, as well as in case of his resignation or his long absence, to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces in the South of Russia, Lieutenant General Denikin".

On January 4, 1920, A.V. Kolchak issued a decree in Nizhneudinsk, which "in view of the foregone conclusion ... of the transfer of supreme All-Russian power to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces in the South of Russia, Lieutenant General Denikin".

As Denikin himself testifies in his memoirs, in the midst of the grave defeats of the Armed Forces of the South of Russia and the political crisis, he considered it completely unacceptable to "accept the appropriate name and functions" and refused to accept the title of Supreme Ruler, motivating his decision with "lack of official information about events in the East".

On April 4, 1920, Denikin, under pressure from the generals, was forced to transfer the post of Commander-in-Chief to Lieutenant General Baron P.N. Wrangel, and left for the United Kingdom on the same day. Wrangel accepted the appointment and issued an order to take office. On April 6, the Governing Senate in Yalta issued a decree declaring that the "new people's leader" henceforth "belongs to all power, military and civil, without any restrictions." On April 11, P. N. Wrangel accepted the title "Ruler and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces in the South of Russia", effectively rendering the office of Supreme Ruler extinct and bringing about the dissolution of the Russian State, after which the activities of the White Army in the Far East came under the authority of the Far Eastern Army of Ataman G.M. Semyonov, and subsequently the Provisional Priamurye Government under M.K. Diterikhs.

In the summer of 1920, A. I. Guchkov turned to Denikin with a request "to complete the patriotic feat and to vest Baron Wrangel with a special solemn act ... by the successive All-Russian power", but he refused to sign such a document.

On April 5, 1921, soon after the evacuation of the white troops from the  Crimea Front,  the Russian Council was created in Constantinople under the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army, chaired by P.N. Wrangel, thought by its creators to be a prototype of the Russian government in exile. However, they did not succeed in gaining recognition as such by either foreign governments or even other emigrant groups. As a result, on September 20, 1922, the Russian Council ceased its activities.

Legacy

Vladimir Zhirinovsky, the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia and a perennial candidate for President of Russia, had on several occasions proposed renaming the office of "President of the Russian Federation" to "Supreme Ruler of Russia", (, ), rejecting the use of the foreign loan word "Президент" (Prezident) as being "un-Russian".

References

1918 establishments in Russia
1920 disestablishments in Russia
Heads of state of Russia
Lists of political office-holders in Russia
White movement
Russian Civil War

Supreme Ruler of Russia


The Main Library is the primary library of the San Francisco Public Library, located in San Francisco's Civic Center.

History
In 1986, a task force was set up to complete the design of the Civic Center, including the use of Marshall Square, next to the main library at the time, for a new main library. Construction on the current Main Library began on March 15, 1993, financed by a  bond measure. The building was completed in 1995 and opened a year later on April 18, 1996. The old main library, which was damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, was rebuilt as the new Asian Art Museum.

At over  and with six floors above ground and one below, the new library is more than twice as big as the building it replaced. The new library includes over 300 computer terminals, room for 1100 laptops, and a new wing for children. The city spent $104.5 million on the new library. Library visits doubled in its first year open, from 1.1 million to 2.1 million, and the number of library card holders nearly tripled.

In October 1996 author Nicholson Baker wrote a critical article in The New Yorker about the weeding of books from the library as it moved to the new building. He was also critical about the elimination of the card catalog when the computerized catalog was introduced. Due to this negative publicity, the library released an official response to Nicholson's New Yorker article, criticizing his claims.  There has also been criticism in the local press that the atrium significantly and deliberately reduced the amount of floor space available for shelving the library's collection which resulted in the destruction of over 200,000 books which were then buried in a landfill, gutting the research collections of one of the most important research facilities on the West Coast, all of which occurred away from public sight or review. Later, under intense pressure that included then Mayor Willie Brown, City Librarian Ken Dowlin whose policy it was to weed and subsequently destroy the books, was forced to resign in January 1997.

The library was prominently used in the 1998 film City of Angels.

References

External links

Beaux-Arts architecture in California
Civic Center, San Francisco
Libraries in San Francisco
Library buildings completed in 1995

Main Library (San Francisco)


Fred Ewanuick (/əˈwαnɪk/; born c. 1971)  is a Canadian actor best known for his roles in the television series Corner Gas as Hank Yarbo and as the title character in the CTV sitcom Dan for Mayor. He was also a regular in a CTV anthology series, Robson Arms. He starred in Nickelodeon's summer 2013 TV movie Swindle.

He is also well known for his several award wins for the 2003 lead role in the comedy The Delicate Art of Parking, and reprised his role as Richard Henry "Hank" Yarbo in Corner Gas: The Movie, winning him a Gemini Award, and much praise. He also had roles in popular films including The Santa Clause 2, Just Friends, Young Triffie, and a romantic comedy with several other Corner Gas stars in Love and Other Dilemmas, and the disaster film Absolute Zero.

