Abraham Hartley (8 February 1872 – 9 October 1909) was a Scottish footballer.

Hartley played for Everton as a centre forward for five years in the 1890s. He also played for Merseyside rivals Liverpool and for his local club, Dumbarton. His career also included stints at Southampton, Woolwich Arsenal and Burnley at the end of his career. He appeared on the losing side in the 1897 FA Cup Final while at Everton.

Football career

Early days
Hartley was born in Dumbarton, Scotland and was the son of a tailor. After youth football with Artizan Thistle, he joined Dumbarton, where two of his brothers also played, in 1890. During his time with Dumbarton, he converted from a right back to a forward. While on the books of Dumbarton, the team won the first two Scottish Football League titles in 1891 and 1892 together with the 1891 Scottish Cup. However Hartley was not a regular with the club at this stage.

Everton
He moved south of the border to join Everton in December 1892, making his debut on 18 March when, playing at inside right, he scored in a 4–2 victory at Wolverhampton Wanderers. That was his only appearance in the 1892–93 season in which Everton finished third in the table. The following season, he made six league appearances, scoring twice, following this up with five goals from 11 appearances in the 1894–95 season when Everton finished as runners-up behind Sunderland. During this season he remained third–choice striker behind England internationals, Fred Geary and Jack Southworth.

Following Southworth's retirement through injury and Geary's move to Liverpool, Hartley played more regularly although the arrival of Scotland international John Cameron prevented Hartley from claiming the centre-forward's berth as his own. In the 1895–96 season he made 15 appearances, scoring seven goals as Everton finished in third place followed by 14 appearances with six goals in the following season.

In 1897 Everton reached the FA Cup Final with victories en route over Burton Wanderers (5–2), Bury (3–0), Blackburn Rovers (2–0) and Derby County (3–2). Hartley played in all five matches in the cup run, scoring against Blackburn (twice) and Derby. In the final Everton came up against Aston Villa who were dominating the Football League season. Although Everton took the lead after 28 minutes with goals from Jack Bell and Dickie Boyle, they were unable to prevent Villa claiming the Double with a 3–2 victory.

In the following season, he only made three appearances (scoring a hat-trick against Wolverhampton Wanderers on 18 September 1897) before moving across Stanley Park to join Liverpool in December.

In his five years at Everton, Hartley made 61 appearances, scoring 28 goals; his appearances were restricted due to the quality of forwards on Everton's books such as Geary, Southworth and Cameron as well as other internationals Alf Milward, Edgar Chadwick (both England) and Jack Bell (Scotland).

Liverpool
Hartley stayed at Liverpool for the remainder of the 1897–98 season. During his time with the club he scored the winning goal in a 2–1 away win at Sheffield United on 29 December 1897.
Altogether Hartley was capped a sum of 12 times for Liverpool, scoring once.

By now, Hartley was a member of the Association Footballers' Union which was trying to improve player's wages and contract terms. To improve his wages, Hartley decided to join Southampton.

Southampton
Being members of the Southern League, Southampton were not bound by the restrictions imposed on Football League clubs and were quite willing to pay higher salaries for talented players. Southampton had just moved into their new stadium at The Dell and had signed England internationals Arthur Chadwick, Jack Robinson and Harry Wood as well as Scotland's Jacky Robertson.

Hartley was ever-present until injury forced him to sit out the last three matches of the 1898–99 season as Southampton claimed the Southern League title for the third consecutive year. Hartley's 14 league and two FA Cup goals made him joint top scorer for the season (with Harry Wood).

Hartley would place a hand-rolled cigarette behind his ear prior to kick-off and then smoke it in the changing room at half-time before re-taking the field.

Arsenal and Burnley
Hartley moved to Woolwich Arsenal in July 1899 where he scored once in five appearances. He made his debut away to Walsall on 23 September 1899 and scored his only goal in a 2–1 win over Gainsborough Trinity on 14 October. However that same month Arsenal signed Ralph Gaudie from Sheffield United, who forced Hartley out of the side. Hartley was sold in December, moving back to Lancashire to join Burnley where he brought an end to his playing days. His five goals from thirteen appearances were unable to prevent Burnley being relegated to the Second Division at the end of that season.

Later career
After retiring from football in 1900, Hartley returned to live in Southampton. He took up employment with the London and South Western Railway but collapsed and died outside the pay office in Southampton Docks on 9 October 1909, aged only 37. A doctor at the inquest attributed his death to "syncope, arising from double pneumonia".

Honours
Dumbarton
 1 representative cap for Dumbartonshire in 1892.

Everton
FA Cup runners-up: 1897
Football League runners-up: 1894–95

Southampton
Southern League champions: 1898–99

References

External links
Everton profile
LFC History.net Profile

1872 births
1909 deaths
Footballers from Dumbarton
Scottish men's footballers
Southern Football League players
Dumbarton F.C. players
Everton F.C. players
Liverpool F.C. players
Southampton F.C. players
Arsenal F.C. players
Burnley F.C. players
Men's association football forwards

Abe Hartley


The Wigan Warriors are a professional rugby league club in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the Super League.
Wigan Warriors are the most successful club in the history of World Rugby League with 125 honours in total.

Formed in 1872 as Wigan Football Club, Wigan was a founding member of the Northern Rugby Football Union following the schism from the Rugby Football Union in 1895.  The club had a period of sustained success from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s winning eight successive Challenge Cups and seven successive League Championships.

Since 1999 the club has played home matches at the DW Stadium, before which it played at Central Park from 1902.

The head coach is Matt Peet.

History

1872–1902: Formation and NRFU foundation
On 21 November 1872, Wigan Football Club was founded by members of Wigan Cricket Club following a meeting at the Royal Hotel, Standishgate. The meeting saw around 50 members enroll into the club most of whom were members of the cricket club. The following committee was selected: T.R. Ellis, H.V. Kyrke, J. Sayers, E.R. Walker, J. Smith, J. Souter, H. Wall and R. Procter. The recently re-elected Mayor of Wigan Mr Nathan Eckersley was made club President. Many of the club's founding members were well-to-do; some owned businesses or were solicitors, magistrates and suchlike. Wigan F.C. played on Folly Field, near Upper Dicconson Street and used the nearby Dicconson Arms Hotel as a HQ.

The first match took place on 30 November when members played against each other in a practice match at Folly Field the match attracted around 2,000 spectators. After a series of trial and practice matches, they travelled to Warrington to play their first competitive match on 18 January 1873. The game ended in a draw. The club played six games in its first season finishing with a record of three wins and three draws.

An inability to recruit enough regular and quality players led to many members of Upholland Football Club joining the club in 1876. This was a significant boost to the playing ranks. The club changed its name on 20 October 1876 and became Wigan & District Football Club to represent the new influx of players which had joined from the outskirts of town. The club moved and played its home games at the Wigan Cricket Club at Prescott Street just off Frog Lane. The first game at Prescott Street was played against St. Helens on 25 November 1876 which Wigan won comfortably. The club did not fulfil all its fixtures in the 1877/78 season. The club played its last match that season against Liverpool Wanderers on 17 November 1877. There are no current records of the club after 23 November 1877 that year as the club disbanded.

