Adolf Edmund George de Herz, commonly shortened to A. de Herz, also rendered as Hertz and Herț (December 15, 1887 – March 9, 1936), was a Romanian playwright and literary journalist, also active as a poet, short story author, and stage actor. He was the scion of an upper-class assimilated Jewish family, with its roots in Austria-Hungary. His grandfather, Adolf Sr, was a controversial banker and venture capitalist, while his father, Edgar von Herz, was noted as a translator of Romanian literature. Adolf had a privileged childhood and debuted as a poet while still in high school, producing the lyrics to a hit romance. In his early work for the stage, Herz was a traditionalist inspired by Alexandru Davila and the Sămănătorul school, but later veered toward neoclassical literature and aestheticism. His "salon comedies", staged by the National Theater Bucharest, borrowed from various authors, including Roberto Bracco, Henri Lavedan, and Haralamb Lecca, peaking in popularity in 1913, with Păianjenul ("The Spider"). By the start of World War I, Herz was also a writer of revues.

Controversy followed Herz during the early 1910s, when his writing raised suspicions of plagiarism. A vaster controversy came with Romania's participation in the war, when Herz became noted as a supporter of the Central Powers. He remained in German-occupied territory, putting out the daily paper Scena, which became a leading voice of Romanian "Germanophilia", but was also a pioneering contribution to cultural journalism. He was arrested by returning loyalists during late 1918, and sent to Văcărești prison, where he served alongside Ioan Slavici and I. C. Frimu. Herz was finally acquitted in March 1919; the controversy nevertheless survived, also leading to authorship disputes with a former friend, Ioan Alexandru Brătescu-Voinești, and provoking the enmity of writers Liviu Rebreanu and George Ranetti.

The financially insecure Herz continued to publish plays and translations, embarking on a lasting collaboration with Constantin Tănase, and writing a revue for Josephine Baker. Starring in his own plays, he also served for a while as editor of a cultural supplement, Adevărul Literar și Artistic, then briefly as head of Dimineața daily and as interviewer for the Radio Company. Herz oversaw the directorial debut of Sică Alexandrescu, who became his production and writing partner in the 1930s; he also ensured Zaharia Stancu's literary breakthrough, and his own daughter Kuki's debut in acting. Eventually, Herz accepted appointment as chair of the National Theater Craiova in 1930, while continuing to work in other fields, and debuting as a talking-picture screenwriter.

Toppled by actors' protests and political intrigues in 1935, Herz was increasingly disfavored by critics, who discussed his creative decline into a formulaic craft. He died early the following year, after a battle with diabetes and an illness of the lungs. By then, his Jewish origin had stirred an additional controversy, which was prolonged with the adoption of antisemitic policies during most of World War II—although his plays continued to be produced by Alexandrescu and others. The communist regime was similarly adverse to the "bourgeois" work produced by Herz, though a selective recovery was allowed beginning in the late 1960s; this trend was opposed by various critics, who suggested that Herz was no longer culturally relevant.

Biography

Early life
Born in Bucharest, capital of the Romanian Kingdom, his parents were Edgar von Herz (or Edgard de Hertz) and his wife Maria (née Kereszteyi). On his paternal side, he belonged to Austrian nobility, and had links with the Duchy of Bukovina: his grandfather, Baron Adolf von Herz, was president of the imperial railway connecting Lemberg to Iași; he married a Maria Moreau. The Baron, a man of Austrian Jewish extraction, was living in Vienna in 1850, when he patented his design for a sugar refinery. Attested as having relocated to the Free City of Frankfurt by 1858, he helped build the Lemberg–Iași railway with support from Thomas Brassey, but only after relocating again, to Bucharest. His investment portfolio included, in 1865, a "Bank of Romania", which was the first modern credit institution of the United Principalities. After this was closed following political disputes, the Baron remained active as the representative of North British and Mercantile Insurance, and also involved himself in projects for setting up agricultural banks. He later reestablished the larger bank and became its general manager, investing heavily in the State Tobacco Monopoly, before ultimately resigning in 1876. By then, his alleged bribery of Finance Minister Petre Mavrogheni had become a public scandal. He died in August 1881, at Bad Gastein.

The Herzes were Roman Catholics, but, according to historian Lucian Boia, "perfectly assimilated into Romanian culture." The playwright's father was a high-level bank clerk, and the son experienced a privileged childhood at Romania's royal court, which granted him its privilege for many years. In addition to his business profile, Edgar had musical and literary interests. In 1878, he was a pianist, performing alongside Eduard Hübsch at the Romanian Atheneum. Edgar also translated into German the play Fântâna Blanduziei, by Vasile Alecsandri (1885), and the poem Luceafărul, by Mihai Eminescu (1893). Adolf Sr's other son, Edmond, was a former officer in the Austrian Army; he had married Iza, daughter of Prince Dimitrie Ghica, who reportedly frowned upon his in-laws' Jewishness. Iza (born Maria Ghica) was a published essayist, and some sources credit her as Herz's mother. The couple in fact had a daughter, also named Maria.

As Herz himself recalled later in life, he was "born an actor", and from age six or seven regularly attended premieres and then, upon returning home, improvised scenes for his family. Herz's primary schooling consisted of private lessons; he attended Gheorghe Lazăr High School in his native city. Critic Barbu Lăzăreanu reports that, during recess here, he tried out his talents as a comedian, and became "the unparalleled mime". A colleague of Herz's, the future theater chronicler Paul I. Prodan, notes that he was a sentimental figure, who lamented the fate of snowmen used by other students for snowball target practice. He began literary activity with sonnets, odes, romances and fables—recorded in a notebook covering the years 1901–1903, and discovered only after his death. Lăzăreanu, who read it, notes that it owed inspiration to Alecsandri and Eminescu; it also contained pastiches from Alfred de Musset and Alexandre Dumas fils. In November 1901, he was a guest of Queen Elisabeth, to whom he recited one of his poems. He later reviewed this work of his as "very bad".

For two years, Herz was enrolled at the military school in Iași; he was colleagues with two future generals, Traian Eremia Grigorescu and Gabriel Marinescu. He disliked the atmosphere and rebelled, writing poetry on the dormitory walls. He was also reportedly a student of Mihai Viteazul National College, during which time he wrote new poetry, as well as drama, using the pen name Dinu Ramură. Around 1904, at age 17, Herz went public with De ziua nunții tale-ți scriu ("I Write This on Your Wedding Day"), which became a highly popular romance. According to theatrical folklore, the piece was about Herz's unrequited love for actress Agepsina Macri, who married dramatist Victor Eftimiu.

After completing high school in 1907, Herz entered the literature and philosophy faculty of the University of Bucharest, where he was a good student and drew favorable notice from professors such as Titu Maiorescu, Mihail Dragomirescu and Pompiliu Eliade. His verses first appeared in print in 1906, hosted by Luceafărul, followed by similar pieces in Sămănătorul and Vieața Nouă. Critic Nicolae Iorga mentioned a characteristic poem about Iliaș Rareș, signed as Dinu Ramură and composed in "monotonous alexandrines". These and other early experiments in verse drama were heavily inspired by the writings of Alexandru Davila, to the point of imitation. According to Dragomirescu, they provide the only sample of a traditionalist theater in line with Sămănătorul commands, but are lacking in dramatic effect: Herz's "pitiful" contributions had not preserved classical unities. Despite such reviews, the works made Herz a respected figure at his school, and provoked his jealous classmate, Alexandru Kirițescu, to begin his own literary career—initially, much less successfully.

After being accepted at Vieața Nouă, Herz moved into neoclassical literature and aestheticism, but, as Dragomirescu notes, was "merely a beginner" in both. Herz's debut play was the 1907 Domnița Ruxandra, dramatizing the life of an eponymous 17th-century princess. With borrowings from both Davila and Pierre Corneille, it earned praise from a prominent literary figure, George Panu. It followed in 1908 by Floare de nalbă ("Marsh Mallow"). According to Eftimiu, Herz's writing moved away from Davila's influence, and came to resemble the work of Haralamb Lecca. Both Dragomirescu and Eugen Lovinescu viewed Floare de nalbă as profoundly indebted to Alexandre Dumas' Camille. By then, he was also published by Dragomirescu's own Convorbiri Critice, notably with the 1908 "dramatic idyll" A fost odată ("Once upon a Time"), and by Făt Frumos, with a translated fragment from Jean Racine's Phèdre (1909). He still contributed poetry, mainly in Maiorescu's Convorbiri Literare—which also put out another one of his plays, the 1911 Biruința ("Victory"). Five other plays came in quick succession: Noaptea Învierii ("Resurrection Night", 1909), Când ochii plâng ("When Eyes Shed Tears", 1911), Păianjenul ("The Spider", 1913), Bunicul ("Grandfather", also 1913), and Cuceritorul ("The Conqueror", 1914).

Breakthrough
Several of these texts were staged by the National Theater Bucharest, which was led by Eliade, then by Davila and Ioan Bacalbașa. In January 1909, it produced Domnița Ruxandra, marking the first-ever performance of a Herz play. Directed by the professional actor Ion Livescu, it was unusual for having an all-amateur cast, comprising only high-school students. At the Romanian Academy, Maiorescu rejected the play, which was competing for the Năsturel Award. In later years, however, he granted occasional sponsorship to Herz. The latter praised Maiorescu as his adviser and moral benchmark, assuring him of his "undying devotion". Biruința was accepted by Davila in May 1911 and registered accolades. It was also taken up for production by Iași's state theater in November, but did not play to a full house. Writing at the time, reviewer Corneliu Carp alleged that the local public preferred sensationalism and melodrama to Herz's "tame, normal, simple" text. Also taken up by the National Theater Bucharest, Noaptea Învierii "failed to catch on", and is described by Lovinescu as very similar to his own earlier play, De peste prag. Când ochii plâng was first shown at a provincial venue, the National Theater Craiova, with Agatha Bârsescu as a lead. Masca, the local magazine for theatergoers, gave it a scathing review: Herz's text was the "supreme bore", complete with "sordid platitudes" that Bârsescu's performance could not alleviate.

Herz returned to Bucharest with Păianjenul, which was an "unparalleled" or "great success" on its premiere. According to Livescu and critic Ioan Massoff, it became an absolute triumph for both the author and the lead actors, Maria Giurgea and Tony Bulandra. Around that time, he reportedly drew a profit of almost a million lei per play, which was an unprecedented achievement. In Păianjenul, a widow pretends to be "debauched" so as to seem more fashionable. According to the literary scholar George Călinescu, the theme and layout prefigure Luigi Pirandello, but also reinstate old favorites of the public. Likewise, Lovinescu suggests that Păianjenul is largely a copy of Roberto Bracco's Perfetto amore, but mutated into the realm of comedy. The result, however, is superior, and itself a "model for salon comedies". Lovinescu's hypothesis about Bracco and Herz was at the center of a plagiarism scandal. Other writers maintained favorable opinions of Păianjenul: Livescu finds in it both of Herz's faces, "the poet and the humorist", joined with "clear precision in creating scenarios and a technique that is anything but banal"; while Massoff sees it as "the first and perhaps the best of Romania's salon comedies". The same is argued by theatrologist Vera Molea, who proposes that Păianjenul remains "the most accomplished writing by the prolific A. de Herz."