Early life
Ewanuick was born and raised in Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada. He is of Ukrainian and Italian descent. His first job was a paper route, but he was fired for disposing of the newspapers in dumpsters as a "time saver". He later worked in a bingo hall until his high school graduation from Port Moody Secondary School, in 1989.

Career
At college he enrolled in English, Women's Studies and Theatre courses, the only courses available, subsequently failing all three. After auditioning and being accepted into the two-year theater intensive program, he was asked to leave one year into the program. He subsequently trained for four years with acting coach Shea Hampton, with whom he continues to study in Vancouver, British Columbia, where he also resides.

He made his television debut on The New Addams Family in 1998 as a "spinning gnome".
Following guest appearances on both Canadian and American television series such as Cold Squad, Monk, Dark Angel, The Twilight Zone, Da Vinci's Inquest and Tru Calling, Ewanuick became a regular on the CTV series Corner Gas, as Hank Yarbo. The series was a hit, making Ewanuick a familiar face in Canadian households. In 2005, he began starring simultaneously in the CTV comedy-drama series Robson Arms with Corner Gas co-star Gabrielle Miller.

Ewanuick has appeared in numerous films, including The Delicate Art of Parking (2003), which premiered at the Montreal World Film Festival. The film won the Best Canadian Feature prize. Later, Ewanuick won a Best Actor award at Spain's Peñiscola Comedy Film Festival for the same film. In the comedy Young Triffie (2007), Ewanuick stars as a young Newfoundland Ranger investigating a crime. Originally, Ewanuick was not cast for the part. However, the casting staff could not agree on whom to choose for the part. Ewanuick was called to audition for the part after being suggested because of his work on Corner Gas.

In late 2008, CTV commissioned a half-hour sitcom pilot for a new comedy titled Dan for Mayor, starring Ewanuick as Dan. Dan For Mayor was written by Mark Farrell, Paul Mather, and Kevin White. Ewanuick portrayed Dan, a 30-something bartender who lives and works in the fictional city of Wessex, Ontario. The series ended in 2011.

In 2013, he played Paul Swindell in Swindle.

In 2014, Ewanuick reprised his role as Hank Yarbo in Corner Gas: The Movie.

In 2016, Ewanuick was the championship goalie in the Burnaby 8 Rinks Weekend Hockey League Division C1A playoffs, playing for the Eskimo Brothers.

Filmography

Television works

Nominations

References

External links

 "Fred Ewanuick" Official Website

1971 births
Living people
Canadian male film actors
Canadian male television actors
Canadian male voice actors
Canadian people of Ukrainian descent
Canadian people of Italian descent
People from Port Moody
Male actors from British Columbia
Canadian Screen Award winning actors

Fred Ewanuick


Hillsdale is a suburb in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Hillsdale is located 6 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district in the Bayside Council. The suburb is named after Pat Hills, former Deputy Premier of New South Wales.

Retail
Hillsdale has a shopping centre called Southpoint Shopping Centre (formerly known as Hillsdale Town Centre) on Bunnerong Road, which is a high-rise mixed-use complex with commercial and residential space and is opposite the large Heffron Park. Southpoint is anchored by TK Maxx, Aldi, Woolworths and a large Australia Post office.

Recreation
Heffron Park, at 44 hectares it is the largest sporting reserve in Randwick City. A range of sports are played in the park through winter and summer including netball, rugby league, soccer, touch football, oz tag, cricket, cycling, tennis and gymnastics. Located on the south-east corner of the park is the Des Renford Leisure Centre, a council-owned gym, aquatic and fitness centre.

The park is popular with local residents for walking, jogging and cycling. The Hensley Athletic Field is located on Wentworth Avenue, close to Botany and the Westfield Eastgardens shopping centre. Matraville Public School is located in Hillsdale at the corner of Bunnerong and Beauchamp Roads.

History
Hillsdale was part of the suburb of Matraville until the 1960s. Matraville was originally reserved for the Church and Schools Corporation with income generated intended to support clergy and teachers. It reverted to the crown in 1917 and was allocated for a settlement for soldiers returning from World War I. The suburb was split between Randwick and Botany Councils. When problems arose from the division in 1961, Botany Council decided to rename its portion Gilmore, to honour Australian poet Dame Mary Gilmore (1864–1962). After the post masters general office pointed out that there already was a Gilmore, New South Wales, the council chose Hillsdale to honour Patrick Darcy Hills, who was the New South Wales minister for local government. It was a controversial choice since most residents believed that a name should have been chosen that reflected Australia's history.

Many homes were built in Hillsdale after World War II including some by the Housing Commission.

Demographics
At the 2016 census, there were 5,501 residents in Hillsdale. The most common country of birth was Australia (39.9%), with the top other countries of birth being Bangladesh 5.8%, China 4.7%, Philippines 3.8%, Iraq 3.3% and India 2.9%. 39.6% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Bengali 7.5%, Spanish 4.4%, Assyrian Neo-Aramaic 4.2%, Mandarin 3.9% and Cantonese 3.3%. The top responses for religious affiliation were Catholic 26.5%, No Religion 20.7%, Not stated 11.7% and Islam 11.6%,. The majority of dwellings were units or apartments and there were few separate or semi-detached houses in the suburb.