On 22 September 1879, the club was re-formed as Wigan Wasps Football Club by new members at a meeting in the Dicconson Arms. The main instigators of the re-formation of the club anew were W.L. Baldwin, J. Slevin, J. Underwood, Joe Wardle and others. Mr. Underwood was secretary and Mr. Alfred Hodgkinson was named as the treasurer. Many of the new members involved in the re-establishment of the club had also been involved with the Hare & Hounds running club and were of a more working-class background than the cricketers who had originally founded the club. The club moved back to Folly Field and used the Dicconson Arms Hotel as a HQ again before using the Legs of Man Hotel in the town centre as a HQ a few years later.

In 1881 the club reverted to its original name of Wigan Football Club. It had been suggested that the club should do so but this was finally decided when Club Secretary William Marsden wrote to Wigan Cricket Club to see if they would be forming another football club in the near future as they had done when originally creating Wigan. The cricketers weren't involved with the club anymore but Mr Marsden felt it would be courtesy to ask what their intentions were in relation to football. The secretary of the cricket club wrote back saying it was completely justified for Wigan Wasps to become Wigan Football Club again as the cricketers had no intention of forming another football club with that name or being involved with football at all and as such the club remained the only rugby football club in town at that time.

In 1883, Wigan won its first trophy, the Wigan Union Charity Cup. The club won the West Lancashire and Border Towns Union Cup in 1884 and the Wigan Union Charity Cup again in 1885. The club played in cherry and white jerseys for the first time on 26 September 1885.
In 1888 they hosted the touring New Zealand Maoris.

During this era Wigan were represented by some iconic players. James 'Jim' Slevin, Ned Bullough, William 'Billy' Atkinson and John 'Jack' Anderton. Jim Slevin arguably being the most important player for Wigan during this era. He made a total of 290 appearances, scoring 131 tries and was involved in the club winning 8 trophies.

Wigan, Leigh and Salford were suspended by the RFU for breaking the strict amateur code despite their argument that broken-time payments were necessary to avoid undue hardship for their working class players. The clubs were placed joint bottom of the Lancashire league. With automatic promotion and relegation, they faced dropping down a division, and potential financial ruin. In 1895 Wigan joined with other clubs from Yorkshire and Lancashire to found the Northern Union which led eventually to the sport of rugby league. This was a result of the breakaway from the Rugby Football Union.

The County Championship was introduced in October 1895 with Cheshire entertaining Lancashire. The Red Rose side contained three players from Wigan: Winstanley (full back) and Unsworth and Brown (forwards).

In 1896–97, due to the increased number of Northern Union teams the Northern League was abandoned in favour of two County Senior leagues. The second half of the season saw the introduction of the Northern Union Cup (later known as the Rugby League Cup). Wigan reached the third round before being knocked out by St. Helens.

In 1904, fourteen clubs resigned from the two county leagues to form a new Northern Rugby League for season 1901–02. Wigan, however, remained in the Lancashire Senior Competition.

Wigan became sub-tenants of Springfield Park, which they shared with Wigan United AFC, playing their first game there on 14 September 1901. A crowd of 4,000 saw them beat Morecambe 12–0. During this season Wigan won the Lancashire Senior Competition.

Wigan's record crowd at Springfield was 10,000 when they beat Widnes on 19 March 1902. The last game was on 28 April 1902 when Wigan beat the Rest of Lancashire Senior Competition. Two meetings were held by Wigan members during the season to discuss the possibility of turning the club into a Limited Company but the idea did not take off.

1902–1945: Move to Central Park and Wartime Emergency League

On 6 September 1902, Wigan played at Central Park for the first time in the opening match of the newly formed First Division. An estimated crowd of 9,000 spectators saw Wigan beat Batley 14–8.

In the 1905–06 season they won their first cup, in rugby league, the Lancashire County Cup. Between 1906 and 1923 Wigan won the Lancashire League another seven times and the Lancashire Cup another four times. Wigan were the first winners of the Lancashire cup.

Wigan played New Zealand on 9 November 1907 and ran out winners by 12 points to 8 in front of a crowd of around 30,000.
Great Britain, then known as the Northern Union, played their first-ever test against New Zealand on 25 January 1908. James "Jim" Leytham, Bert Jenkins and John "Johnny" Thomas of Wigan were in the home side and Leytham scored a try. Jenkins and Thomas had previously played in the first Welsh game against New Zealand on 1 January 1908.

On Saturday 28 October 1911, Wigan played a match against the Australasian team which visited England on the 1911–12 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and won.

On 12 May 1921, Wigan became a limited company.

In June 1922 Jim Sullivan joined Wigan from Cardiff RFC when he was only 17. His cash value was put at £750, which was a staggering signing-on fee for an adolescent who had not yet played 13-a-side rugby (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £137,700 in 2015). His first game was at home against Widnes on 27 August 1921, and he scored ten points in a 21–0 win. Almost inevitably, Jim Sullivan scored the first points in the first Challenge Cup Final to be played at Wembley Stadium, kicking a penalty after only three minutes of the inaugural Challenge Cup Final against Dewsbury in 1929 in which he led Wigan to a 13–2 victory. Sullivan became player-coach in 1932.

Wigan won their first Challenge Cup in the 1923–24 season when they beat Oldham 21–4 in Rochdale.

In 1933 the Prince of Wales attended Central Park, becoming the first royal to watch a rugby league match.

On 25 October 1938 Australian Harry Sunderland arrived in Wigan to take up the duties of Secretary-Manager at Central Park. On 28 September the following year, Sunderland's contract was terminated and he and the club parted company.

The outbreak of World War II disrupted the Rugby Football League Championship but Wigan continued to play in the Lancashire War League and the Emergency War League.

During the war years the club went through the 1940–41 season unbeaten although they lost the Championship final. They lost the 1944 Challenge Cup Final over two games to Bradford Northern 8–3 but made up for it beating Dewsbury in the Championship Final.

1945–1980: Post war era
Jim Sullivan's last game, as a player, for Wigan was at Mount Pleasant, Batley, on 23 February 1946. He remained at Central Park for another six seasons as coach.

In 1948 Wigan took part in the first televised rugby league match when their 8–3 Challenge Cup Final victory over Bradford Northern was broadcast to the Midlands. In another first this was the first rugby league match to be attended by the reigning monarch, King George VI, who presented the trophy.

On Saturday 27 October 1951, 33,230 spectators saw Wigan beat Leigh 14–6 in the final of the Lancashire Cup at Station Road, Swinton. In 1952 Wigan won their sixth consecutive Lancashire Cup.

Wigan were also featured in the first league match to be broadcast, a clash with Wakefield Trinity at Central Park on 12 January 1952.

In 1953 Wigan signed Billy Boston for £150. 8,000 fans saw Billy Boston début for Wigan in the 'A' team. He later became one of the most successful and famous Wigan players of all time. Eric Ashton signed for Wigan for £150 in 1955. Wigan went to Wembley six times in the Boston / Ashton era and won three times.