As noted by scholar Mircea Popa, Herz was a renowned journalist in his time, but also had significant contributions to the development of Romanian theatrical life, through both his magazines and the plays he wrote. This verdict is contrasted by Călinescu, who views Herz as mainly a "theatrical industrialist" and "frank sentimentalist", with only Păianjenul and Bunicul emerging as more lasting contributions. In writing Bunicul, Herz was apparently inspired by Henri Lavedan's Marquis de Priola, similarly depicting an aging seducer, Manole Corbea, trying and failing to win the favors of a much younger woman. The scenario is seen by Călinescu as a collection "of trifles, sometimes tedious", but nonetheless "trifles assembled with skill." Contrarily, Lovinescu describes Bunicul as "weak" and "incoherent", with jocular phrases that "do nothing to disperse its banality." Shortly after the premiere, Luceafărul reported that the "much-touted play" was a flop, noting that its "talented author" had "chiseled away a piece of glass, [rather than] a diamond." Reviewers for both Flacăra and Opinia saw Bunicul as a lifeless text, arguing that Herz had taken "two steps back". "The Baron" was still not validated by critics with Cuceritorul: a reviewer at Universul Literar called the play "incoherent", and alleged that Herz had only written it because Bulandra wanted him to.

Herz was a founding member of the Romanian Writers' Society (SSR), a literary secretary at the National Theater Bucharest, and an editor-in-chief of the literary magazine Făt-Frumos. In 1910–1911, he visited the Romanian communities of Austria-Hungary, including Bukovina, as part of a literary tour that also hosted Iorga, Eftimiu, Emil Gârleanu, Octavian Goga, Al. T. Stamatiad, and Caton Theodorian. He cultivated a friendship with Eftimiu, and together with him met the senior poet George Coșbuc, whom they both admired. As recalled by Eftimiu, the meeting proved to them that, in everyday life, Coșbuc was a bore. In April 1911, the Romanian Theatrical Society elected Herz on its first Steering Committee, alongside George Diamandy, Paul Gusty, George Ranetti, and Radu D. Rosetti. The following year, Herz, Gârleanu and Rosetti appeared at Comoedia Theater during a recital which honored the senior playwright Ion Luca Caragiale; honored guests included Marie of Romania and Prince Carol. Herz had a stint as chief of staff for Dimitrie S. Nenițescu, the Conservative Minister of Commerce, together with whom he traveled to Galați for the unveiling of Costache Negri's statue (July 1912). He was sacked in October, upon the arrival of a National Liberal, Nicolae Xenopol. In his review of the issue, Herz's colleague Ranetti joked that Herz might have been disliked for his aristocratic airs, or that Xenopol "wanted to return him to his real vocation".

Also in 1912, Herz's adaptation of Henri Murger's Kind Old Man premiered at the National Theater. This was repeated in 1914, when the same troupe staged Herz's version of L'Apôtre, by Paul Hyacinthe Loyson. During those years, Herz also contributed to Flacăra, Viața Românească, Dimineața, Adevărul, Epoca and Rampa. For a while in 1914, Herz and painter Jean Alexandru Steriadi published their a popular magazine, Ilustrațiunea Română. In 1915, together with Ioan Alexandru Brătescu-Voinești, he co-wrote another play, Sorana. Also then, he produced at Comoedia the play Voiaj în China ("Voyage to China"), allowing a 17-year-old Sică Alexandrescu to take over as director. His other work included theater criticism; he still used the pseudonym Dinu Ramură, alongside Mira Dăianu and Dinu.

Becoming a "Germanophile"
Herz's career was mired in controversy during Romania's involvement in World War I. The first two years were of cautious neutrality, during which Romanian public opinion divided itself between supporting the Entente or the Central Powers. Initially, Herz was friendly toward the former, producing in July 1915 a montage of patriotic verse by Eftimiu and Goga. Called Cântarea României ("Romania's Song"), and starring Édouard de Max, it hinted to the annexation of Bukovina and Transylvania. Epigrammatist Cincinat Pavelescu describes a latent rivalry between Herz and Goga, after the latter had experience major success with his own Transylvania-themed plays. Pavelescu himself stoked such tensions by composing verse which made unflattering allusions to Herz's "Semitic" origin. It read:

Before December 1915, Herz had written the scenario for a café-chantant, Melcul ("The Snail"). Noticed for his contribution to the revue genre, Herz was also working with Nicolae Niculescu-Buzău, the star of anti-war plays, at the Alhambra. He also contributed the libretto for an operetta, Dragostea Corinei ("Corina's Love"), with Ionel G. Brătianu as his composer. By January 1916, the latter was being performed by the Grigoriu troupe with "extraordinary success". According to Niculescu's recollection, Herz proved "rather good" at creating "dialogue, humorous prose and misunderstandings".

Over those months, Herz had drifted toward support for the Central Powers, writing theatrical columns in Steagul newspaper and having friendly encounters with a "Germanophile" agent, Alexandru Bogdan-Pitești. From August 1916, the Treaty of Bucharest formalized Romania's alliance with the Entente. This interrupted Herz's work for the musical theater. By October, "a major newspaper from the Capital" employed him to write a reportage on the planned execution of draft evaders at Craiova. While there, he befriended Radu Demetrescu-Gyr, an eleven-years-old aspiring poet, teaching him about meter and encouraging him to write more. Herz returned to his activities in Bucharest, and, in late 1916, took into his personal care the actor Ion Iancovescu, who had been wounded on the front and, upon his return to civilian life, had been left homeless.

In December 1916, the city was conquered by the Central Powers, beginning almost two years of foreign occupation; Herz did not join in Bucharest's evacuation. After May 1917, Herz became a contributor to Săptămâna Ilustrată magazine, which was a main component of the German propaganda apparatus in Romania. In June of that year, he met Lilly Tănăsescu, and married her in July. An operetta performer based in Craiova, she was the daughter of noted actor Ion Tănăsescu. She continued to act in shows at Gabrielescu's theater until the birth of their first child, daughter Alexandra Maria. Eftimiu reports that Herz felt grateful toward Lilly, who had stood by him "in times of need", and fell for her instead of prospecting "the rich bourgeoisie of Bucharest". As reported by Massoff, Herz radically changed his philandering ways and "turned bourgeois", spending much time with his family and especially his two "adored" children, Alexandra "Kuki" and Nonu.

Under the caretaker, Germanophile administration set up by Lupu Kostaki, Nenițescu made his return as a Finance Minister. As early as April 1917, he nominated Herz for the chairmanship of the National Theater. This proposal was opposed by the actors, prompting Nenițescu to terminate their state subsidies; the German managers showed solidarity with their employees, and split their own salaries with the troupe. Herz was still involved in the shows at Ambasadori Garden, joining Davila and Gabrielescu's summer troupes. One performance of September 5–6 raised money for blinded soldiers. It included productions of Herz's revues, Dă-i drumul odată și mor ("Just You Turn It On and I'll Die") and Treci la rând ("Get in Line"), starring Lilly, and with Herz himself appearing on stage to recite a couplet. He was also commissioned by singer Alexandru Bărcănescu to write a one-act musical comedy, Boerul Buflea ("Buflea the Boyar"), which was performed as a live act at Cinema-Variété Regal in October. In November, he staged another musical comedy, Rândunica ("The Swallow"), with its proceeds going to the Romanian Red Cross.

On September 27, Herz, together with Liviu Rebreanu, had inaugurated a cultural daily, Scena ("The Stage"), which had contributions from a diverse selection of writers: Davila, Felix Aderca, Victor Anestin, Sarina Cassvan, Vasile Demetrius, Gala Galaction, Lucrezzia Karnabatt, Adrian Maniu, Barbu Nemțeanu, I. Peltz, Camil Petrescu, Tudor Teodorescu-Braniște, and I. C. Vissarion. The editorial staff included, among others, Scarlat Froda, Barbu Lăzăreanu, Ilie Moscovici, and Alexandru Terziman. As noted by Boia, Herz's publication of a theatrical daily "would have been a true feat even under normal circumstances"; "leaving aside his excessive language, which can be explained in context, the fact remains that [Herz] was a greatly capable chief for a cultural gazette and animator of cultural life under stressful conditions."

According to Peltz, Herz displayed an "extraordinary power of conviction, he was instantly likeable." "Never infected with the microbe of envy", he was enthusiastic about the work of others, promoting in particular the writer and "son of peasants" Alexandru Bucur. However, the Baron could also be sarcastic, entertaining his employees with impressions of themselves and of writers he viewed as mediocre, in particular Maica Smara. According to Livescu, Herz was as much interesting to "reading intellectuals" as he was an avid gossiper, though his blather remained "spiritual and urbane". As noted by Massoff, "the Baron [knew] how to pull on people's tiny strings, and also how to make himself a strain of gratuitous enemies—though his was not a wicked soul." "Herz's tiny intrigues" existed to keep him entertained and, "truth be told, he received more kicks than he gave."

Scandals and trial
Scena had a "Germanophile" line; Herz's own articles reinforced this orientation. They include an April 1918 praise for Ludwig von Gebsattel, who led Germany's censorship office in occupied Romania. Therein, Herz argued that Gebsattel had presided upon the survival of Bucharest's theaters. In February 1918, Scena also hosted Coșbuc's last-ever poem, "The Eagle", which probably alludes to Romania's wartime disasters. Other pieces attacked Ententist writers and theater professionals who had resettled in Iași, singling out Diamandy, Ranetti, Sadoveanu, Nicolae N. Beldiceanu, Petre Locusteanu, and Corneliu Moldovanu. Other members of this exile cohort did not resent Herz for his stances: a December 1917 letter sent from Iași by actor Alexandru Mavrodi shows that he regularly read Scena, and that he was glad to learn of Rândunicas "apparent success".

Rebreanu quit Scena after only three weeks, and, moving on to become staff critic for Constantin Stere's Lumina, panned Boerul Buflea and Rândunica. He soon ran afoul of the occupying authorities, and suspected that Herz was denouncing him. The two remained rivals: as late as 1935, Herz claimed that he had kept the copy of a revue entirely authored by Rebreanu, written in a style that would have harmed Rebreanu's reputation. In March, Comoedia Theater produced Herz's new play, Vălul de pe ochi ("A Veil over One's Eyes"), with all proceeds going to the orphans of war. Herz was still in Bucharest following the Romanian surrender, and expected there the return of professionals from their exile in Iași. A coalition of Conservative Germanophiles took over, with Alexandru Marghiloman as Prime Minister. Following this move, Scena began receiving contributions from decommissioned soldiers, including George Topîrceanu, Avram Steuerman-Rodion, and H. Bonciu.