Education
Matraville Public School is a primary school in Hillsdale, drawing its students predominantly from the surrounding suburbs of Hillsdale, Banksmeadow and Matraville. In 2007 the school had approximately 300 students from kindergarten to Year 6. The school opened as Cross Road Public School in 1903, named after the school's location at the intersection between Beauchamp and Bunnerong Roads. It was renamed as Matraville Public School in 1904.

Housing
Housing in Hillsdale is primarily units or flats, with few detached dwellings. More than half the households in Hillsdale rent, significantly higher than the Sydney average.

About 2% of Hillsdale is public housing

Transport
There are about 4 bus stops in the suburb of Hillsdale. The nearest train station is the Domestic Airport railway station in Mascot and it is 5 km from Hillsdale. The nearest light rail stop the Juniors Kingsford light rail stop in Kingsford and it is about 3.3 km from Hillsdale.

Gallery

References

External links

Suburbs of Sydney
Australian soldier settlements
Bayside Council

Hillsdale, New South Wales


William Thomas Charles Dare (14 February 1927 – 8 May 1994) was an English footballer who played as a forward. He was described as "gutsy" and as a "stocky little battler" and was the first ever footballer to sign for a club on live television.

Dare was born in Willesden, London and started his footballing career with Hendon. He played only 10 games for Hendon, starting with his debut game on 11 September 1948 against Leyton, but managed eight goals. He joined Brentford in 1948, where he was teammates with Ron Greenwood. His Brentford debut came on 12 March 1949 against Luton Town. He made 208 league appearances and 222 in all competitions, before joining West Ham United for £5,000 in 1955.

A prolific goal scorer, Dare scored 52 goals in 125 games in all competitions for West Ham United. He made his Hammers debut on 5 March 1955 in a 2–1 home win against Leeds United. His first goal didn't come until two games later, on 19 March 1955, in a 2–1 home defeat of Middlesbrough. His 25 goals in all competitions in 1955–56 made him the club's highest scorer for that season.

Dare, playing alongside Johnny Dick and Vic Keeble, played in the club's Second Division championship-winning season of 1957–58. Dare contributed 14 league goals, including one hat-trick in a 3–2 defeat of Bristol Rovers at Eastville on 31 August 1957, to a campaign in which West Ham scored 101 league goals. However, the now ageing forward struggled at the higher level, and Dare played only two games between February 1958 and April 1959 before his transfer in 1959.

The 1959–60 season saw Dare play for Southern League team Yiewsley, where he played under Bill Dodgin, Sr. and later Jackie Milburn. He served as manager of Spartan League side Ruislip Manor in the mid-1960s.

Honours

Player
West Ham United
Football League Second Division: 1957–58

References

External links

1927 births
1994 deaths
Footballers from Willesden
English men's footballers
Men's association football forwards
Brentford F.C. players
West Ham United F.C. players
Tokyngton Manor F.C. managers
English Football League players
Hillingdon Borough F.C. players
Hendon F.C. players
Southern Football League players
English football managers

Billy Dare


The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library (NCSML) is a museum and library of Czech and Slovak history and culture located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in the United States. Established in 1974, the museum and library moved to its present site in 1983. The museum and library was severely affected by the Iowa flood of 2008. In 2012, rebuilding and expansion efforts were completed and the NCSML reopened.

Beginnings until opening the first building in 1995
In 1974, several second and third-generation Czech Americans in the Cedar Rapids area founded the Czech Fine Arts Foundation to preserve their Czech heritage and culture. In 1978, the group's growing collection of artifacts and documents caused them to open a Czech Museum in a three-room house, where the museum attracted additional materials and volunteers. In 1981, the collections were moved to a new building on the museum's current site with the goal of permanent public display. In 1983, the group acquired a  19th-century immigrant home and moved it to its property, where it was restored and furnished in the style of the 1880s and 1890s.

From 1983 onwards, the museum began to employ staff, and during the 1980s gained additional artifacts and financial contributions from Czech and Slovak Americans. The museum adopted its current name during this period. By the 1990s, the museum and library were outgrowing its space, and plans for a new facility began, with an architect creating plans for a new  building. Fundraising for the new facility began during this time. On October 28, 1993, groundbreaking took place for the new building. On October 21, 1995, the building was dedicated, with U.S. President Bill Clinton, Czech President Václav Havel, and Slovakian President Michal Kováč presiding over the ceremony. Some 7,000 people attended the dedication event.

Large exhibitions and reconstruction

On May 24, 1997, the NCSML opened an international exhibition: "A Thousand Years of Czech Culture: Riches from the National Museum in Prague," which centered on artifacts on loan from the National Museum in Prague. The museum stated that the exhibit attracted more than 30,000 visitors from around the U.S. and 22 countries. In 1998, a permanent exhibit, "Homelands: The Story of the Czech and Slovak People," opened. In 1999, the museum hosted its history and culture conference for the first time.
In 2000, the museum underwent significant renovations and remodeling, including the addition of secure and climate-controlled storage facilities and a new venue for temporary exhibits, created by dividing the social/rental hall. In the same year, the library's collection doubled with the acquisition of the Slavic language collection from Benedictine University.
 Museum and library began publishing Slovo, a history and culture academic journal with biannual periodicity, ISSN 1545-0082.