The visit of St. Helens on 27 March 1959 produced Central Park's all-time record attendance of 47,747 which is still a record for any rugby league game in Lancashire. Wigan went on to win the game 19–14 after holding off a Saints comeback. Mick Sullivan moved to Wigan for a then record £9,500 fee in 1957.

Joe Egan returned to coach Wigan and during his time they won the Championship play-off final in 1960 defeating Wakefield Trinity 21–5, the Challenge Cup in 1958, 1959, 13–9 against Workington Town and 30–13 against Hull F.C. respectively before losing in 12–6 to St. Helens in 1961 which was to be his last game in charge.

Wigan continued to have regular success in both league and cup competitions until 1974 when Wigan went eight seasons without winning any leagues or cups.

Eric Ashton coached Wigan from 1963 to 1973. In 1966, Wigan locked television cameras out of their ground in the belief that they affected attendances. They were fined £500 by the Rugby Football League. Wigan beat Oldham 16–13 in the 1966 Lancashire Cup Final. Billy Boston played his last match in the cherry and white, against Wakefield Trinity at the end of April 1968.

Wigan celebrated the centenary year of the club in November 1972, with a match against Australia at Central Park, on Saturday 17 November, the result finished as an 18–18 draw.

Wigan pulled off a surprise victory 19–9 over Salford in the Lancashire Cup Final which was played at Wilderspool, Warrington on Saturday 13 October 1973. Cup holders Salford had lost only one match prior to the final, against the touring Australians.

Ted Toohey became coach of Wigan in May 1974 before being sacked in January 1975, this would set the pattern of coaches lasting one or two seasons before being replaced. Star coach, Joe Coan then took control until he resigned in September 1976, the board accepted his decision "with reluctance". Vince Karalius then took over but was sacked in September 1979, he was replaced by Kel Coslett.

1980–1996: Relegation, subsequent promotion, and most successful period
In 1980, Wigan were relegated from the top flight for the first time in their history and Coslett was replaced by George Fairbairn as player-coach. During the second division season they recorded a record average attendance for the division of 8,198. Wigan won promotion back to the top flight the following season but Fairbairn lasted no longer than May 1981 before moving to Hull Kingston Rovers. Maurice Bamford took over as coach of Wigan before being sacked in May 1982 and was replaced by Alex Murphy.

Maurice Lindsay came to Wigan in the early 1980s to join directors Jack Robinson, Tom Rathbone and ex-player Jack Hilton. Wigan became one of the first teams to go full-time professional in the league, this led to an upsurge in the fortunes of the club.

Between February and October 1987, under new coach, former New Zealand coach Graham Lowe, Wigan won a record 29 games in a row as follows: 20 Division One matches, 3 Premiership Trophy matches, 4 Lancashire Cup matches, 1 Charity Shield final, 1 World Club Challenge Final. Wigan defeated Australian club Manly-Warringah 8–2 in front of a crowd of 36,895 at Central Park for an unofficial World Club Championship (though many who were at Central Park still claim the attendance was closer to 50,000). It was the first time an English club side had beaten a team of Australians at rugby league since the 1978 Kangaroo tour. After Lowe left in 1989, Australian John Monie, a former premiership winning coach with the Parramatta Eels, continued the success at Central Park. From 1988 to 1995 Wigan won the Challenge Cup 8 seasons in a row including their 27–0 win over St Helens in 1989, the first time any team had been held scoreless in a Cup Final at Wembley; this period was Wigan's most successful period to date. They also won the Championship seven times, League Cup four times, Premiership Trophy three times, Charity Shield twice and three World Club Championships.

In February 1990, Wigan announced a record £280,000 profit but by 1993 this had become a loss of £300,000 on a turnover of £3 million, in no small way to the cost of the Whitbread Stand that had been built at the clubhouse end of Central Park in 1991–92 at an estimated cost of £1.3 million. By March 1994 Wigan's wage bill topped £2 million a year.

John Dorahy became coach for the 1993 season. Despite supervising Wigan through to the Challenge Cup and the Rugby Football League Championship, Dorahy was dismissed in May 1994, only days after the club's return from Wembley. In a statement by the club, Dorahy was said to have been sacked for "gross misconduct". Graeme West was appointed as coach, after fans petitioned for him to get the job.

In his first month as coach, at the end of the 1993–94 Rugby Football League season West secured the First Division Premiership Trophy against Castleford, and then traveled with the team to Brisbane, guiding them in their 1994 World Club Challenge victory over Australian premiers, the Brisbane Broncos in front of a WCC record attendance of 54,220. At the end of his first full season, he and the team won the League Championship, Challenge Cup, Regal Trophy, and Premiership—the 'Grand Slam' of all 4 trophies. Even though Wigan dominated rugby league from 1985 to 1995, it was the only season the club achieved this feat.

1996–present: Summer era rugby
Wigan played in a special 2 match challenge series against Bath RFC in 1996, with one game played under league rules, and the other under union rules. Wigan won the league game 82–6 at Maine Road, but lost the return union game 44–19 at Twickenham.

In July 1996 Andy Farrell was named the Wigan club's captain.

Eric Hughes became coach of Wigan Warriors, replacing Graeme West in February 1997 following an early exit from the Challenge Cup in 2 consecutive years. In 1997 the club was renamed as the Wigan Warriors. Wigan's dominance came under threat with the new league now fully professional and the introduction of the salary cap and the 20/20 rule. After going out of the Challenge Cup to Salford in 1996 and St Helens in 1997, they returned to Wembley for the final time in 1998. Still undefeated in the league and the fact coach John Monie—in his second spell at Wigan—had never lost a cup tie meant Wigan were huge favourites against the unfancied Sheffield Eagles. But on 2 May 1998 the Eagles would go down in rugby league history causing the biggest upset in the competition's history with a 17–8 win.

Wigan won the Minor Premiership and the first Super League Grand Final in 1998 with a 10–4 victory over Leeds at Old Trafford, Manchester.

In November 1999, coach Andy Goodway was sacked by Wigan chairman Maurice Lindsay after the Warriors' failure to win a trophy for the first time in 15 years. After a buy-out by Dave Whelan, both the Warriors and the town's football team, Wigan Athletic, moved to the JJB Stadium. As part of the rugby league's "on the road" scheme Wigan met Gateshead Thunder at Tynecastle, Edinburgh. Maurice Lindsay also returned as director. On an emotional day of high drama Wigan's final game at Central Park was against arch rivals St Helens on Sunday 5 September 1999. Wigan legend Ellery Hanley returned as St Helens coach but a Jason Robinson virtuoso try meant the game was won by Wigan 28–20. The first game at the new stadium was a defeat in a Super League play-off match against Castleford on 19 September 1999.

Frank Endacott joined Wigan as head coach after the 1999 season and in 2000 Wigan finished top of the Super League and reached the Grand Final for the second time but this time lost to St Helens 29–16. Wigan reached the Grand Final again the year after but lost to Bradford Bulls 37–4 which is still the biggest winning margin in a Super League Grand Final. That year Andy Farrell also set a new club record for points in a season with 429.