During that summer, several other of Herz's revues were produced at Ambasadori, including: Fata cu trei case din dafin ("Three-housed Girl of the Laurel Tree"), Țațo nu te supăra ("Frump Be Not Mad"), and Bac (from "Baccarat"). According to his wife, he wrote a new revue each night, including De-aia n'are ursul coadă ("That's Why Bears Don't Have Their Tails"). Scena reported on the Germanized theatrical milieu of Bucharest. Its film chronicles praised German propaganda films, including one produced in Bucharest, with live footage of Marshal Mackensen, and gave ample coverage to German or Austrian film stars, including Leda Gys, Mia May, Hella Moja and Alwin Neuß. Scena also reported on tours by Theater an der Wien and Darmstadt Court Opera, as well as German plays staged by Romanian managers such as Velimir Maximilian and Marioara Voiculescu. Nevertheless, Herz and Maximilian had a running dispute, which peaked in October, when Maximilian slapped Herz in public, on Calea Victoriei. Around that time, the brochure Caricatura sub ocupație ("Caricature during the Occupation"), attributed by Călinescu to Herz himself and by others to Maniu, presented the work of a staff cartoonist by the name of Philips, who had "tried to replace our famous draftsmen".

Scenas politics became the subject of debates and scrutiny with the November Armistice: the paper ended publication on the very day of its signing, by which time the Marghiloman government had already fallen. Herz was arrested at Galați in early December 1918, during a general clampdown on "Germanophiles". According to Marghiloman, the new government did not necessarily want him tried, but an Ententist journalist, Gheorghe Matei Corbescu, pulled the strings. Herz was formally deemed by the Government Commissioner as "posing a danger to the Allied troops"; he was kept under guard at Hotel Modern, and interrogated alongside Dumitru Karnabatt, Dem. Theodorescu, and Saniel Grossman. "The Baron" was then sent to Văcărești prison, awaiting trial. While there, he witnessed the death in custody of I. C. Frimu, an activist of the Socialist Party. His testimonial on the subject argues that Frimu was "mercilessly beaten", which compromised his immunity and aggravated his typhus. At Văcărești, the playwright was also reunited with Bogdan-Pitești and met Ioan Slavici, who described "baron de Herz" as a "lively, spirited, sweet youth". Herz would later inspire the aged Slavici to write his memoirs, including details of his encounters with Mihai Eminescu. Herz claimed that Slavici had privately revealed himself as the real author of Făt-Frumos din lacrimă, which is generally attributed to Eminescu.

In February–March 1919, Herz was court-martialled, with 22 other "collaborationist" journalists, by the Second Army. He was among the acquitted, while his colleague Rebreanu was only called upon as a witness. Nonetheless, the label of "traitor" was long applied to Herz, especially at delicate moments. At this stage, Brătescu-Voinești struck out Herz's name from all new editions of Sorana. As noted by literary historian Dan Mănucă, Brătescu had a simmering conflict with another collaborationist, Tudor Arghezi, and viewed by the latter as a leading enemy of his Germanophile colleagues. Mănucă argues that this view was exaggerated, but also that its escalation pushed Brătescu into a conflict with Herz. According to Călinescu, "the paternity of the play is disputed", with the overall intrigue redolent of Herz's plays, and some "stylistic turns" being characteristic for Brătescu's prose. Herz, who was backed by Arghezi and Pamfil Șeicaru, accused his former friend publicly, and eventually took him to court, where he won reparations.

Also in 1919, Rebreanu completed the biographical novel Calvarul ("Ordeal"), which portrays Herz as "Henric Adler", the antagonist. During that period, Herz was also being publicly exposed as Jewish. As noted by the newspaper Afirmarea, Herz viewed himself as a "God-fearing Christian", and the allegation caused him "much suffering". In late 1923, Ranetti's review Furnica noted Herz's association with a rival paper, Masca. Ranetti derided Herz as a "Semitic aristocrat", calling attention to his "disgusting behavior under the occupation"; he demanded that Masca be censored. In 1924, Herz's name was included on a black list of Jewish journalists, which was circulated by the Transylvanian press. An official organ of the Vad Orthodox Diocese published it with a note that "these Jews are hoping to influence Romanian public opinion"; Clujul weekly identified Herz as an agent of Jewish "subversion", demanding that he leave the Romanian press.

Recovery and failure

Herz resumed his other activity in the interwar's Greater Romania, first with translations of composer biographies by Romain Rolland (in 1918, as the first-ever translation into Romanian of a text by Rolland) and Houston Stewart Chamberlain. From 1920 to 1924, he put out Adevărul Literar și Artistic, while also penning contributions to Gândirea. According to his friend Gyr, as an editor he was superior to the "vulgar" Mihail Sevastos: under Herz's tenure, Adevărul Literar și Artistic remained "the meeting spot of all literary talent", with contributions that were "lively and varied". From this position, Herz approved for print the first poems ever published by Zaharia Stancu. In 1923, Herz joined Caton Theodorian's Society of Romanian Dramatic Authors, serving as its censor, alongside Eftimiu. He returned to the stage with various new plays, including Mărgeluș ("Tiny Bead", 1921) and Șeful Gării ("The Station-Master", 1924); he also returned to Flacăra, publishing therein fragments from a historical play, Colivia de aur ("A Golden Cage", 1923). In 1922, fragments from his Păianjenul, translated into German, appeared in the Bukovina magazine Die Brücke.

Călinescu reserves some praise for Mărgeluș, a "more literary" play, in which the unborn child of a typist holds together her relationship with an upper-class youth. In Sburătorul, Felix Aderca also gave Mărgeluș a positive review, describing it as a "modern drama, classical in its simplicity", but also a discreet and gifted comedy. Aderca remarked in particular Herz's wordplay, which, he argued, made the writer a companion of Caragiale and Molière. As argued by the Transylvanian review Cele Trei Crișuri, Mărgeluș restated Herz's "rare qualities", provoking "thunderous applause". The play was first produced by Regina Maria Theater, under the twin direction of Niculescu-Buzău and M. Antonescu. The latter also appeared in the title role, to positive reviews. Before 1922, the play had 78 reprisals, the biggest hit on Romania's theater circuit for that season. Manager Ludovic Dauș also bought the play for Chișinău National Theater, which went on a regional tour of Bessarabia in 1924.

After 1920, Herz reaffirmed his traditionalism as a theater critic, being vocal as a critic of Expressionist tendencies, and specifically of director Karlheinz Martin. Martin was his direct competitor: during his stay in Bucharest, he ran three Expressionist plays with at least 74 stagings between them. Writing in 1925, theorist Ion Sân-Giorgiu argued that Eftimiu and Herz's overall output could restore Romanian drama, chasing away the "mood of superficiality". Such appraisals were contrasted by other observers. Among the traditionalists, Iorga remained critical of Herz's works, viewing them as "well-made plays" with "indifferent characters", marked by a "strain of cynicism". As seen by Iorga, Herz remained indebted to Adrien Bernheim and Georges de Porto-Riche. Criticism also came from the avant-garde: in 1924 Scarlat Callimachi singled out Herz and Camil Petrescu as dramatists who could only "garner applause from lunch ladies" and who therefore "must disappear".

Alexandrescu notes of Herz: "The war cancelled him as a dramatic author. His comedies had a light satirical note, they were not profound theater but rather one of the Parisian boulevardier kind, albeit of good quality, like those comedies by de Flers and Caillavet." These years also marked new contributions to the revue genre, for which he found a new patron, the actor-producer Constantin Tănase.  Herz's "heavyweight" role in the interwar revue was recorded in theatrical verse by a colleague, Ion Pribeagu. During 1923, Tănase appeared as Acarul Păun in Herz's Care dă mai mult? ("Who Pays More?"), a satirical take on the railway catastrophe at Vintileasca. The 1924 hits Ce-are a face? ("What's It to You?") and Pân'aici ("Up to Here") were again showcased by Tănase. Both were collective works, with Herz credited alongside "Durstoy" (or "Dur Stoy"), later revealed as a writing duo formed by Gheorghe Druma and Victor Stoicovici.

Herz also attempted a return to mainstream theater with the 1925 plays Aripi frânte ("Broken Wings") and Seară pierdută ("Wasted Evening"). The former, written in verse, depicted events from the life of Ștefăniță, a 17th-century Moldavian exile in the Holy Roman Empire. Also in 1925, alongside Dragomirescu, Brătescu-Voinești, Rebreanu and V. Al. Jean, Herz was an executive of Filmul Românesc society, dedicated to the promotion and moral review of Romanian cinema productions. Around that time, he became editor-in-chief of Dimineața daily. This allowed him to publish a lavish praise of his own Păianjenul, which was being produced by Aurel Ion Maican at Brăila City Theater. Also that year, Maican directed a new production of Mărgeluș. Moving on from Dimineața, Herz worked as a broadcaster for the newly inaugurated Radio Company, with a series of interviews with actors. Later contributions for Tănase's revues were Din toată inima ("With a Full Heart") and Între ciocan și nicovală ("Between a Rock and a Hard Place"), co-authored with Nicolae Vlădoianu; both were performed by and his troupe in 1928. The Herz–Vlădoianu collaboration used talents such as Alexandru Giugaru and a number by the Romanian version of Mutt and Jeff; its "dizzying rhythm" garnered "sidesplitting laughter". Alongside Vlădoianu and Nicolae Kirițescu, Herz, using the pen name "Puck", also wrote the show Negru pe alb ("Black on White"), made famous for starring an African American dancer, Josephine Baker.

His final works for the stage included the more conventional comedy Omul de zăpadă ("Snowman"). It depicted the unscrupled playboy Mihai Corvin finding real love with the inexperienced Viorica. Taken up by the National Theater Bucharest in December 1927, it was also performed at provincial theaters. The main production featured Nicolae Soreanu and Ion Finteșteanu; Herz himself appeared in his own play in the touring version. Omul de zăpadă was followed by another play, Încurcă lume ("The Fumbler"), commissioned by Alexandrescu for his Teatrul Mic. He was involved in its 1929 staging, appearing in the lead role. It was published alongside volumes of short prose: Noapte bună ("Good Night", 1929) and Om discret ("A Discreet Man", 1931). His former colleagues at Dimineața recommended the latter as "healthy humor and sound literature", "a prized contribution to out humorous prose." Herz's final contributions as a translator include a Romanian rendition of William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. It was done from the French version, and staged by the National Theater in 1928–1929, with Gusty as director.

Final years

In June 1930, Herz became manager of the National Theater Craiova. According to Massoff, he took this job out of sheer necessity, and it proved a "great misfortune", impeding his writing. While there, "the Baron" undertook efforts to secure a new building, worked to improve relations between management and actors, hired new actors and established a choir. Funding for the theater was cut due to the ongoing economic crisis; Herz responded by paying actors' wages from his own pocket. In December 1934, the satirists at Veselia magazine ridiculed Herz for allowing his actors to perform in Bucharest revues, and also for using the Craiova stage for self-promotion: "The [season's] opening show will comprise fragments from Păianjenul, Omul de zăpadă, Mărgeluș etc., as read out by the author himself". His adolescent daughter Kuki became a troupe regular, appearing as Martha in The Father and as Petre the Dwarf in Aripi frânte. In 1933, she vacationed with her father in Bușteni, at a retreat organized by the SSR. She befriended novelist Marta Rădulescu, who described her as "Craiova Theater's child prodigy". The dramatist's son, Nonu, trained as a violinist.