In subsequent years, the museum continued to grow its collections, membership, and events schedule. In 2001, the museum began planning to acquire additional property for a research and performing arts center, and began a fundraising campaign to build its endowment to $5 million by 2005. The NCSML stated that its membership in 2002 was above 1,900 people. In 2002, the museum and library opened "Kroje—Dress for the Dance of Life!," an exhibit on Kroje which ran until January 19, 2003. The museum also hosted the annual meetings of the Czech Glass Collectors Guild and the Czech-Slovak Genealogical Society International during this time.
On March 4, 2005, the museum opened an exhibition, "The Bohemian Garnets", which presented jewellery from renaissance to the present, dishes an other artifacts with the Czech national precious stone, on loan from the National Museum in Prague.

2008 Flood and Rebuilding

During the Iowa flood of 2008, the Cedar River overflowed its banks, flooding the museum and library with  of water and causing severe damage to the exhibitions and contents. The damage was variously valued at $8 million or $9 million. The flood occurred just days before the museum was scheduled to reveal its choice among four proposals for a tripling in the size of the facility.

Museum staff were able to remove two trucks full of museum and library material before the flood. Fine art and folklore artifacts were prioritized for removal. Two exhibits were destroyed in the flood, including one about the Prague Spring in 1968 and the subsequent invasion of Czechoslovakia. In the immediate aftermath of the flood, artifacts were removed from the building's upper levels, which were not reached by floodwaters, and flood-damaged items were removed for restoration efforts, with some library books sent to Chicago to be freeze-dried and restored. The Chicago Conservation Center assisted by providing expert help in efforts to save textiles and linens.

At the time of the 2008 flood the museum was visited by about 35,000 people each year, with an annual economic impact of $1 million. The library held an estimated 30,000 Slovak and Slovak-related items in its library, two-thirds of which are stored off-site and were not affected by flood damage. Around 40 percent of the museum's artifacts are Slovak. The museum holds the largest collection of kroje outside Slovakia and the Czech Republic, with the oldest pieces dating to the 16th century.

During the flood the NCSML's entire collection of 5,000 phonograph records, documenting 80 years of recorded Czech and Slovak music, were damaged. The University of Iowa Libraries Preservation Department were able to repair and restore most of the records.

After the flood, a temporary facility was opened at Lindale Mall. The museum's temporary home was moved in April 2010 to the Kosek Building at 87 Sixteenth Avenue SW in Cedar Rapids, built in 1910. The interim space, including a gallery and museum gift shop, was opened. An exhibition, "Rising Above: The Story of the People and the Flood" also opened at that time. The exhibit focuses on the 2008 flood, comparing it to the previous floods of 1929 and 1993, and includes materials from the NCSML's Flood Oral History Project, an oral history project of the personal accounts of flood victims. The exhibit tells the story of the flood in conjunction with the history of Cedar Rapids, the Czech Village, and New Bohemia. The Kosek Building continues to be a part of the Museum and Library after the main building was rebuilt.

The Iowa General Assembly set aside $10 million to help the museum and library rebuild. In October 2008 the Czech ambassador presented a $405,000 donation from the Czech Republic for reconstruction efforts.

The flood damage caused the museum property to have difficulty obtaining insurance and exhibitions with materials on loan from other museums because of a fear of another flood. The museum decided to move and expand the museum to higher ground, rather than demolishing the original building, because the cost to move the 15-year-old building was $713,000, compared to an estimated $2 million to demolish and rebuild the structure. Despite the flood damage, the building remained structurally sound. The museum also stated that it wanted to preserve the original building for its historic value and avoid creating unnecessary landfill waste.

The museum was moved  from the original site and was placed on an elevated foundation. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on December 15, 2010. On June 8–9, 2011, the Museum and Library, weighing around 1,500 tons (1,400 metric tons) and constructed of a wood frame with brick veneer, was moved to the new site. The building new site is  higher than the previous site and  above the 2008 flood level. The museum dubbed the event "A Monumental Move" and set up a webcam for viewers to watch the move; the City of Cedar Rapids also shut down 16th Avenue SW, including the Bridge of Lions, so local residents could watch. The museum's contractor for the job, Jeremy Patterson Structural Moving, stated that "it's apparently the largest museum ever relocated for flood hazard mitigation, and probably the only museum ever elevated."

In addition to moving the first building to a new location, the rebuilt facility is significantly expanded, to a total of  including "larger permanent and temporary exhibition galleries, an expanded research library, educational programming space, a new museum store, collection storage, and work space." The new facility will be LEED-certified and will include a new  library and archives, 51-seat theater, three galleries, public and educational programming space for up to 400 people, underground parking for 65 vehicles, a terrace with a view of the Cedar River and Cedar Rapids skyline, and an outdoor amphitheater. The rebuilding and recovery costs are estimated to be $25 million.