In 2001 Endacott was sacked. In 2002 Wigan won their 17th Challenge Cup when they beat St Helens 21–12 at Murrayfield Stadium, 8 years after previously lifting the cup.

He was replaced by assistant coach Mike Gregory and the team improved and reached the Grand Final only to lose to Bradford Bulls 25–12. In 2004 Gregory guided Wigan to the Challenge Cup final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff but Wigan lost to St Helens 32–16. It was Mike Gregory's last match as head coach of Wigan, he travelled to the United States of America to get treatment for an illness that he contracted after an insect bite while in Australia.
It was revealed that Mike had motor neurone disease and he did not return as Wigan coach. Denis Betts took over as Wigan Head Coach before being replaced by Ian Millward.

2006 was a tough year for Wigan and Ian Millward was replaced by Brian Noble early in the season. The club finished in 8th position just outside the play-offs.

In 2007 and 2009 Wigan made the Challenge Cup Semi-Finals but were defeated on both occasions.

Wigan ended the decade by finishing Suoer League in 6th position in 2007, 4th in 2008 and 6th in 2009.

2007, 2008 and 2009 saw Wigan reach the Final Eliminator in the play-offs in each of those seasons but were beaten in those games which meant they did not make the Grand Final.

Brian Noble's tenure as Wigan Head Coach came to an end at the close of the 2009 Super League Season. Michael Maguire was appointed as the new Head Coach ahead of the 2010 season.

Wigan started the new season with a 38 to 6 win over the Crusaders. Wigan won their opening 4 games to take them to the top of the Super League table. Wigan remained top of the league throughout the season.

During 2010 the Wigan club won 3 pieces of silverware. The Carnegie 9s, the League Leaders Shield and the Super League Grand Final. This was the club's first Grand Final win for twelve year beating St Helens 22–10.

The club also swept the boards at the annual Man of Steel Award, with Sam Tomkins winning young player of the year, Micharl Maguire won the coach of the year award, Pat Richards won the Man of Steel award and the club won the club of the year award. On 6 August 2011, Wigan made it to the Challenge Cup final after beating St. Helens 18–12.

On 27 August 2011, Wigan won the Challenge Cup final against Leeds at Wembley Stadium.
The final score was Wigan 28–18 Leeds. The match was the first visit to Wembley for Wigan in 13 years.

Michael Maguire left to return to Australia and Shaun Wane, the former Wigan forward was given the role of first team coach for the 2012 season. Wigan won the League Leaders Shield in his first season. In 2013, Wigan did the League and Cup Double. Firstly by winning the Challenge Cup Final in beating Hull 16–0 at Wembley. This saw Wigan extend their record to 30 Challenge Cup Finals, winning 19 of them.
Wane then guided the team to the Grand Final by defeating Warrington 30–16 in the Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford. After Grand Final losses to St Helens in 2014 and Leeds Rhinos in 2015, Wigan reached the Grand Final again in 2016 despite injury problems ruling out several star players throughout the season. Wigan defeated the Warrington Wolves 12–6 in a hard-fought rematch of their 2013 contest to win their fourth Super League championship.

Wigan became World Champions for a record fourth time in 2017 as they defeated NRL champions Cronulla Sharks 22–6. Wigan lost at Wembley to Hull FC extending the club's record to 31 Challenge Cup Final appearances.

2018 was a bright year for Wigan. The year began with a trip to Australia in week 2 to play Hull F.C. in the first-ever Super League game to be played outside of Europe. Wigan were victorious at St George-Illawarra Dragons WIN Stadium, defeating Hull FC 24–10.

The Super 8s stage of the season, Wigan won an unprecedented 7 out of 7 matches including revenge for the Good Friday defeat by soundly beating arch rivals St Helens 30–10 at the Totally Wicked Stadium. Wigan and Warrington contested the 2018 Grand Final which was the third time the clubs had met in the Grand Final in six seasons. Wigan prevailing 12–4 on the night. This was the club's fifth Grand Final win taking the overall total of League Championships the club has won to 22. In the 2019 Super League season, Wigan finished second on the table. They reached the semi-final stage of the competition but suffered a shock defeat against Salford 28–4 at the DW Stadium.

In the 2020 Super League season, Wigan won the League Leaders Shield and reached the 2020 Super League Grand Final against St Helens. In the final, Wigan and St Helens were tied at 4–4 with only ten seconds remaining in the match before St Helens player Jack Welsby scored a dramatic late try to win the match 8–4.

In the 2021 Super League season, Wigan endured a difficult campaign finishing in 4th place on the table. Throughout the year, the club suffered a five-game losing streak and were also kept scoreless at home by Leeds for the first time in the Super League era. Towards the end of the season, head coach Adrian Lam announced he would depart the club. In the elimination playoff against Leeds, Wigan were kept scoreless at home again losing 8–0 which also ended their season.
On 28 May 2022, Wigan won the Challenge Cup for the 20th time defeating Huddersfield 16–14 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Wigan finished the 2022 Super League season in second place on the table and were favourites to reach the grand final. However, the club would suffer a shock 20–8 loss to Leeds in the semi-final which denied them a place in the decider.

Colours
The Wigan team first played in cherry and white jerseys on 19 September 1885 in a match against Bury. The club did not settle on the colours until 22 December 1888 when after this time there is no mention of Wigan deviating from these colours as the primary colours. It is known that the team did wear a variety of different-coloured jerseys at different times before 19 September 1885 and in-between that date and 22 December 1888. These included; black jerseys with white shorts and black socks, white jerseys and a chocolate-and-coral hooped jersey with black socks. The white Maltese cross was added to the club's jerseys for the start of the 1884–85 season but how long this remained as a feature on the jersey is unknown. The white jerseys were worn on several occasions during the 1885 season and were also worn at least once during 1887. The chocolate-and-coral hooped jerseys were worn during the 1886–1887 season with black socks; however, the colour of the shorts which were worn is unknown. It is also unknown how many times Wigan turned out in the chocolate-and-coral jersey that year. The colours cherry and white are the most synonymous with the club. The home kits have mostly consisted of the colours cherry and white since 1888 in different variations, usually hoops, but not always.

Club Crest

Wigan have used a variation of the coat of arms (which was granted to the Borough of Wigan on 8 April 1922) as the club crest for a large part of the club's history. The club first used the crest on the playing jerseys for the 1948 Challenge Cup Final against Bradford. The crest appeared on the jersey in other future cup finals but would not become a permanent feature on the playing jerseys until 1984.

Below are further details on the Club Crest:

Excerpts from an Article, by Mr. Arthur J. Hawkes, Chief Librarian.

Possessing a series of town seals from the twelfth century onwards, Wigan, at the opening of the twentieth century still remained without "ensigns proper to its order."