Prospects of bankruptcy and political intrigue eventually led to Herz's sacking in 1935. From 1932, journalist Eugen Constant had been highly critical of Herz's management, alleging that he was "entirely adverse to the Oltenian psyche", a "character with a Germanic coat of arms and the reputation of a streetwise authors of revues." Constant claimed that the institution was excessively promoting German plays, with "nudist displays and libidinous gestures", and also implied that Herz was guilty of financial irregularities. In November 1934, an unsigned piece in Curentul alleged that he was "terrorizing" actors, who had not received payment since June, and that his pattern of behavior evidenced insanity. According to this report, the entire Craiova troupe went on strike, and some of its members attempted to storm into Herz's home on Unirei Highway; the incidents prompted an inquiry. As noted by Gyr, "the Baron" could indeed prove himself coarse and abusive in dealing with his staff. Herz himself suspected that his activity had been reported on by two fellow dramatists, Ion Marin Sadoveanu and Victor Ion Popa, though the latter rejected such rumors.

One of Herz's stories was adapted into a 1934 talking picture, Insula Șerpilor—set in, and named after, Snake Island, it fictionalized the adventures a famous brigand, Terente. Insula Șerpilor, now a lost film, is only known through its generally positive reviews, though it was also panned by Ghiță Ionescu in Cuvântul Liber. That same year, Încurcă lume was taken up by the National Theater Cluj, generating "an evening's worth of hearty laughter" on its premiere there. According to writer Traian T. Lalescu, it was "merely a farce", but characters appeared as "more viable than the protagonists of foreign farces". In summer 1935, Izbânda Garden hosted performances of Domnul de la ora 5 ("Mr. Five o'Clock"), adapted by Herz from a revue by Pierre Weber, and with Velimir Maximilian as a lead.

In late 1935, Herz was living at his own villa in Floreasca, but had left it unplastered, and was considering selling it, because of his financial woes; he confessed his troubles to Rampa reporter Jack Berariu, noting that he was working on two lighthearted comedies, Mincinoasa ("Lady Liar") and Oul lui Columb ("Egg of Columbus"). His last known play was Unchiul lui Noață ("Noață's Uncle"), produced by Alexandrescu for Teatrul Vesel in early 1936, with Grigore Vasiliu Birlic as Noață, the unassuming and ridiculous, but calculated and intelligent, property caretaker. V. Timuș of Rampa celebrated it as an "honest comedy" marking the return of Herz, "as spiritual as ever, as lively as ever". He noted that the lead role fit Vasiliu Birlic "like a glove". The text was lambasted by Ion Dimitrescu of Curentul for being "very rudimentary", in particular for its dwelling on misogynistic observations and puns. Dimitrescu expressed a wish that Herz would experience a "quick jolting out of his theatrical descent."

Herz and Alexandrescu also worked on another comedy, Musafirii lui Răstocea ("Răstocea's Guests"), which was left unfinished. This stage of his life came to an abrupt end when Herz's diabetes, which had been diagnosed in Craiova, was made worse by his return to writing and financial distress, both of which consumed him. Kuki reportedly administered his insulin shots. Herz spoke to Berariu about his belief that he would not live to see his children growing up, and also expressed regrets about not having stayed in military school, since an army career "would have prevented my nationality and my religion from being a topic of discussion." He died on the evening of March 9, 1936, after helping his daughter with homework. His reported cause of death was an episode of hemoptysis. He was buried on March 12, sharing a tomb with his mother on Plot 26 of Bellu cemetery, Bucharest.

Legacy
Craiova's theater was closed down "for budgetary reasons" that same year. According to Massoff, Herz's death was "unexpected and premature", just as "the Baron" seemed to be making a recovery. In 1940, Eftimiu wrote that Herz "passed on at an age when people shouldn't die. [...] People should die before forty—or after sixty." This meant that "the universe has deprived A. de Herz of his revenge [...] at a moment when he was just resuming his efforts". As noted by his widow, he had left four plays unfinished, including Oul lui Columb, which was already reserved by Bulandra Theater. In 1937, Marconi Garden of Bucharest continued to run works by Herz, including Fustele de la minister ("Ministry Skirts"), an adaptation from Weber and Maurice Hennequin. It starred Vasiliu Birlic, Jules Cazaban, Beate Fredanov, and Mișu Fotino.

Herz's death had left his family destitute, his townhouse and personal library having been repossessed by creditors. The books (including autographed volumes by Rebreanu, Slavici, Dimitrie Anghel, I. Dragoslav, Cincinat Pavelescu, Mihail Sadoveanu, and Panait Istrati) were auctioned off in April 1936, alongside some of Herz's own manuscripts; buyers included literary scholar Șerban Cioculescu. In May 1937, Claudia Millian published a plea for public donations, including from the SSR, to help Herz's homeless widow and orphans. In January 1939, reporter Radu A. Sterescu noted that Herz had been inexplicably forgotten by managers and producers, even though "his plays were admirable 'recipes'." He argued that this indifference was owed to his "German origin", as well as to the "saddening posthumous revenge" of his influential enemies. By then, controversy had erupted in Ținutul Timiș, where the local branch of ASTRA had agreed to sponsor productions of Herz's plays. A staff chronicler at Înnoirea newspaper viewed the decision as morally incompatible with ASTRA's mission.

Later in 1939, during Romania's antisemitic turn, Gyr insisted that Herz did not "carry in his blood the despicable imprint of the Semitic race", being "the son of a German baron"; Herz's "aggressive dialectics" and "cynical mood", he argued, "covered up his warm and vibrant soul". Herz's original plays were again performed during World War II: in November 1939, the municipal theater of Focșani produced Păianjenul, specifically as a tribute to its deceased author. In the early 1940s, Alexandrescu produced a new version of Mărgeluș for Comoedia Theater and Omul de zăpadă was taken up by the National Theater Cluj, on location in Timișoara. Romeo Lăzărescu's company, Teatrul Măscărici, also took up Încurcă lume in 1942. This version marked the stage debut of actress Olly Eftimiu.

In October 1946, France's Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens featured a production of Încurcă lume. Reviewing a Bucharest reprisal of Omul de zăpadă in early 1947, Pătrașcu Ion Sârbul commented that Herz's reputation in local drama was unshakeable, his style a "well-conceived balance" between Ion Luca Caragiale's "mordant wit" and Vasile Alecsandri's "parental and naive caresses". Productions of Herz's plays were put on hold during the first stages of the Romanian communist regime, with theatrologist Simion Alterescu noting that his overall work was in the "bourgeois, [...] schematic, diversionary drama"; by 1958, his romances were retaken on Romanian radio stations, though, as noted at the time by journalist G. Cristobald, the musical producers failed to credit him. His work for the stage was again considered in the late 1960s. In a 1966 colloquium, actor Niki Atanasiu observed that amateur "people's theaters" were keen on staging Omul de zăpadă, "in which I myself appeared as a youth, but which I cannot imagine will contribute anything towards enlightening the masses." The following year, chronicler Ilina Grigorovici urged theater managers to resume production of Romanian plays, adding: "Evidently we do not recommend that A. de Hertz should be added to the program". In a 1973 interview, Craiova-based dramatist Ion Dezideriu Sîrbu argued that Herz's plays were "entirely buried into irrelevancy".

Lilly de Herz died the same year; on Adolf's commemoration in March 1976, both his children were still alive. In that commemorative context, Herz's writer friend Mircea Ștefănescu published an article evoking Herz mainly as an actor: "And what an actor! Theatrically uninhibited in that charming way, dynamic to the point of making the show revolve around him as a living focus." Also in 1976, the revived Craiova National Theater included Omul de zăpadă, directed by Valentina Balogh, in its season's program. In his review of this "pleasant surprise", critic Ionuț Niculescu noted: "Assimilated with minor early-century dramaturgy, with his special interest in modern comedy, Herz seemed to only present interest for theatrical historians." In 1978, Sandu Anastasescu and Harry Eliad rewrote Încurcă lume for an acclaimed production at the Municipal Theater in Ploiești. In March 1983, the Romanian Television premiered its version of Încurcă lume, with Mihai Fotino and Radu Beligan in the lead roles. It was welcomed as a "pleasant" rediscovery by the staff writers at Luceafărul.

Notes

References

1887 births
1936 deaths
20th-century Romanian poets
20th-century Romanian dramatists and playwrights
20th-century short story writers
20th-century translators
20th-century Romanian male actors
Romanian dramatists and playwrights
Romanian male poets
Sonneteers
Romanian songwriters
Operetta librettists
Musical theatre librettists
Romanian humorists
Romanian male short story writers
Romanian short story writers
Romanian translators
French–Romanian translators
Translators of William Shakespeare
Romanian theatre critics
Romanian columnists
Romanian propagandists
Romanian magazine editors
Romanian magazine founders
Romanian newspaper editors
Romanian newspaper founders
Adevărul editors
Adevărul writers
Gândirea
Neoclassical writers
Romanian theatre managers and producers
Romanian male stage actors
Romanian comedians
Romanian mimes
Romanian radio personalities
Romanian book and manuscript collectors
Writers from Bucharest
Austrian nobility
Nobility from Bucharest
Romanian people of Austrian-Jewish descent
Romanian Roman Catholics
Gheorghe Lazăr National College (Bucharest) alumni
University of Bucharest alumni
Romanian civil servants
Romanian philanthropists
People involved in plagiarism controversies
Romanian people of World War I
Romanian prisoners and detainees
Prisoners and detainees of Romania
Deaths from lung disease
Burials at Bellu Cemetery

A. de Herz


Jamdani () is a fine muslin textile (figured with different patterns) produced for centuries in South Rupshi of Narayanganj district in Bangladesh on the bank of Shitalakhwa river.

The historic production of jamdani was patronized by imperial warrants of the Mughal emperors. Under British colonialism, the Bengali jamdani and muslin industries rapidly declined due to colonial import policies favoring industrially manufactured textiles. In more recent years, the production of jamdani has witnessed a revival in Bangladesh. Jamdani is typically woven using a mixture of cotton and gold thread.

In 2013, the traditional art of weaving jamdani was declared a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

In 2016, Bangladesh received geographical indication (GI) status for Jamdani Sari.

Etymology
Jamdani was originally known as Dhakai (Daccai) named after the city of Dhaka (Dacca), one of many ancient textile weaving centers in Bengal region. Under the Mughal Empire the Persian term Jamdani came to be in popular use, since it was the court language of the Mughals. Jamdanis are popularly known as Dhakai Jamdani or simply Dhakai. The earliest mention of jamdani and its development as an industry is found into Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Origin
An early reference to Indian origins of muslin is found in the book of Periplus of the Erythraean Sea and in the accounts of Arab, Chinese and Italian travelers and traders.