The NCSML was accredited by the American Alliance of Museums in November 2008. In 2010, the museum launched a capital campaign with a goal of raising $25 million to establish the Kosek Building as part of the NCSML's permanent collection, renovate The Immigrant Home and the Babi Buresh Center historic homes for tour, design and install a new permanent exhibition, recovery money spent by the museum and library on disaster cleanup; and grow the endowment to pay for operating expenses. The NCSML stated that following the museum's reopening, an estimated 54,000 visitors will visit annually and the economic impact on the Cedar Rapids area will be over $1.1 million.

See also

References

External links

Museums established in 1974
Museums of Czech culture abroad
History of Czechoslovakia
Czech-American culture in Iowa
Slovak-American history
Museums in Cedar Rapids, Iowa
History museums in Iowa
Ethnic libraries
Ethnic museums in Iowa
Libraries in Iowa

Cedar Rapids, Iowa metropolitan area
Institutions accredited by the American Alliance of Museums
Cultural infrastructure completed in 1983
Library buildings completed in 1983
European-American museums


Veterans for Medical Cannabis Access (VMCA), which was founded as Veterans for Medical Marijuana Access (VMMA) reflecting the pejorative word "marijuana", is an Elliston, Virginia-based non-profit service organization designed to assist American veterans who wish to be able to use marijuana for medical purposes with a doctor's recommendation. VMCA works towards the freedom for veterans to discuss the medical use of marijuana with their doctors without the risk of reprisal.

Activity in the United States

When it was created in 2007, Veterans for Medical Cannabis Access was the first American veteran service organization designed to assist veterans with medical access to cannabis.
Since then, VCMA has been lobbying and advocating both at the federal level (Veterans Affairs) and at the State-level, to geographically and qualitatively increase access to medical cannabis and derivates for US military veterans.
The organization seeks to make sure that the United States federal government allows veterans access to medicines their doctor prescribes or recommends, and broaden the right to access and the affordability of medicines.

Activity at international level

During the first decade of the 21st century, VMCA increased its presence and advocacy close to the relevant international institutions, in particular on policy issues at the Commission on Narcotic Drugs meetings, and close to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the International Narcotics Control Board. VMCA is also following the process of scientific review of cannabis by the World Health Organization towards a change in the scheduling of the substance at international level.
VCMA has developed close collaborations with major European NGOs such as DrugScience, the European Coalition for Just and Effective Drug Policies or the FAAAT think & do tank. VCMA Executive Director Michael Krawitz has been named Senior Adviser of FAAAT, with which he has developed an active advocacy and research in relation with the WHO review of Cannabis for international scheduling.
In 2015 in Prague, VMCA was involved in the creation of the IMCPC (International Medical Cannabis Patients' Coalition).
Since 2017, VCMA collaborates in the United Nations Office in Vienna to the organization of the Legal Regulations Fora, series of civil society events aimed at spreading ground-up proposals that aim to impact national decision-makers gathered in these meetings.

See also
 Cannabis and the United States military
 Legality of cannabis
 Removal of cannabis from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act
 Medical cannabis in the United States
 International Drug Control system
 Schedules of controlled drugs and substances
 Michael Krawitz

References

External links

2007 in cannabis
American veterans' organizations
Cannabis law reform organizations based in the United States
Cannabis and the United States military
Medicinal use of cannabis organizations based in the United States
Non-profit organizations based in the United States
Organizations based in Virginia
Organizations established in 2007

Veterans for Medical Cannabis Access


The orderly room sergeant (ORS), orderly room colour sergeant (ORCS) or orderly room quartermaster sergeant (ORQMS) is the chief clerk of an infantry battalion in the British Army, assisting the adjutant. The appointment of ORS or ORCS is held if the chief clerk holds the rank of colour sergeant and the appointment of ORQMS is held if they hold the rank of warrant officer class 2.

Orderly room (colour) sergeant is the most senior colour sergeant appointment in a battalion. ORQMS is the third most senior WO2 appointment in a battalion after the regimental quartermaster sergeant and the technical quartermaster sergeant.

References

Military appointments of the British Army

Orderly room sergeant


The Sorgenti di Firenze Trekking (SOFT, Florence Springs Walking) is a system of hiking trails that has twenty-two secondary trails that are connected to it in Tuscany.

In the valley of the Mugello, you can walk for days along the Apennines Florentine.

In the course of the first ring, walkers can be housed in "places step" where there are public shelters in villas, farmhouses, former country schools, monasteries, camping or travel companies. The stopping place is almost always in small villages or in places attractive, accessible by car.

The twenty-two secondary routes offer the possibility of a days-on-end of hiking, each highlighting a particular theme of environmental, historical and artistic routes.