Wigan is one of the oldest boroughs in England (third oldest in Lancashire after Liverpool and Salford). Town liberties or borough rights existed in England in Anglo-Saxon times, several centuries before the Norman Conquest. Places like London, York, Winchester, Norwich, etc., are known from records to have exercised these privileges, and it may properly be inferred that Wigan also enjoyed them. Finally, we have the report of the Norry King of Arms in 1613 that "the towne and bourrough of Wiggin was antiently Incorporated by the most noble Kinge, Kinge Hen, the first in the first yeare of his raygne" (i.e., 1100)—a certified copy of which document is now in the Public Library. Under William the Conqueror, the borough privileges were restricted, but on the accession of Henry I they were largely restored by virtue of his great coronation charter of liberties. The liberties of individual towns were restored or confirmed by special charter, some of which are extant. If we can rely upon the report of the Herald in 1613, Wigan was one of the first boroughs to be so restored. Following this we have a long series of royal charters, mostly still extant, some containing special marks of royal favour, which charters will be detailed in the next number.

J. Paul Rylands describes the coat above as "perhaps the very best of all Lancashire town arms, for it might, heraldically, belong to the Middle Ages, and is indeed symbolic of antiquity and loyalty." It is certainly a very privileged coat of arms, as few if any coats bear so many symbols of royal favour. Indeed, the incorporation of royal insignia into armorial bearings is jealously guarded and usually proscribed by the court officials. In Wigan's new grant there are (1) A King's Head, crowned, (2) the Royal "Leopard" (or "lion couchant guardant"), (3) a Mediaeval royal crown, and (4) the Supporting Lions. The King's head in the crest officially represents no particular king, in the words of the Rouge Croix herald (in whose hands the design took shape) it is intended "to be a conventional likeness to an early English Monarch." It is actually modelled on the portrait of King Edward III, but from the point of view of the town it symbolises especially King Henry I. On Wigan's earliest town seal—probably the twelfth century—there appears to be a towered or castellated gateway over the centre of which is depicted what seems to be the crowned head of Henry I. These devices therefore, are taken as the chief symbols of the new bearings, the towered gateway becomes a Norman castle and the King's head becomes a crest—indicating Wigan as a town of consequence and royal patronage at the opening of the twelfth century. The royal lion, again, marks another important period in Wigan history. Edward III, by a charter of 1350, granted Wigan the right (with several other towns) to use a royal seal known as the "King's Recognisance Seal," on which was figured the King's head and the royal lion. The Somerset Herald expressed the opinion that as none of the other towns had made use of the King's permission by adopting the figures in their arms, Wigan could with propriety include them, and his view prevailed with the Chapter of Heralds.

Supporters are nowadays usually granted only to the great cities, but Wigan's ancient importance has been thereby recognised, the lions giving the distinction to a highly dignified and privileged coat of arms. There is a final feature of unusual interest. The branches of the mountain ash held in the lion's paws add something to the conventional "mantling" or flowered scrolls which usually ornament armorial bearings. The design of the floriation is usually a matter for the artist and without heraldic significance. But in the case of Wigan's arms, the mountain ash, known in the northern dialects as the Wiggin or Wigan Tree, forms a "rebus" or pun on the name of the town, and has the advantage of giving further symbolism to an already significant coat. The rebus has tradition behind it, for the Wiggin Tree is a conspicuous feature of several of the town's mediaeval seals.

The motto adopted "Ancient and Loyal" is in keeping with the arms. For a great many years Wigan has on all occasions, official and unofficial, invariably referred to itself as the "Ancient and Loyal Borough," but few are aware that authority for its use can be found in the Charter of Charles II. The governing charter of the town down to the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835. In that Charter Wigan is designated by the King "an ancient borough" and granted a "special token of our favour for its loyalty to us," so that nothing could be more fitting than its adoption as the town's motto.

On 1 November 2020, the club changed its crest to a new design. The club drew inspiration for the Warrior design element of the badge from the Brigantes who were Celtic Britons and controlled a large part of Northern England, including Wigan, in pre-Roman times. The name Brigantes became synonymous with the most fervent elements of the club's support base dating back to the early 2010s.

The Shield element of the new logo is taken from the original club crest as is the Ancient & Loyal motto with the circular shape of the badge emulating the shape of the Northern Soul logo. Wigan had a vibrant Northern Soul scene back in the 1960s when the Northern Soul music and dance movement first emerged.
The background features the club's famous Cherry and White hoops which interestingly is incorporated into the club crest for the first time.
The date of the club's foundation is also included on the club badge for the first time.

Kit manufacturers and sponsors

Current kit
The current kit and teamwear as of the 2024 season will be manufacturer by Kappa, following the end of contract with Hummel who manufactured the kits and teamwear from 2020 until the end of the 2023 season. The main shirt sponsor is Open Exchange and their logo appears on the front of the home and away jerseys.

Teams
As well as the men's team the club for 2022 also encompasses 10 other teams:
Reserves
Academy (under 18s)
Scholarship (under 16s)
College development squad (men and women aged 16–18)
Wigan Warriors Women
Women's academy (under 19s)
Physical disability
Learning disability
Wheelchair
Touch Rugby

Stadiums

Pre–1902
Wigan Football Club played on Folly Field, Upper Dicconson Street. The club played its first match at Folly Field on 30 November 1872 and remained at the ground for four years. Wigan Football Club went on to become Wigan & District Football Club, the newly named Wigan & District Football Club played its matches at Prescott Street (The West End Grounds). The club played at Prescott Street until the club disbanded. With the re-formation of the club as Wigan Wasps Football Club, the club returned to Folly Field from 1879 to 1886 when it moved its matches back to Prescott Street.

Wigan played their home games at Wigan Cricket Club on Prescott Street until 1901 when they moved to Springfield Park which they shared with the town's association soccer club Wigan United A.F.C. The first rugby match at Springfield Park was played on 14 September 1901 and was between Wigan and Morecambe in front of 4,000 spectators. The record rugby attendance for the ground was 10,000 achieved on 19 March 1902 when Wigan beat Widnes. Forty days later Wigan played their last game at Springfield Park when they defeated the Rest of Lancashire Senior Competition.

1902–1999: Central Park

In 1902 Wigan moved to their purpose-built rugby ground called Central Park. Wigan played their first game at Central Park against Batley on 6 September 1902, which Wigan won 14–8. The area was originally farm land called Central Field, with a row of houses already built along both north and south ends of the land (Hilton St and Colin St). By the end of the 1990s, the area had begun to suffer from its location next to the River Douglas as well as disused coal mines directly underneath, resulting in occasional drainage problems which affected the pitch.

Central Park would be the home of Wigan Rugby League until 1999, when they moved to the newly built JJB Stadium. The last match at Central Park was against St Helens on 5 September 1999, a game which Wigan won 28–20 in front of 18,179 supporters. As Wigan developed into one of the most famous rugby league clubs in the world, Central Park also became one of the most famous grounds.

Wigan won the 1987 World Club Challenge match against 1987 Sydney (New South Wales Rugby League) Premiers Manly-Warringah at Central Park played on 7 October. The try-less game, won 8–2, was played in front of a reported crowd of 36,895, though many of those in attendance believed the attendance was actually closer to 50,000.

The record attendance for a game at Central Park was 47,747 set on 27 March 1959 against St Helens.

1999–present: DW Stadium

Towards the end of the 2000 season the Wigan Warriors moved to the newly built DW Stadium which they currently share with the Wigan football club Wigan Athletic. The stadium is owned Mike Danson, who is shareholder, owning 25% of the club. Warriors first game at the then JJB Stadium was a Super League play-off match against the Castleford Tigers which Wigan lost 14–10.