Jamdani is a hand loom woven fabric made of cotton, which was historically referred to as muslin. The Jamdani weaving tradition is of Bengali origin. It is one of the most time and labor-intensive forms of hand loom weaving, and is considered one of the finest varieties of muslin, and the most artistic textile of Bangladeshi weavers. Traditionally woven around Dhaka and created on the loom brocade, jamdani is rich in motifs. In the late 19th
century, T. N. Mukharji referred to this fabric as jamdani muslin.

Weave

Whether figured or flowered, jamdani is a woven fabric in cotton. This is a supplementary weft technique of weaving, where the artistic motifs are produced by a non-structural weft, in addition to the standard weft that holds the warp threads together. The standard weft creates a fine, sheer fabric while the supplementary weft with thicker threads adds the intricate patterns to it. Each supplementary weft motif is added separately by hand by interlacing the weft threads into the warp with fine bamboo sticks using individual spools of thread. The result is a complex mix of different patterns that appear to float on a shimmering surface. The pattern is not sketched or outlined on the fabric, but is drawn on a graph paper and placed underneath the warp. Jamdani is a fine muslin cloth on which decorative motifs are woven on the loom, typically in grey and white. Often a mixture of cotton and gold thread was used.

Varieties of jamdani work
Though mostly used for saris, Jamdani is also used for scarves and handkerchiefs. Jamdani is believed to be a fusion of the ancient cloth-making techniques of Bengal (possibly 2,000 years old) with the muslins produced by Bengali Muslims since the 14th century. Jamdani is the most expensive product of Dhaka looms since it requires the most lengthy and dedicated work.

Jamdani patterns are mostly of geometric, plant, and floral designs and are said to have originated thousands of years ago. Due to the exquisite painstaking methodology required, only aristocrats and royal families were able to afford such luxuries.

Changes with time
We do not know exactly when jamdani came to be adorned with floral patterns of the loom. It is, however, certain that in the Mughal period, most likely during the reign of either Emperor Akbar (1556–1605) or Emperor Jahangir (1605–1627), the figured or flowered muslin came to be known as the jamdani. John Forbes Watson in his work titled Textile Manufactures and Costumes of the people of India holds that the figured muslins, because of their complicated designs, were always considered the most expensive productions of the Dhaka looms.
The price for a piece was recorded as 56 Livre in 1776.

Decline and fall
From the middle of the 19th century, there was a gradual decline in the jamdani industry. A number of factors contributed to this decline. The subsequent import of lower quality, but cheaper yarn from Europe, started the decline. Most importantly, the decline of Mughal power in India, deprived the producers of jamdani of their most influential patrons. Villages like Madhurapur and Jangalbari, (both in the Kishoreganj district), once famous for the jamdani industry went into gradual oblivion.

Current problems

According to a national daily, a senior taanti or "ostad" earns about Tk 2,500 to Tk 3,000 per month. Junior weavers get much less, around Tk 1,600. As a result, many weavers do not want their children to come to the profession, preferring the more lucrative garments industry.

The government and other organizations are trying to revive the old glory of Dhakai Jamdani. In a bid to avoid the middlemen, they are trying to establish direct contact with the weavers. A Jamdani Palli has been established near Dhaka. Jamdani, one of the oldest forms of cottage industry in Bangladesh, was once a dying trade. Organizations like Radiant Institute of Design, Shanto Mariam University of creative technology, National Institute of Design, and others are helping designers create new Jamdani designs.

Jamdani is a symbol of aristocracy. The demand for quality Jamdani Sarees has increased greatly over the years.

Geographical indication
In 2016, Bangladesh received geographical indication (GI) status for Jamdani Sari. It was the first GI status given to any Bangladeshi product.

Recent attempts at revival

Whilst the art of jamdani is on the decline due to current problems such as competition with cheaper and more lucrative clothing as well as lack of suitable remuneration for weavers. However, there have been a few encouraging signs in recent times.

For instance, the Indian government awarded master weaver of Jamdani saris, Biren Kumar Basak from West Bengal with the Padma Shri award, which is the fourth highest civilian award in the country. Biren Kumar Basak also hailed the award and recognition of his work by Prime Minister Modi as a good sign for the future of the Jamdani community in Bengal.

Exhibitions such as the Jamdani Festival of Wearable Art curated by Chandra Shekhar Shaha was held in July 2023 in Bangladesh in collaboration with the National Crafts Council of Bangladesh to illustrate sustainably produced and hand-woven jamdani saris.

Moreover, brands such as TARINA by designer Tarina Sen are attempting to preserve the traditional crafts of jamdani by creating contemporary clothes. Labels such as TARINA are striving to help jamdani weavers in West Bengal and Odisha by reaching new markets, consisting of the younger generation, by creating attractive clothes that presents a harmony of modern and traditional designs.

Images

References

External links
Jamdani's Struggle to Survive
Jamdani on Banglapedia
Bangladesh Handloom Board Official Website

Bangladeshi clothing
Woven fabrics
Saris
Bangladeshi handicrafts
Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
Textile arts of Bangladesh

Jamdani


The Mount Pleasant Radio Observatory is a radio astronomy based observatory owned and operated by  University of Tasmania, located 20 km east of Hobart in Cambridge, Tasmania.  It is home to three radio astronomy antennas and the Grote Reber Museum.

Equipment

The observatory has two active radio telescopes: the Mount Pleasant 26 m antenna and a 12 m AuScope VLBI Antenna.  The Observatory is linked to the University of Tasmania's Hobart campus with a 25 km fibre optic cable, installed in 2007.

The 14 m Vela telescope that was constructed in 1981 as a dedicated instrument for observation of the Vela Pulsar has been decommissioned since 2006 and is in the process of being refurbished. The telescope used to track the pulsar 18 hours a day, nearly continuously for over 20 years.

The 26 m Radio dish came from the  Orroral Valley Tracking Station, ACT, where it was used as a satellite tracker within the Spacecraft Tracking and Data Acquisition Network and then for support to NASA crewed missions. The 26 m telescope is used in Australia's very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) network.

Other Telescopes
The University of Tasmania also operates three other radio astronomy antennas: the 30 m Ceduna Radio Observatory (SA) and two additional AuScope 12 m antennas at Katherine (NT) and Yaragadee (WA).

The University also owns and operates the Bisdee Tier Optical Astronomy Observatory. The Canopus Hill Observatory is closed.

Grote Reber Museum
There is also a museum on site dedicated to the life and works of Grote Reber. It contains some of his ashes and a state of the art 3D theatre. It also discusses the major role Tasmania plays in radiophysics The museum hosts about 5000 visitors annually and runs several Open Days each year. University of Tasmania students also act as tour guides as part of their studies.

See also
 List of radio telescopes

References

External links
University of Tasmania website on observatory
Grote Reber Museum

Astronomical observatories in Tasmania
University of Tasmania
Museums in Tasmania
Science museums in Australia
Biographical museums in Australia
Radio observatories

Mount Pleasant Radio Observatory


Glenda Elizabeth Gilmore is an American historian of the American South at Yale University. She is the author of many publications, including "These United States: A Nation in the Making 1890 to Present" (2015), "Gender and Jim Crow: Women and the Politics of White Supremacy in North Carolina, 1896-1920" (1996), and "Defying Dixie: The Radical Roots of Civil Rights, 1919-1950" (2008).

Life
An eighth-generation North Carolinian, Gilmore received her B.A. in Psychology from Wake Forest University. She taught high school history in South Carolina for several years and held managerial positions in private industry before returning to school to graduate from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte with an M.A., and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Ph.D.  She studied at the Radcliffe Institute at Harvard University.

She taught history at Queens University of Charlotte in Charlotte, North Carolina before joining Yale University as an assistant professor in 1994, full professor of history in 1998, and Peter V. & C. Vann Woodward Professor of History in 2001.  She is also a member of the University's African American studies and American studies departments and currently serves as the Acting Chair of the African American Studies Department.  Her areas of expertise include: race relations, women's and African-American history, the history of social reform, American religious activism, North Carolina history, the history of prostitution and the political, social and cultural history of the United States in the late 19th and 20th centuries.

In 2015 she published, with Thomas Sugrue, a synthetic reinterpretation of society and politics in twentieth century America.

She is married to noted Cambodian genocide scholar Ben Kiernan.

Awards
 Lerner-Scott Prize from the Organization of American Historians
 Frederick Jackson Turner Award from the Organization of American Historians for the best first book by an author
 James A. Rawley Prize from the Organization of American Historians for the best book on the history of race relations in the United States (1997)
 Julia Cherry Spruill Prize from the Southern Association for Women Historians
 Yale Heyman Prize for junior faculty

Works
 Gender and Jim Crow: Women and the Politics of White Supremacy in North Carolina, 1896-1920. 1996
 Defying Dixie: The Radical Roots of Civil Rights, 1919-1950  W. W. Norton & Company,  January 2008.
 "Am I a 'Screwball,' or am I a Pioneer?": Pauli's Murray's Civil Rights Movement in Walter Isaacson (ed.) Profiles in Leadership (W. W. Norton & Company, 2011)

References

External links
"Meet Glenda Gilmore", WUNC

Yale University faculty
21st-century American historians
Historians of the Southern United States
Wake Forest University alumni
University of North Carolina at Charlotte alumni
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
Writers from Greensboro, North Carolina
Queens University of Charlotte faculty
American women historians
21st-century American women writers

Glenda Gilmore


Metalloprotein is a generic term for a protein that contains a metal ion cofactor. A large proportion of all proteins are part of this category. For instance, at least 1000 human proteins (out of ~20,000) contain zinc-binding protein domains although there may be up to 3000 human zinc metalloproteins.

Abundance
It is estimated that approximately half of all proteins contain a metal. In another estimate, about one quarter to one third of all proteins are proposed to require metals to carry out their functions. Thus, metalloproteins have many different functions in cells, such as storage and transport of proteins, enzymes and signal transduction proteins, or infectious diseases. The abundance of metal binding proteins may be inherent to the amino acids that proteins use, as even artificial proteins without evolutionary history will readily bind metals.

Most metals in the human body are bound to proteins. For instance, the relatively high concentration of iron in the human body is mostly due to the iron in hemoglobin.

Coordination chemistry principles
In metalloproteins, metal ions are usually coordinated by nitrogen, oxygen or sulfur centers belonging to amino acid residues of the protein. These donor groups are often provided by side-chains on the amino acid residues. Especially important are the imidazole substituent in histidine residues, thiolate substituents in cysteine residues, and carboxylate groups provided by aspartate. Given the diversity of the metalloproteome, virtually all amino acid residues have been shown to bind metal centers. The peptide backbone also provides donor groups; these include deprotonated amides and the amide carbonyl oxygen centers. Lead(II) binding in natural and artificial proteins has been reviewed.

In addition to donor groups that are provided by amino acid residues, many organic cofactors function as ligands. Perhaps most famous are the tetradentate N4 macrocyclic ligands incorporated into the heme protein. Inorganic ligands such as sulfide and oxide are also common.