External links
SOFT (Florence Springs Trekking)

Geography of Tuscany
Tourist attractions in Tuscany
Hiking trails in Italy

Sorgenti di Firenze Trekking


Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach () was a German state, created as a duchy in 1809 by the merger of the Ernestine duchies of Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Eisenach, which had been in personal union since 1741. It was raised to a grand duchy in 1815 by resolution of the Congress of Vienna. In 1903, it officially changed its name to the Grand Duchy of Saxony (), but this name was rarely used. The grand duchy came to an end in the German Revolution of 1918–19 with the other monarchies of the German Empire. It was succeeded by the Free State of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, which was merged into the new Free State of Thuringia two years later.

The full grand ducal style was Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, Landgrave in Thuringia, Margrave of Meissen, Princely Count of Henneberg, Lord of Blankenhayn, Neustadt and Tautenburg.

The Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach branch has been the most genealogically senior extant branch of the House of Wettin since 1672.

Geography
The Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach consisted of three greater areas, each of which formed a  administratively, plus several exclaves. Neighboring countries were Prussia, Saxony, Bavaria, Hesse-Kassel (until 1866, when it was incorporated in the Prussian Province of Hesse-Nassau), and all the other Thuringian states (Saxe-Altenburg, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Saxe-Meiningen, Reuss Elder Line, Reuss Junior Line, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen).

The northern part of the Weimar district was flat and part of the Thuringian Basin; the southern and eastern parts were situated on the Ilm-Saale Plateau and in the Saale valley. The northern part of Eisenach district was hilly (Hörselberge and Hainich hills); the central part with the town of Eisenach was in the Hörsel valley; further south were the mountains of the Thuringian Forest, followed by the Werra valley, the Kupenrhön mountains and finally, in the far south, the main chain of the Rhön mountains. The district Neustadt was located in hills with altitudes between 200 and 400 meters.

The main rivers in the country were:
 the Saale flowing through Jena in the east
 the Werra in Vacha and Eisenach, and its tributaries the Felda and Ulster in the west
 the Unstrut in the exclaves Allstedt and Oldisleben in the north
 the White Elster in Berga in the far east
 the Ilm, flowing through Ilmenau, Apolda and the capital Weimar in the centre. Acting Prime Minister Goethe once described Weimar as "Athens on the Ilm".

The highest elevation in the grand duchy were the Kickelhahn () near Ilmenau, the Ellenbogen () in the Rhön and the Ettersberg () near Weimar.

In 1895, the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach was administratively divided into three districts :

Furthermore, the districts of Weimar and Eisenach were each subdivided into two . In the case of Weimar, these were: Weimar and Apolda, in the case of Eisenach they were the Eisenach and Dermbach. In all, there were 31 cities and 594 municipalities in the Grand Duchy. The Grand Dukes of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach granted "city" status to three localities in the state, namely Berka/Werra (Eisenach district, 1847), Ruhla (Eisenach district, 1886, administered jointly with the Duke of Saxe-Gotha) and Münchenbernsdorf (Neustadt district, 1904).

In 1840, there were 13 cities with over 2,000 inhabitants.  In the 70 years to 1910, the Grand Duchy industrialized heavily and the population of the largest cities grew, while the medium-sized cities remained constant or even lost population.  The population of Stadtlengsfeld shrank dramatically after the Jewish emancipation, when most of the city's Jewish citizens migrated to larger cities.

In 1910, several other towns had grown past the 2,000 inhabitants mark: Ruhla (Weimar part: 3917 v. 1533: +156%), Blankenhain (3405 v. 1689: +102%), Bad Sulza, (3052 v. 1422: +115%), Auma (2978 v. 1701, +75%), Triptis (2948 v. 1480: +99%), Tiefenort (2539 v. 1237: +105%), Bad Berka (2379 v. 1228: +94%), Oberweimar (2095 v. 621: +237%), Oldisleben (2064 v. 1332: +55) and Mihla (2008 v. 1294: +55%).

History

The duchies of Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Eisenach had been ruled in personal union by the same branch of the House of Wettin since 1741, after the Eisenach line had died out upon the death of Duke Wilhelm Heinrich. The first Duke of the personal union was Ernest Augustus I, who built the Belvedere Palace in Weimar. His son Ernest Augustus II reigned for only three years, and died at the age of 20. At the age of 18, he married the Brunswick Princess Anna Amalia, one year his junior and a niece of King Frederick the Great of Prussia. A year later she gave birth to her son, Charles Augustus and after another year, when she was already a widow, to her son Constantine.

As Dowager Duchess Anna Amalia actively took up the regency, with the approval of the Empress Maria Theresa and the support of her ethical Minister Baron von Fritsch. As educator for her sons, she employed the poet Christoph Martin Wieland, who was a professor at the University of Erfurt.

At 18 years of age, Charles Augustus married Princess Louise of Hesse-Darmstadt. He employed the poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, with whom he soon became friends. Goethe, in turn, invited the authors Johann Gottfried Herder and Friedrich Schiller to Weimar, thus laying the foundation for the Weimar Classicism circle, which was supported in the background by Anna Amalia. Later regents would see it as main task to guard this heritage.