Wigan used to have a state-of-the-art training facility at the small stadium Edge Hall Road in Orrell (now named the Co-Operative Community Stadium) where the first team, reserve team & academy team prepared, trained and rehabilitated ahead of and after matches. It is also where the Reserve & Academy sides used to play their home games.

Recently this site has been sold for development after the Warriors moved all team operations to the newly renovated Robin Park Arena next door to the DW Stadium in a deal with Wigan Council. A multi-million-pound regeneration has turned this into one of the best training facilities inside of rugby league, whilst also maintaining world class facilities for other local sporting clubs and the general public to use also.

DW Stadium has an official capacity of 25,133. The Warriors record attendance at DW is 25,004 set against St Helens on 25 March 2005.

Training ground

Robin Park Arena

Wigan's training ground is the Robin Park Arena, situated next door to the DW Stadium.

Notable players

2024 squad

2023 transfers

Gains

Losses

2024 transfers

Gains

Losses

Coaches

Current coaching staff

Matt Peet is the current head coach for the 2022 season, with Lee Briers and former Wigan captain Sean O'Loughlin as his assistant coaches.

Coaching history

Note *only Championship, Challenge Cup and World Club Challenge honours shown.

Seasons

Honours

League
First Division / Super League:
Winners (23): 1908–09, 1921–22, 1925–26, 1933–34, 1945–46, 1946–47, 1949–50, 1951–52, 1959–60, 1986–87, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1998, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2018, 2023
Runners up (17): 1909–10, 1910–11, 1911–12, 1912–13, 1923–24, 1963–64, 1970–71, 1974–75, 1985–86, 1988–89, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2014, 2015, 2020
League Leaders' Shield:
Winners (4): 2010, 2012, 2020, 2023
League Leader's Trophy:
Winners (1): 1970-71
Premiership
Winners (6): 1986–87, 1991–92, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1996, 1997.
Runners-Up (1): 1992–93
War Emergency League
Winners (1): 1943–44.
Second Division / Championship:
Runners up (1): 1980-81
Lancashire League
Winners (18): 1901–02, 1908–09, 1910–11, 1911–12, 1912–13, 1913–14, 1914–15, 1920–21, 1922–23, 1923–24, 1925–26, 1945–46, 1946–47, 1949–50, 1951–52, 1958–59, 1961–62, 1969–70.
Lancashire War League
Winners (1): 1940–41.

Domestic Cup(s)
Challenge Cup
Winners (20): 1923–24, 1928–29, 1947–48, 1950–51, 1957–58, 1958–59, 1964–65, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 2002, 2011, 2013, 2022.
Runners-Up (12): 1910–11, 1919–20, 1943–44, 1945–46, 1960–61, 1962–63, 1965–66, 1969–70, 1983–84, 1998, 2004, 2017.
Lancashire Cup
Winners (21): 1905–06, 1908–09, 1909–10, 1912–13, 1922–23, 1928–29, 1938–39, 1946–47, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1949–50, 1950–51, 1951–52, 1966–67, 1971–72, 1973–74, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1992–93.
Runners-Up (14): 1913–14, 1914–15, 1925–26, 1927–28, 1930–31, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1945–46, 1953–54, 1957–58, 1977–78, 1980–81, 1984–85.
League Cup
Winners (8): 1982–83, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1992–93, 1994–95, 1995–96.
Runners-Up (1): 1993–94.
Charity Shield
Winners (4): 1985–86, 1987–88, 1991–92, 1995–96.
Runners-Up (4): 1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1992–93.
BBC2 Floodlit Trophy
Winners (1): 1968–69.
Runners-Up (1): 1969–70.

International Cup(s)
World Club Challenge
Winners (4): 1987, 1991, 1994, 2017.
Runners-Up (4): 1992, 2011, 2014, 2019.

Short Form Cups
World 7s
Winners (1): 1991–92.
Middlesex 7s
Winners (1): 1996
Carnegie Floodlit 9s
Winners (1): 2010.

Pre-Northern Union
Wigan Charity Cup
Winners (6): 1883, 1885, 1888, 1889, 1890, 1891
Runners-Up (1): 1886
 West Lancashire and Border Towns Cup
Winners (2): 1889, 1890
Runners-Up (1): 1887

Team
 BBC Sports Team of the Year: 1994.

Club records

Individual
Most goals in a match: 22 by Jim Sullivan vs Flimby & Fothergill, 14 February 1925
Most tries in a match: 10 by:
Martin Offiah vs Leeds, 10 May 1992
Shaun Edwards vs Swinton, 29 September 1992
Most points in a match: 44 by Jim Sullivan vs Flimby & Fothergill, 14 February 1925
Most goals in a season: 186 by Frano Botica, 1994–95
Most tries in a season: 63 by Ellery Hanley, 1986–87
Most tries in a Super League regular season: 31 by Josh Charnley & Bevan French, 2012 & 2022
Most points in a season: 462 by Pat Richards 2010
Most career goals: 2,317 by Jim Sullivan
Most career tries: 478 by Billy Boston
Most career points: 4,883 by Jim Sullivan
Most career appearances: 774 by Jim Sullivan
Most International Test caps: 36 by Shaun Edwards (Great Britain)
Most decorated player: Shaun Edwards; 8 Championships, 9 Challenge Cups, 3 World Club Challenges.

Team
Biggest victory (All Time): 116–0 vs Flimby & Fothergill, 14 February 1925
Biggest victory (Super League Era): 84–6 vs Hull Kingston Rovers, 1 April 2013 & 84–6 vs Bradford Bulls, 21 April 2014.
Highest attendance (Central Park): 47,747 vs St. Helens, 27 March 1959
Highest attendance (DW Stadium): 25,004 (Good Friday 2005 vs St Helens)
Highest attendance (all-time): 99,801 vs Hull F.C., 4 May 1985 (1985 Challenge Cup Final) at Wembley Stadium
Highest attendance vs an international touring team: 30,622 vs Australia, 12 October 1986 (1986 Kangaroo Tour)
Heaviest Defeat (Super League): 0–70 vs Leeds Rhinos, 18 June 2005
Heaviest Defeat (Challenge Cup): 0–75 vs St Helens, 26 June 2005

Supporters
Wigan is one of the most well supported British rugby league clubs. During the 2006 season, in which the team was struggling to avoid relegation, the attendances were increasing as fans came to support the club and offer vocal support, many of whom may have not attended on a regular basis previously.

The club averaged 16,016 per home game in 2007. In 2010 Wigan were officially the best-supported club in Super League with a higher average attendance than nearest rivals Leeds Rhinos. The club have now been confirmed as the best-supported club for the last three seasons of 2010, 2011 and 2012.

As a gesture of thanks, the 2008 season saw the Wigan fans have the squad number 18 dedicated to them, a practice which has since continued each season. Joe Lydon commented "This is a new practice for clubs who recognise the extra special support which loyal fans can provide to their team in both good and bad times. It is particularly apt for Wigan fans".