Storage and transport metalloproteins
These are the second stage product of protein hydrolysis obtained by treatment with slightly stronger acids and alkalies.

Oxygen carriers
Hemoglobin, which is the principal oxygen-carrier in humans, has four subunits in which the iron(II) ion is coordinated by the planar macrocyclic ligand protoporphyrin IX (PIX) and the imidazole nitrogen atom of a histidine residue. The sixth coordination site contains a water molecule or a dioxygen molecule. By contrast the protein myoglobin, found in muscle cells, has only one such unit. The active site is located in a hydrophobic pocket. This is important as without it the iron(II) would be irreversibly oxidized to iron(III). The equilibrium constant for the formation of HbO2 is such that oxygen is taken up or released depending on the partial pressure of oxygen in the lungs or in muscle. In hemoglobin the four subunits show a cooperativity effect that allows for easy oxygen transfer from hemoglobin to myoglobin.

In both hemoglobin and myoglobin it is sometimes incorrectly stated that the oxygenated species contains iron(III). It is now known that the diamagnetic nature of these species is because the iron(II) atom is in the low-spin state. In oxyhemoglobin the iron atom is located in the plane of the porphyrin ring, but in the paramagnetic deoxyhemoglobin the iron atom lies above the plane of the ring. This change in spin state is a cooperative effect due to the higher crystal field splitting and smaller ionic radius of Fe2+ in the oxyhemoglobin moiety.

Hemerythrin is another iron-containing oxygen carrier. The oxygen binding site is a binuclear iron center. The iron atoms are coordinated to the protein through the carboxylate side chains of a glutamate and aspartate and five histidine residues. The uptake of O2 by hemerythrin is accompanied by two-electron oxidation of the reduced binuclear center to produce bound peroxide (OOH−). The mechanism of oxygen uptake and release have been worked out in detail.

Hemocyanins carry oxygen in the blood of most mollusks, and some arthropods such as the horseshoe crab. They are second only to hemoglobin in biological popularity of use in oxygen transport. On oxygenation the two copper(I) atoms at the active site are oxidized to copper(II) and the dioxygen molecules are reduced to peroxide, .

Chlorocruorin (as the larger carrier erythrocruorin) is an oxygen-binding hemeprotein present in the blood plasma of many annelids, particularly certain marine polychaetes.

Cytochromes

Oxidation and reduction reactions are not common in organic chemistry as few organic molecules can act as oxidizing or reducing agents. Iron(II), on the other hand, can easily be oxidized to iron(III). This functionality is used in cytochromes, which function as electron-transfer vectors. The presence of the metal ion allows metalloenzymes to perform functions such as redox reactions that cannot easily be performed by the limited set of functional groups found in amino acids. The iron atom in most cytochromes is contained in a heme group. The differences between those cytochromes lies in the different side-chains. For instance cytochrome a has a heme a prosthetic group and cytochrome b has a heme b prosthetic group. These differences result in different Fe2+/Fe3+ redox potentials such that various cytochromes are involved in the mitochondrial electron transport chain.

Cytochrome P450 enzymes perform the function of inserting an oxygen atom into a C−H bond, an oxidation reaction.

Rubredoxin

Rubredoxin is an electron-carrier found in sulfur-metabolizing bacteria and archaea. The active site contains an iron ion coordinated by the sulfur atoms of four cysteine residues forming an almost regular tetrahedron. Rubredoxins perform one-electron transfer processes. The oxidation state of the iron atom changes between the +2 and +3 states. In both oxidation states the metal is high spin, which helps to minimize structural changes.

Plastocyanin

Plastocyanin is one of the family of blue copper proteins that are involved in electron transfer reactions. The copper-binding site is described as distorted trigonal pyramidal. The trigonal plane of the pyramidal base is composed of two nitrogen atoms (N1 and N2) from separate histidines and a sulfur (S1) from a cysteine. Sulfur (S2) from an axial methionine forms the apex. The distortion occurs in the bond lengths between the copper and sulfur ligands. The Cu−S1 contact is shorter (207 pm) than Cu−S2 (282 pm).
The elongated Cu−S2 bonding destabilizes the Cu(II) form and increases the redox potential of the protein. The blue color (597 nm peak absorption) is due to the Cu−S1 bond where S(pπ) to Cu(dx2−y2) charge transfer occurs.

In the reduced form of plastocyanin, His-87 will become protonated with a pKa of 4.4. Protonation prevents it acting as a ligand and the copper site geometry becomes trigonal planar.

Metal-ion storage and transfer

Iron

Iron is stored as iron(III) in ferritin. The exact nature of the binding site has not yet been determined. The iron appears to be present as a hydrolysis product such as FeO(OH). Iron is transported by transferrin whose binding site consists of two tyrosines, one aspartic acid and one histidine. The human body has no mechanism for iron excretion. This can lead to iron overload problems in patients treated with blood transfusions, as, for instance, with β-thalassemia.  Iron is actually excreted in urine and is also concentrated in bile which is excreted in feces.

Copper

Ceruloplasmin is the major copper-carrying protein in the blood. Ceruloplasmin exhibits oxidase activity, which is associated with possible oxidation of Fe(II) into Fe(III), therefore assisting in its transport in the blood plasma in association with transferrin, which can carry iron only in the Fe(III) state.

Calcium

Osteopontin is involved in mineralization in the extracellular matrices of bones and teeth.

Metalloenzymes
Metalloenzymes all have one feature in common, namely that the metal ion is bound to the protein with one labile coordination site. As with all enzymes, the shape of the active site is crucial. The metal ion is usually located in a pocket whose shape fits the substrate. The metal ion catalyzes reactions that are difficult to achieve in organic chemistry.

Carbonic anhydrase

In aqueous solution, carbon dioxide forms carbonic acid
CO2 + H2O  H2CO3
This reaction is very slow in the absence of a catalyst, but quite fast in the presence of the hydroxide ion
CO2 + OH−
A reaction similar to this is almost instantaneous with carbonic anhydrase. The structure of the active site in carbonic anhydrases is well known from a number of crystal structures. It consists of a zinc ion coordinated by three imidazole nitrogen atoms from three histidine units. The fourth coordination site is occupied by a water molecule. The coordination sphere of the zinc ion is approximately tetrahedral. The positively-charged zinc ion polarizes the coordinated water molecule, and nucleophilic attack by the negatively-charged hydroxide portion on carbon dioxide proceeds rapidly. The catalytic cycle produces the bicarbonate ion and the hydrogen ion as the equilibrium
H2CO3   + H+
favours dissociation of carbonic acid at biological pH values.

Vitamin B12-dependent enzymes
The cobalt-containing Vitamin B12 (also known as cobalamin) catalyzes the transfer of methyl (−CH3) groups between two molecules, which involves the breaking of C−C bonds, a process that is energetically expensive in organic reactions. The metal ion lowers the activation energy for the process by forming a transient Co−CH3 bond. The structure of the coenzyme was famously determined by Dorothy Hodgkin and co-workers, for which she received a Nobel Prize in Chemistry. It consists of a cobalt(II) ion coordinated to four nitrogen atoms of a corrin ring and a fifth nitrogen atom from an imidazole group. In the resting state there is a Co−C sigma bond with the 5′ carbon atom of adenosine. This is a naturally occurring organometallic compound, which explains its function in trans-methylation reactions, such as the reaction carried out by methionine synthase.

Nitrogenase (nitrogen fixation)

The fixation of atmospheric nitrogen is an energy-intensive process, as it involves breaking the very stable triple bond between the nitrogen atoms. The nitrogenases catalyze the process. One such enzyme occurs in Rhizobium bacteria. There are three components to its action: a molybdenum atom at the active site, iron–sulfur clusters that are involved in transporting the electrons needed to reduce the nitrogen, and an abundant energy source in the form of magnesium ATP. This last is provided by a mutualistic symbiosis between the bacteria and a host plant, often a legume. The reaction may be written symbolically as
N2 + 16 MgATP + 8 e− → 2 NH3 + 16 MgADP +16 Pi + H2
where Pi stands for inorganic phosphate. The precise structure of the active site has been difficult to determine. It appears to contain a MoFe7S8 cluster that is able to bind the dinitrogen molecule and, presumably, enable the reduction process to begin. The electrons are transported by the associated "P" cluster, which contains two cubical Fe4S4 clusters joined by sulfur bridges.

Superoxide dismutase

The superoxide ion,  is generated in biological systems by reduction of molecular oxygen. It has an unpaired electron, so it behaves as a free radical. It is a powerful oxidizing agent. These properties render the superoxide ion very toxic and are deployed to advantage by phagocytes to kill invading microorganisms. Otherwise, the superoxide ion must be destroyed before it does unwanted damage in a cell. The superoxide dismutase enzymes perform this function very efficiently.

The formal oxidation state of the oxygen atoms is −. In solutions at neutral pH, the superoxide ion disproportionates to molecular oxygen and hydrogen peroxide.
2  + 2 H+ → O2 + H2O2
In biology this type of reaction is called a dismutation reaction. It involves both oxidation and reduction of superoxide ions. The superoxide dismutase (SOD) group of enzymes increase the rate of reaction to near the diffusion-limited rate. The key to the action of these enzymes is a metal ion with variable oxidation state that can act either as an oxidizing agent or as a reducing agent.
Oxidation: M(n+1)+ +  → Mn+ + O2
Reduction: Mn+ +  + 2 H+ → M(n+1)+ + H2O2.

In human SOD, the active metal is copper, as Cu(II) or Cu(I), coordinated tetrahedrally by four histidine residues. This enzyme also contains zinc ions for stabilization and is activated by copper chaperone for superoxide dismutase (CCS). Other isozymes may contain iron, manganese or nickel. The activity of Ni-SOD  involves nickel(III), an unusual oxidation state for this element. The active site nickel geometry cycles from square planar Ni(II), with thiolate (Cys2 and Cys6) and backbone nitrogen (His1 and Cys2) ligands, to square pyramidal Ni(III) with an added axial His1 side chain ligand.

Chlorophyll-containing proteins

Chlorophyll plays a crucial role in photosynthesis. It contains a magnesium enclosed in a chlorin ring. However, the magnesium ion is not directly involved in the photosynthetic function and can be replaced by other divalent ions with little loss of activity. Rather, the photon is absorbed by the chlorin ring, whose electronic structure is well-adapted for this purpose.

Initially, the absorption of a photon causes an electron to be excited into a singlet state of the Q band. The excited state undergoes an intersystem crossing from the singlet state to a triplet state in which there are two electrons with parallel spin. This species is, in effect, a free radical, and is very reactive and allows an electron to be transferred to acceptors that are adjacent to the chlorophyll in the chloroplast. In the process chlorophyll is oxidized. Later in the photosynthetic cycle, chlorophyll is reduced back again. This reduction ultimately draws electrons from water, yielding molecular oxygen as a final oxidation product.