In 1804 Duke Charles Augustus' eldest son and heir Charles Frederick married Maria Pavlovna Romanova, sister of Emperor Alexander I of Russia, a conjugal union which decisively promoted the rise of the Ernestine Saxe-Weimar dynasty. It also gave the duchy some protection during the turmoil of the Napoleonic Wars. Though at first an ally of Prussia in the Napoleonic War of the Fourth Coalition, Duke Charles Augustus escaped his deposition by joining the Confederation of the Rhine on 15 December 1806.

After the official merger in 1809, the Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach consisted of the separate districts around the capital Weimar in the north and Eisenach in the west. Thanks to their Russian connection, the duchy gained substantially from the Congress of Vienna in 1815. In the east, it gained most of the  (Neustadt district; ) from the Kingdom of Saxony. It also received most of the Principality of Erfurt, which had been an exclave of Mainz before the war and a directly administered French fief under occupation. It further gained smaller possessions, such as Blankenhain and Kranichfeld. In the Rhön area, the  was created from adjacent former parts of Hesse-Kassel and territories held by the secularized Princely Abbey of Fulda. Finally, the country was raised to a grand duchy.

The cosmopolitan Grand Duke Charles Augustus gave his grand duchy the first liberal constitution in Germany, on 5 May 1816. Students of the University of Jena organized themselves as Germany's first fraternity, the  and celebrated Wartburg Festival at the Wartburg in October 1817. Many liberal-minded people participated and the speakers, most of them students, must be regarded as having been among the earliest democrats in Germany.

Maria Pavlovna, who was grand duchess from 1828, featuring composers like Franz Liszt and Peter Cornelius. Her art-loving son Charles Alexander (1818–1901), who was grand duke from 1853, also supported the arts, and music in particular. He was married to Sophie, who supported his plans, and he rebuilt the decaying Wartburg the romantic historicism style of the day and had it painted by Moritz von Schwind. He also supported, albeit half-heartedly, the founding of the School of Applied Arts in Weimar, which merged to form the Bauhaus in 1919.

A member of the German Confederation from 1815, the grand duchy was not seriously affected by the German revolutions of 1848 and remained neutral during the growing friction between Austria and Prussia over the following two decades. After the Austro-Prussian War the grand duchy became a member of the North German Confederation and in 1871 joined the new German Empire as a constituent state.

In 1901 Charles Alexander was succeeded by his grandson William Ernest, who was married to Caroline Reuss of Greiz and later to Feodora of Saxe-Meiningen. In 1903, the grand duchy officially changed its name to Grand Duchy of Saxony. However, many people continued to call it Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, to avoid confusion with the neighbouring Kingdom of Saxony.

William Ernest abdicated the throne on 9 November 1918, thereby ending the monarchy in the state. It continued as the Free State of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, until 1920, when it merged with most of its neighbours to form Thuringia, with Weimar as the state capital.

Religion
In the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, as in all the Thuringian states, the Lutheran faith was the most prevalent.  Specifically, in 1895, the reported religious affiliations of the 339,217 were:
 Evangelical: 325,315 (95.9%)
 Catholic: 12,112 (3.6%)
 Jewish: 1,290 (0.4%)
 Other / Non-denominational: 500 (0.1%)

In the district of Eisenach, the distribution was slightly different.  Of the 95,226 inhabitants were:
 Evangelical: 85,319 (89.6%)
 Catholic: 8,809 (9.3%)
 Jewish: 979 (1.0%)
 Other / Non-denominational: 119 (0.1%)

The Catholic and Jewish minorities in the district Eisenach lived mainly in the Rhön.  The area around the town of Geisa was predominantly Catholic and belonged to the Diocese of Fulda.

Constitution and administration
Under the Constitution of 5 May 1816 (revised 15 October 1850), Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach was a constitutional monarchy, hereditary in the male line. Under the Electoral Act of 1852, the Landtag had 31 members, of whom 21 were elected in general elections. One member was elected by the landed former Imperial Knights, four were elected by other wealthy landowners, and five by voters who had an annual income exceeding 1000 Thaler from other sources. The latter group of voters were popularly called "thousand thaler men". The Electoral Act of 17 April 1896 enlarged the parliament to 33 members. The grand duchy had one vote in the Imperial Bundesrat and three members in the Reichstag.

In 1909, general suffrage was introduced, under the auspices of Alfred Appelius, the later Speaker of the Landtag. The large landowners and the "thousand thaler men" retained their extra votes, and five new special members were added to the parliament, representing the University of Jena, the Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber of Trade, the Chamber of Agriculture and the Chamber of Labour

The highest court in the land was the Court of Appeals in Jena, which dealt with appeals from all Thuringian states. There were Regional Courts in Weimar and Eisenach.

The grand duchy had one infantry regiment, which after 1871 was part of the Imperial German Army's 11th Army Corps.