From early 2008, the Wigan fans have often chanted to the tune of The Entertainer. One of the beginning lines of this particular chant is "We're the Greatest Club in the World".

The fans have their own supporters club, The Riversiders, who meet monthly and often have special guests at the meetings including past and present players, coaching staff and members of the Rugby Football League.

In 2010 some supporters set up a group to improve the atmosphere at both home and away games, known as the Wigan Brigantes, Brigantes being the name of the tribe that inhabited this and other large parts of northern England before and during the Roman era. The group started by erecting flags across the South Stand gantry at the DW Stadium, beginning with 12 at the start of the 2010 season and grew steadily from there. The group's banner had the phrase "Long After Tonight Is All Over" as a nod to the Jimmy Radcliffe song that was a staple of the Wigan Casino club during the Northern Soul era, and to show their rivals that their support would continue well after the final whistle had sounded. This was particularly true of some of Wigan's away games during the 2011 season where their fans often stayed well over half an hour after the final hooter singing to the tune of "Dale Cavese".

There is also a regular fans' forum meeting with chairman Ian Lenagan and the current head coach to discuss the latest issues concerning the club and the work that is being done behind the scenes. So far every meeting has been a sell out.

Wigan's fans and Wigan people in general are known as 'pie eaters' or 'pies' which is reference to the 1926 General Strike, when Wigan miners were forced to eat 'humble pie' and return to work before miners in other towns, even though they had been on strike before the other towns joined in. Since then the word 'pie' has come to mean the pastry rather than the metaphor 'Humble Pie'.

Rivalries

St Helens

The club's strongest and fiercest rivalry is with St Helens. Matches, between the two teams are played traditionally on Good Friday and in previous seasons on Boxing Day. The clubs are often described as archenemies such is the history of the rivalry. The matches between the two clubs are said to have bragging rights at stake and banter between the fans of both clubs is commonplace. The rivalry is so fierce that matches between the two teams are one of only two sporting events to officially be given the title of The Derby.

Leigh Leopards
The Leigh Leopards are traditional rivals of the club and similarly matches between the two clubs are local derbies. The rivalry between these two clubs, however, has been muted due to the fact that the two clubs compete in different competitions and therefore do not play each other regularly (during the Super League era, Wigan and Leigh have only been together in Super League for three seasons, in 2005, 2017 & 2021).

Warrington Wolves

The club has forged a more recent fierce rivalry with the Warrington Wolves following a resurgence in the club's success and Warrington's emergence as one of the most competitive teams in the Super League.

Leeds Rhinos

A more notable rivalry is one with the Leeds Rhinos because when the 2 teams meet there is usually something at stake as the two teams are labelled as super league giants and have met 11 times in Super League playoffs, Wigan edging that head-to-head record 6–5; plus both teams have played each other in Challenge Cup finals, semifinals & quarterfinals and it is always fiercely competitive when they meet. Leeds and Wigan dominated Super League from the late 2000s and through the 2010s, with either Leeds or Wigan winning Super League every year, aside from 2014, between 2007 and 2018 (strangely enough during this period, Wigan and Leeds have only met in the Grand Final once, in 2015).

In the community
Wigan confirmed via the official website that they had been granted charitable status on Wednesday 29 April 2009 via the "charitable arm" of the club the Wigan Warriors Community Foundation. Wigan Warriors carry out extensive community work that stretches from Amateur Rugby League Football clubs to Schools as well as running highly successful community training camps for young people. A part of the community work is visiting primary schools to deliver a programme specifically designed for young people entitled 'Lessons for Life'. The programme is delivered via a geographic family of schools approach and results in each school receiving two hours of Rugby League coaching per week for a six-week period. Additionally every school is offered the opportunity to start an extra curricular club and take part in a "Warriors Tag Festival". The club will now be able to deliver an even more extensive community programme via the Wigan Warriors Community Foundation.

Wigan became the first club in the country to receive Sport England's Clubmark Gold Award. The Gold award, only available from 1 April 2009, shows the clubs commitment to Duty of Care and Child Protection, Coaching and Competition, Sports Equity and Ethics and Club Management. The Gold award not only meets the minimum standards in all areas, but surpasses them and meets additional criteria too.

Combined with education provider ProCo, Wigan have established a work based learning academy in the town to provide opportunities to young people whilst also providing a permanent base for its scholarship and academy squads. The Work Academy has been given the name "Central Park" in reference to Wigan's former home and also makes reference to the education provider.

See also
 History of Wigan Warriors
 List of Wigan Warriors seasons
 List of Wigan Warriors players
 List of Wigan Warriors internationals
 Wigan Hall of Fame

Notes

References

External links

Rugby clubs established in 1872
Super League teams
1872 establishments in England
Founder members of the Northern Rugby Football Union
Rugby league teams in Greater Manchester
Sport in Wigan
Rugby league teams in England

Wigan Warriors


Albert Wessels (1 October 1908 - 22 July 1991) was a South African industrialist and the founder of Toyota South Africa.

Toyota South Africa can trace its roots back to 1961, when Wessels obtained a permit to import ten Toyopet Stout pickup trucks (popularly known as bakkies in South Africa) from Japan. Toyota products proved to be very popular in South Africa and by 1968 Toyota had become the largest producer of commercial vehicles in the country; in the same year it was also chosen as "company of the year" by the South African financial press.

Albert Wessels was succeeded as chief executive officer of Toyota South Africa by his son, Bert Wessels, in 1988; Bert also became the company's executive chairman on his father's death.

He married the South African poet Elisabeth Eybers in 1937, but the couple - who had three daughters and a son - divorced in 1961. However, the Albert Wessels Trust continued to fund the Elisabeth Eybers Prize.

Wessels published an autobiography, Farmboy and Industrialist, in 1987.

References

1908 births
1991 deaths
20th-century South African businesspeople

Albert Wessels


Jharkhande Rai was an Indian Communist politician. He belonged to Bhumihar community and was an eminent leader and one of the pillars of the Communist Party of India in Purvanchal, Uttar Pradesh. He was elected to the 4th Lok Sabha, 5th Lok Sabha and 7th Lok Sabha in 1967, 1971 and 1980 from Ghosi constituency. He held the seat till he died on 17 March 1984. Till the late 1980s, the communist movement in eastern U.P. was a major force to reckon with. It drew wide support from a largely agrarian society, in which neither religion nor caste was a factor and Jharkhande Rai represented the aspirations of the toiling masses.

Early life and education
Jharkhande Rai was son of late Shri Radhe Rai born at Amila Village, Azamgarh District in 1914. For education he took admission at Government High School, Basti and Government Jubilee High School, Gorakhpur. He completed his graduation from Ewing Christian College, Allahabad and Allahabad University. He married Smt. Kamla Devi in 1926 and he had 1 son and 1 daughter. By profession he was an  agriculturist and social & political worker. He was previously associated with Hindustan Socialist Republican Army (H.S.R.A.) and Revolutionary Socialist Party; suffered imprisonment for 8 years during the British regime; sentenced to imprisonment for 21 years for taking part in Pipridih Conspiracy case, Ghazipur Arms Conspiracy Case and Lucknow Conspiracy Case and was released after Independence. He was imprisoned 18 times after Independence.