Hydrogenase

Hydrogenases are subclassified into three different types based on the active site metal content: iron–iron hydrogenase, nickel–iron hydrogenase, and iron hydrogenase.
All hydrogenases catalyze reversible H2 uptake, but while the [FeFe] and [NiFe] hydrogenases are true redox catalysts, driving H2 oxidation and H+ reduction
H2  2 H+ + 2 e−
the [Fe] hydrogenases catalyze the reversible heterolytic cleavage of H2.
H2  H+ + H−

Ribozyme and deoxyribozyme
Since discovery of ribozymes by Thomas Cech and Sidney Altman in the early 1980s, ribozymes have been shown to be a distinct class of metalloenzymes. Many ribozymes require metal ions in their active sites for chemical catalysis; hence they are called metalloenzymes. Additionally, metal ions are essential for structural stabilization of ribozymes. Group I intron is the most studied ribozyme which has three metals participating in catalysis. Other known ribozymes include group II intron, RNase P, and several small viral ribozymes (such as hammerhead, hairpin, HDV, and VS) and the large subunit of ribosomes. Several classes of ribozymes have been described.

Deoxyribozymes, also called DNAzymes or catalytic DNA, are artificial DNA-based catalysts that were first produced in 1994. Almost all DNAzymes require metal ions. Although ribozymes mostly catalyze cleavage of RNA substrates, a variety of reactions can be catalyzed by DNAzymes including RNA/DNA cleavage, RNA/DNA ligation, amino acid phosphorylation and dephosphorylation, and carbon–carbon bond formation. Yet, DNAzymes that catalyze RNA cleavage reaction are the most extensively explored ones. 10-23 DNAzyme, discovered in 1997, is one of the most studied catalytic DNAs with clinical applications as a therapeutic agent. Several metal-specific DNAzymes have been reported including the GR-5 DNAzyme (lead-specific), the CA1-3 DNAzymes (copper-specific), the 39E DNAzyme (uranyl-specific) and the NaA43 DNAzyme (sodium-specific).

Signal-transduction metalloproteins

Calmodulin

Calmodulin is an example of a signal-transduction protein. It is a small protein that contains four EF-hand motifs, each of which is able to bind a Ca2+ ion.

In an EF-hand loop protein domain, the calcium ion is coordinated in a pentagonal bipyramidal configuration. Six glutamic acid and aspartic acid residues involved in the binding are in positions 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 of the polypeptide chain. At position 12, there is a glutamate or aspartate ligand that behaves as a (bidentate ligand), providing two oxygen atoms. The ninth residue in the loop is necessarily glycine due to the conformational requirements of the backbone. The coordination sphere of the calcium ion contains only carboxylate oxygen atoms and no nitrogen atoms. This is consistent with the hard nature of the calcium ion.

The protein has two approximately symmetrical domains, separated by a flexible "hinge" region. Binding of calcium causes a conformational change to occur in the protein. Calmodulin participates in an intracellular signaling system by acting as a diffusible second messenger to the initial stimuli.

Troponin
In both cardiac and skeletal muscles, muscular force production is controlled primarily by changes in the intracellular calcium concentration. In general, when calcium rises, the muscles contract and, when calcium falls, the muscles relax. Troponin, along with actin and tropomyosin, is the protein complex to which calcium binds to trigger the production of muscular force.

Transcription factors

Many transcription factors contain a structure known as a zinc finger, this is a structural module where a region of protein folds around a zinc ion. The zinc does not directly contact the DNA that these proteins bind to. Instead, the cofactor is essential for the stability of the tightly folded protein chain. In these proteins, the zinc ion is usually coordinated by pairs of cysteine and histidine side-chains.

Other metalloenzymes
There are two types of carbon monoxide dehydrogenase: one contains iron and molybdenum, the other contains iron and nickel. Parallels and differences in catalytic strategies have been reviewed.

Pb2+ (lead) can replace Ca2+ (calcium) as, for example, with calmodulin or Zn2+ (zinc) as with metallocarboxypeptidases

Some other metalloenzymes are given in the following table, according to the metal involved.

See also

References

External links

 Catherine Drennan's Seminar: Snapshots of Metalloproteins

Medicinal inorganic chemistry
Bioinorganic chemistry

Metalloprotein


Justin I (; ;  450 – 1 August 527), also called Justin the Thracian (; ), was Eastern Roman emperor from 518 to 527. Born to a peasant family, he rose through the ranks of the army to become commander of the imperial guard and when Emperor Anastasius died, he out-maneouvered his rivals and was elected as his successor, in spite of being around 68 years old. His reign is significant for the founding of the Justinian dynasty that included his eminent nephew, Justinian I, and three succeeding emperors. His consort was Empress Euphemia.

He was noted for his strongly orthodox Christian views. This facilitated the ending of the Acacian schism between the churches of Rome and Constantinople, resulting in good relations between Justin and the papacy. Throughout his reign, he stressed the religious nature of his office and passed edicts against various Christian groups seen at the time as non-Orthodox. In foreign affairs, he used religion as an instrument of state. He endeavoured to cultivate client states on the borders of the Empire, and avoided any significant warfare until late in his reign.

Early career
Justin was a peasant and possibly a swineherd by occupation, from the region of Dardania, part of the Prefecture of Illyricum.  He was born in the hamlet Baderiana near Scupi (modern Skopje, North Macedonia). He was of Thraco-Roman or Illyro-Roman descent, spoke Latin and only rudimentary Greek, and bore, like his companions and members of his family (Zimarchus, Dityvistus, Boraides, Bigleniza, Sabbatius, etc.), a Thracian name. His sister Vigilantia (born ) married Sabbatius and had two children: the future emperor Petrus Sabbatius Justinianus (born 483) and Vigilantia (born  490). The younger Vigilantia married Dulcissimus (or Dulcidio) and had at least three children: the future emperor Justin II (born  520); the future general Marcellus; and Praejecta (born  520), who married the senator Areobindus.

As a young man, he and two companions left Dardania in order to escape the poverty of the region. Taking refuge in Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, they possessed nothing more than the ragged clothes on their backs and a sack of bread among them. Illiterate at the time of his arrival there, Justin joined the newly formed palace guard, the excubitors. He served in various positions, campaigning against the Isaurians and the Sassanian Persians and was noticed for his bravery. Because of his ability he was successively appointed a tribune, a comes, a senator and, under the Emperor Anastasius I, the influential position of comes excubitorum, commander of the palace guard. During this period he married Lupicina; no surviving children are recorded from this marriage. According to contemporary historian Procopius, Lupicina was a barbarian slave who had been Justin's concubine before their marriage.

Succession
During the night of 8–9 July 518, Anastasius died and his silentarii, a senior servant, summoned Justin and Celer to his deathbed. Celer was the magister officiorum (master of offices) and commander of the palace regiments of the Scholae Palatinae, a force of parade-ground display troops.  By morning the event had been announced throughout the capital, Constantinople. The high officials, including John of Cappadocia, the recently appointed Patriarch of Constantinople, were summoned to the Great Palace for the election of a new emperor. Meanwhile, the people gathered in the Hippodrome of Constantinople and awaited the proclamation of the name of the new emperor.

Anastasius had died childless but had a host of known relatives. This extensive family included several viable candidates for the throne. His brother Paulus had served as consul in 496. According to John Malalas, the praepositus sacri cubiculi (grand chamberlain), Amantius, had intended to have Theocritus, commander of an elite guard unit, elected to the throne. Theocritus and Amantius were relying on their control of a large military force and on buying the support of the other officials. Amantius was said to have given a substantial sum of money to Justin in order to buy his support. However, Justin controlled a smaller, but higher-quality group of soldiers, and used the money to buy support for himself. He was elected as the new emperor by the council and was proclaimed emperor in the Hippodrome as JustinI.

His wife became his empress consort under the name Euphemia. The name was probably chosen for reasons of respectability. The original Euphemia was a Christian martyr during the Diocletianic Persecution. She was a local saint of Chalcedon and the Council of Chalcedon (451) had taken place in a cathedral consecrated in her name. The selection of this name was an early indication that Justin and Lupicina were fervent Chalcedonian Christians. The population of the capital was supportive because of his strong Chalcedonian position on the fierce Christological debate of the time, in opposition to his predecessor's Monophysite leanings.

Emperor
Justin cemented his position by assassinating potential opponents, especially anti-Chalcedonian supporters of Anastasius. Both Amantius and Theocritus were executed nine days after the election. A career soldier with little knowledge of statecraft, Justin surrounded himself with trusted advisors. The most prominent of these was his nephew Flavius Petrus Sabbatius, whom he adopted as his son and invested with the name Iustinianus (Justinian).

Foreign affairs

Justin endeavoured to cultivate client states on the borders of the Empire, and avoided any significant warfare until late in his reign.

In 497 Anastasius had agreed with Theoderic, the Ostrogothic king of Italy, that he would rule Italy as Anastasius' deputy. This preserved Italy as nominally a part of the Empire, and neutralised a potentially dangerous neighbour. The arrangement suited Theodoric, as the Ostrogoths were a small aristocratic minority in Italy and the blessing of Constantinople helped reconcile the majority of the population to their rule. The feelings of the majority of Italians towards the Empire were mixed, as Anastasius was a Monophysite, while they were Chalcedonian. The Ostrogoths were Arians, and there was a tendency to consider both them and Monophysites as different breeds of heretics. With a strongly Chalcedonian emperor on the throne and the Italian-based papacy formally healing the rift the situation became less stable. Initially relations were friendly. Theodoric's son-in-law Eutharic was appointed consul in Constantinople in 519 and confirmed as Theodoric's heir. Eutharic died in 522, by which time Justin's policies, possibly influenced by Justinian, had become more anti-Arian. In 526 Theodoric died, leaving Eutharic's ten-year-old son Athalaric as heir to the throne.

A number of initiatives in respect of neighbouring states were founded on religious motives, and were usually developed by Justinian as he assumed more power towards the end of Justin's reign. Kaleb I of Aksum was probably encouraged to aggressively enlarge his empire by Justin. Contemporary chronicler John Malalas reported that Byzantine merchants were robbed and killed by the Jewish king of the south Arabian kingdom of Himyar, causing Kaleb to claim, "You have acted badly because you have killed merchants of the Christian Romans, which is a loss both to myself and my kingdom." Himyar was a client state of the Sassanian Persians, perennial enemies of the Byzantines. After Kaleb invaded Himyar around 523, Justin saw what is now Yemen pass from Sassanian control to the rule of an allied Christian state.

A number of small states on the borders of the Byzantine Empire and of Sassanian Persia were constant areas of contention between the two powers. The Georgian Principality of Iberia was in the Sassanian sphere of influence, but was Christian. Iberian bishops were sent to Antioch in the Byzantine Empire to be consecrated. Vakhtang I of Iberia was encouraged into war with the Sassanians. A "fervent Christian", his religious policies were "part and parcel of his larger strategic aims". After a lengthy struggle he was defeated and Iberia subjugated as a Sassanian province in 522.