Rulers of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach

Dukes of Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Eisenach, 1741–1809
 Ernest Augustus I, 1741–1748; Duke of Saxe-Weimar since 1707
 Ernest Augustus II, 1748–1758
 Charles Augustus, 1758–1809, until 1775 under the regency of his mother Duchess Anna Amalia of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel

Dukes of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, 1809–1815
 Charles Augustus, 1809–1815; Duke of Saxe-Weimar and Saxe-Eisenach since 1758

Grand Dukes of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, 1815–1918
 Charles Augustus, 1815–1828
 Charles Frederick, 1828–1853
 Charles Alexander, 1853–1901
 William Ernest, 1901–1918

Heads of the House of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, 1918–present
 Grand Duke Wilhelm Ernst, 1918–1923
 Hereditary Grand Duke Carl August, 1923–1988
 Prince Michael, 1988–present

Economy

Agriculture
In 1895, 37.9% of the workforce were employed in the agriculture and forestry industries, 38.9% worked in the manufacturing sector, and 16.4% were employed in the service sector.

Until 1900, agriculture was the most important branch in the economy of the grand duchy. A total of 56% of the duchy's territory was used for agriculture, mainly in the districts Weimar and Neustadt and the exclaves Allstedt and Oldisleben in the Goldene Aue area.

The harvest of 1895 consisted of:

Fruit was mainly grown in the Saale valley, around Jena and Bürgel. There was some viticulture north of Jena, between Dornburg and Camburg.

Stock breeding was also widespread. In 1892, there were 19,121 horses in the grand duchy, 119,720 cattle, 113,208 sheep, 122,974 pigs, 46,405 goats and 16,999 beehives.

Game was only found near Eisenach, in Eichenzell and in the Ilmenau exclave, where the grand duke's largest hunting ground was located on the banks of the Gabelbach. About 50% of the forests were state-owned (). The dominant tree species were beech (in the Weimar district), pine (especially in the Neustadt district) and spruce (in the Eisenach district and around Ilmenau). The grand duchy's State Forestry Office was based in Eisenach.

Manufacturing Industries
A versatile array of manufacturing industries developed in the grand duchy. For example, in Bürgel and Ilmenau, there were porcelain factories (in all, there were 39 such factories in the country).

In Ilmenau and Jena, glass was made (in particular, in the Schott factories). The glass industry was specialized in industrial glass (for example measuring devices such as thermometers in the area around Ilmenau) and optical products, around Jena. In 1846, Carl Zeiss found a precision engineering and optical company that quickly developed into a world leader. In 1917, the company had  employees. In 1889, Ernst Abbe founded the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung, which became the sole share holder of the companies Carl Zeiss AG and Schott AG.

The textile industry was also important. It was concentrated in Apolda (mostly hosiery knitting mills) and Neustadt an der Orla. Other major textile plants could be found in Wenigenjena, Eisenach, Weida, Remda and Blankenhain. In 1895, the textile industry employed approximately  people.

Ruhla was a center of the metalworking industry. The country's first car plant was built in 1895 in Eisenach. Chemical industries, such as a paint factory, could also be found in Eisenach. Furthermore, there were a paper mill in Oberweimar and a toy factory in Ilmenau. Wicker-work was manufactured in the Kuppenrhön area and pipes were made in Geisa. In 1895, there were 257 breweries in the grand duchy; the largest of these were in Apolda and Ilmenau.

Mining industry
Ilmenau and Ruhla were important mining centers in the Thuringian Forest. Around 1900, potash industry began to develop in the Werra valley, around Vacha and Berka/Werra. There were salt works in Creuzburg and Bad Sulza.

Trade
The major transport centers were Weimar and Eisenach. Many banks opened branch offices here. In 1895, there were 23 branch offices of savings banks in the grand duchy, and they were managing deposits totalling approximately 40 million Reichsmark.

The grand duchy was part of the Thuringian Toll Union, except for the exclaves Ostheim, Oldisleben, and Allstedt.

Education
There was one state university in the grand duchy, the University of Jena, which was funded by Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach together with the other Thuringian states. There were several art and music schools in Weimar, and in Ilmenau, there was the Technische Universität Ilmenau, a privately owned university providing technical and scientific education. Gymnasiums existed in Weimar, Eisenach and Jena; Realschules were found in Weimar, Apolda, Jena, Eisenach, Neustadt and Ilmenau. In 1895, there were 462 primary schools, and any child would receive at least four years of primary education. Large libraries of  volumes each were maintained in Weimar and Jena. In 1869, a State Museum was founded in Weimar.

See also
 Ernestine duchies
 Thuringian states

Notes

References
 Carl Ferdinand Weiland: General Charte von dem Großherzogthume Weimar-Eisenach nach den besten vorhandenen Hülfsmitteln entworfen und gezeichnet von C. F. Weiland, Geographical Institute of Weimar, 1817, reprinted: Rockstuhl, Bad Langensalza 2009, ,
 Karl Helmrich: Geschichte des Großherzogthums Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach für Schule und Haus, Albrecht, Weimar, 1852,

External links

States and territories established in 1809
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