Lazica was another border state; it was Christian, but in the Sassanid sphere. Its king, Tzath, wished to weaken Sassanid influence. In 521 or 522, he went to Constantinople to receive the insignia and royal robes of kingship from Justin's hand and to make his submission. He was also baptized as a Christian and married a Byzantine noblewoman, Valeriana. After having been confirmed in his kingdom by the Byzantine emperor, he returned to Lazica. Shortly after Justin's death, the Sassanids attempted to forcibly regain control, but were beaten off with assistance from Justin's successor.

In 524, the Sassanid emperor Kavadh I approached Justin asking that he formally adopt his youngest son, Khosrow, in order to secure his succession over his elder, but less favoured, brothers. Justin was agreeable, but, aware that, being childless himself, an adopted Persian son would have a claim on the Byzantine throne, offered adoption according to barbarian custom. The Persians were insulted and broke off all negotiations. In 526, the Byzantines raided Persian Armenia at Justinian's initiative. Justinian was increasingly taking control of policy from his aging uncle. The raiding parties were led by two of Justinian's up-and-coming military protégees, Sittas and Belisarius. The raids achieved little, other than to make a statement of intent.

Religion

Justin's reign is noteworthy for the resolution of the Acacian schism between the eastern and western branches of the Christian church. On ascending the throne Justin invited Pope Hormisdas to Constantinople for negotiations. Justinian sent a similar, but separate, invitation; said to have been closer to a summons. Hormisdas promptly despatched a delegation to Constantinople with instructions to state the orthodox position rather than to negotiate. Carrying out a policy developed by his nephew Justinian, the future emperor, Justin endorsed Rome's view on the question of the dual nature of Christ. On 28 March 519, in the cathedral of Constantinople in the presence of a great throng of people, a reluctant Patriarch John II accepted the formula of Pope Hormisdas and the end of the schism was concluded in a solemn ceremony.

For the first three years of his reign Justin persecuted the Monophysites, even serving soldiers. Thereafter he adopted a more pragmatic approach. In 523 Justin issued a strict edict against Arianism. Theodoric, King of the Ostrogoths and ruler of Italy, was an Arian himself, as were most Ostrogoths. He despatched Pope John I, Pope Hormisdas' successor, to Constantinople with firm instructions to obtain a policy reversal. John received an exceptionally warm welcome; the population of Constantinople applauded him, Justin laid on celebrations, prostrated himself at the Pope's feet and insisted on being re-crowned by the Pope's hands. John did not succeed in having the edict overturned, it seems that he did not press the matter. On his return to Italy an enraged Theodoric had him flung into prison, where he shortly died.

Again encouraged by Justinian, Justin increasingly expressed his position as emperor as a religious one. He claimed that "we have been elected to the empire by favour of the indivisible Trinity. Edicts were endorsed with "We continuously commit ourselves to all plans and actions in the name of Jesus Christ". In either 519 or 522 Justin abandoned the tradition of depicting pagan symbols on the reverse of his coins and seals. "During the reign, the characteristic identifying the reverse female figure as Victory, a high girdle below the breasts, was substituted by a tunic, therefore identifying the figure as an angel." This was a very public and widespread restatement of the Empire as a Christian state.

Later years

The later years of the reign of Justin were marked by increased tension with the Empire's neighbours, especially the Ostrogoths, and the Sassanids. In 526 Antioch was destroyed by an earthquake with an estimated 250,000 deaths. Justin arranged for sufficient money to be sent to the city for both immediate relief and to start reconstruction. The rebuilding of the Great Church and many other buildings was overseen by Ephraim, the comes Orientis, whose efforts saw him replace Euphrasius as the Chalcedonian Patriarch of Antioch. Many of the buildings erected after the earthquake were destroyed by another major earthquake in November 528, although there were far fewer casualties.

Procopius of Caesarea's Byzantine historia indicate that Justin I's mental faculties had begun to decline in his old age, going as far as to write "the Emperor, as an idiot and advanced in age, caused the laugh of the environment, and was also accused of delays in decisions and inability for his duties."

Justinian

During his uncle's reign Justinian successively occupied the positions of comes domesticorum, commander of the imperial guard, patrician, and, in 521, consul. In 525, Justin repealed a law that effectively prohibited a member of the senatorial class from marrying women from a lower class of society, including the theatre, which was considered scandalous at the time. This edict paved the way for Justinian to marry Theodora, a former mime actress, and eventually resulted in a major change to the old class distinctions at the Imperial court. She came to participate in Justinian's rule with very significant and powerful influence. Justin's health began to decline and he formally named Justinian as co-emperor and, on 1 April 527, as his successor. On 1 August Justin died and was succeeded by Justinian.

Legacy
The Cilician city of Caesarea was renamed Justinopolis in 525, in honour of Justin I. The name persisted until the 12th century when Thoros I, king of Armenian Cilicia, made it his capital and renamed it Anazarbus.

See also

 List of Byzantine emperors

Notes

Footnotes

References

 Continuité des élites à Byzance durant les siècles obscurs. Les princes caucasiens et l'Empire du VIe au IXe siècle, 2006

External links

 De Imperatoribus Romanis Evans, James Allan, "Justin I (518–527 A.D.)"
 Gibbon, Edward, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol. 4, chapter xl.
 Encyclopædia Britannica Justin I

Justinian dynasty
Imperial Roman consuls
450 births
527 deaths
Illyrian people
6th-century Byzantine emperors
6th-century Roman consuls
Comites excubitorum
Iberian War
People of the Roman–Sasanian Wars
Anastasian War
Illiterate monarchs
Illyrian emperors
Ancient farmers

Justin I


A drunkard's cloak was a type of pillory used in various jurisdictions to punish miscreants.

Description
The drunkard's cloak was actually a barrel, into the top of which a hole was made for the head to pass through.  Two smaller holes in the sides were cut for the arms.  Once suitably attired, the miscreant was paraded through the town, effectively pilloried.

Offences
Drunkenness was first made a civil offence in England by the Ale Houses Act 1551, or "An Act for Keepers of Ale-houses to be bound by Recognisances".  According to Ian Hornsey, the drunkard's cloak, sometimes called the "Newcastle cloak", became a common method of punishing recidivists,  especially during the Commonwealth of England.  From 1655 Oliver Cromwell suppressed many of England's alehouses, particularly in Royalist areas, and the authorities made regular use of the cloak.

Accounts
An early description of the drunkard's cloak appears in Ralph Gardiner's England's Grievance Discovered, first published in 1655. A John Willis claimed to have travelled to Newcastle and seen

Gardiner's account was reproduced in 1789 in John Brand's History of Newcastle-on-Tyne, accompanied by an early illustration of a drunkard's cloak.  A similar device was used in Holland; William Brereton noted its use in Delft in 1634, as did Samuel Pepys at The Hague in 1660. One author also recorded its existence in 1784 in Denmark, where it was called the "Spanish Mantle". These occurrences, along with the observations of one 19th-century historian, who noted that no mention of the punishment was made in any local documentation, including the Newcastle Corporation accounts, prompted William Andrews to suppose in 1899 that the Drunkard's Cloak was a custom imported from the Continent, and that its use in England was confined to Newcastle.

Further afield, instances of its use are found in the US; a paper described in 1862 how a "wretched delinquent was gratuitously framed in oak, his head being thrust through a hole cut in one end of a barrel, the other end of which had been removed, and the poor fellow loafed about in the most disconsolate manner, looking for all the world like a half-hatched chicken."

See also
 Bankruptcy barrel
 Schandmantel

Notes

Footnotes

Citations

Bibliography

American Civil War
History of Newcastle upon Tyne
Medieval instruments of torture
Physical restraint
Punishment

Drunkard's cloak


Tarnee Renee White, OAM (born 17 October 1981), also known by her married name Tarnee Southwell, is an Australian breaststroke swimmer who won a silver medal in the 4×100-metre medley relay at the 2000 Summer Olympics.

Coming from the Redcliffe club in Queensland, and coached by Ken Wood, White made her international debut at the 1999 Pan Pacific Championships in Sydney, where she came 7th in the 100-metre breaststroke.

At the Sydney Olympics the following year, White swum the breaststroke leg in the heats of the 4×100-metre medley relay, before being replaced by fellow Wood swimmer Leisel Jones in the team that trailed the United States home in the final.  She also competed in the 100-metre breaststroke, where she placed 7th.

White competed at the 2001 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, coming 9th in both the 50-metre and 100-metre breaststroke events.  She collected her first individual medal at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, when she won bronze in the 50-metre breaststroke.

White missed national selection from 2003 to 2005, when she lost the second breaststroke position to Brooke Hanson. However, she qualified for the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. She claimed another bronze, again in the 50-metre breaststroke. She came fourth in the 100-metre breaststroke, narrowly missing bronze.
White qualified for the 2008 Beijing Olympics with the second fastest time in the world. She went on to finish 6th in the final of the woman's 100 breastroke in Beijing and won a gold medal for her part in the 4 x 100 medley relay.
In 2009, she was awarded and Order of Australian for her contribution to sport.

She was an Australian Institute of Sport scholarship holder.

In 2008, she married Ben Southwell.

See also
 List of Olympic medalists in swimming (women)

References

1981 births
Living people
Australian female breaststroke swimmers
Olympic swimmers for Australia
Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Swimmers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Olympic silver medalists for Australia
Olympic gold medalists for Australia
Commercial Swimming Club swimmers
Australian Institute of Sport swimmers
Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia
Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Swimmers from Brisbane
Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics
World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming
Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Australia
Olympic gold medalists in swimming
Olympic silver medalists in swimming
Commonwealth Games medallists in swimming
Swimmers at the 2002 Commonwealth Games
Swimmers at the 2006 Commonwealth Games
21st-century Australian women
Medallists at the 2002 Commonwealth Games
Medallists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games
Sportswomen from Queensland

Tarnee White


For the videogame, see Minesweeper (video game)

A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to sweep the water clear of mines.  Minesweepers keep waterways clear for shipping. They are quieter and less magnetic than other ships, so the mines won't explode when being swept.

In Great Britain, naval leaders knew before World War I that sea mines were a threat to the nation's shipping. The real threat was not invasion, but blockade aided by mines. Fishing nets pulled behind boats gave an idea on how to clear mines. The Royal Navy used fishermen and their fishing trawlers to keep the English Channel clear of mines. They were supplied with mine gear, rifles, uniforms and pay as the first minesweepers.

The dedicated, purpose-built minesweeper first appeared during World War I. By the end of the war, naval mine technology had grown beyond the ability of minesweepers to detect and remove.

Minesweeping made big advances during World War 2.  Fighting nations quickly adapted ships to the task of minesweeping.  Both Allied and Axis countries made heavy use of minesweepers throughout the war. Underwater mines remained a problem even after the war ended, and minesweepers were still in use after Japan surrendered to the United States.

After World War 2, allied countries worked on new types of minesweepers.  The United States Navy used special landing craft (shallow-water boats) to clear shallow harbors in and around North Korea. , the U.S. Navy had four minesweepers in the Persian Gulf.

References

Warships

Minesweeper