Positions Held

1. Cabinet Minister for Food, Uttar Pradesh Sanyukta Vidayak Dal Government in 1967 led by Charan Singh and resigned from the Cabinet owing to differences on the issue of distribution of land to landless.

2. President, (i) Intermediate College, Amila Aramgarh and (ii) Intermediate College, Sonadih, Aramgarh

3. Treasurer, All India Kisan Sabha, Feroz Shah Road, New Delhi

4. Vice-President, U.P. Kisan Sabha, Lucknow;

4. Member, Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, 1952-68 from Goshi Vidhan Sabha

5. Chairman, Public Accounts Committee, U.P. Legislative Assembly for 21- years

6. Member, (i) Fourth Lok Sabha, 1968–71 and (ii) Fifth Lok Sabha, 1971-77. (iii) Seventh Lok sabha 1980-1984

Social activities

Library work; relief work; emancipation movements of down-trodden.

Favorite pastime and recreation

Reading, writing and gardening.

Special interests

Political discussions.

Publications

Written several books on History and Political Subjects, e.g., (i) August Vidroh, (ii) Krantikari Janvadi, (iii) Bhumi Sudhar Aur Bhumi Andolan, (iv) Gopalan Ke Naam Khula Patra, (v) Pant Shahi Ko Chunoti, (vi) Kranti Kariyun Ke Sansmaran, (vii) Bharatiya Krantikari Andolan Ek Vishleshan and (viii) Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

Travels abroad

Nepal, U.S.S.R., and Bulgaria.

References

Indian communists
Communist Party of India politicians from Uttar Pradesh
People from Mau district
1984 deaths
India MPs 1967–1970
India MPs 1971–1977
India MPs 1980–1984
Year of birth missing
Lok Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh

Jharkhande Rai


"The Song of Australia" was written by English-born poet Caroline Carleton in 1859 for a competition sponsored by the Gawler Institute.  The music for the song was composed by the German-born Carl Linger (1810-1862), a prominent member of the Australian Forty-Eighters. It is also notable for being one of the entrants in the referendum to choose a new Australian National Anthem, where it was preferred by South Australia, but lost in the other states to "Advance Australia Fair".

Contest
On 1 October 1859, the South Australian Register announced:

Announcing the winner and the second stage of the competition:

And the announcement of the winner:

Lyrics
This is the poem as published in The South Australian Register on 21 October 1859:

Criticism
Publication of Caroline Carleton's poem caused an immediate controversy; that it was nice poetry, but "too tame"; one regretted that nothing more inspiring than the colour of the sky and the prettiness of the scenery could be found for the poem; one wondered "how hidden wealth could gleam in the darkness" and so on, another that it could equally refer to, say, California, while another longed for a time when such a peaceful song accorded with international politics, and regretted that the contest was restricted to South Australians, that the prize was so paltry, and there was no mention of sheep.

The Advertiser of 24 October, gave a spirited defence of the judges, and of Mrs. Carleton's poem, culminating in several parodies purporting to be the "real Song of Australia".

Performances and public reaction
One of its first public performances was for a South Australian Institute soirée at White's Rooms, King William Street, on 14 December 1859 by the Adelaide Liedertafel, conducted by Herr Linger.

The song, played by orchestra and chorus under Professor Joshua Ives, was a feature of the opening ceremony of the Adelaide Jubilee International Exhibition in 1887.

The song was a particular favourite of the Australian baritone Peter Dawson. who called it "The finest national anthem ever written". His performances included notably:
Recital in London as a duet with Richard Nitschke in 1905.
Duet with Clara Serena at Wembley on (the then) Australia Day 24 July 1924.
A gramophone recording HMV EA1003 of Dawson and vocal quartet singing "Song of Australia" was released in 1932.

Proposed national anthem
In 1924, South Australian MP George Edwin Yates proposed in parliament that the song be adopted as the national anthem. He proceeded to sing the first verse, despite the objections of his fellow members.

The song was one of four included in a national plebiscite to choose Australia's national song in 1977. Nationwide it was the least popular of the four choices, but it had the distinction of being the most popular choice in South Australia. This result can be attributed to the fact of "Advance Australia Fair" being exposed to schoolchildren in the more populous States, where "The Song of Australia" was sung in schools only in South Australia and, to a lesser extent, in Western Australia and Tasmania.

The four songs in the plebiscite were "Waltzing Matilda"; the then anthem, "God Save the Queen"; the now current anthem, "Advance Australia Fair"; and "Song of Australia".

In popular culture
The song features heavily in the TV series ANZAC Girls episode 4, "Love", when the Peter Dawson record is played on a wind-up gramophone in several scenes, and in snatches sung by "Pat Dooley" (Brandon McClelland) while digging a latrine pit.

See also
"My Bougainville", the anthem of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, sung to the tune of "The Song of Australia"

References

External links

More history of "Song of Australia"
Recording by the Royal Australian Navy Band in MP3 format

1859 songs
Australian patriotic songs
Gawler, South Australia

The Song of Australia


Harold "Jock" Barnes (17 July 1907 – 31 May 2000) was a New Zealand trade unionist and syndicalist, leader of the Waterside Workers Union from 1944 to 1952. He was heavily involved in the 1951 New Zealand waterfront dispute. His memoir Never a White Flag was published in 1998.

Biography
Barnes was born in Auckland to parents who had emigrated from Cumberland in England. They lived in Grey Lynn, and when he was four they moved to Mount Albert. He went to Point Chevalier then Edendale schools, and to Auckland Grammar School in 1921. Next year at 15 he became a foundation pupil at Mount Albert Grammar School. He left school in 1925 and joined the Lands and Survey Department as a draughting cadet. He married Freda Jacobs in 1928. Because of his political activities he was "transferred" to the New Plymouth office of the department in 1932, and on refusing to go was dismissed, which he appealed to the Supreme Court and to the Labour Party.

In 1933 he obtained a waterfront job at the Chelsea Sugar Refinery, but was dismissed for refusing to load two Matson Line ships, the Mariposa and Monterey, which had been declared black by American longshoremen. In 1935 he was accepted by the Auckland branch of the Waterside Workers' Union. In 1944 he was elected national president of the union.

Blacklisted from the waterfront and other jobs after the 1951 dispute, he worked as a drainlayer's labourer. After obtaining a drainlayer's ticket he went into business for himself with his son Bill, retiring in 1980 at the age of 73. He was president of the Master Drainlayers Association for 14 years, and a representative on the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board.

References

1907 births
2000 deaths
New Zealand left-wing activists
New Zealand trade union leaders
People educated at Auckland Grammar School
People educated at Mount Albert Grammar School
Syndicalists
New Zealand Labour Party politicians

Jock Barnes


Nicolas-Marie Songis des Courbons, Count of the Empire, (23 April 1761 – 27 December 1810), was a French artillery commander during the French Revolutionary Wars, who rose to the rank of General of Division in 1800 and served as commander of the Grande Armée artillery between 1805 and 1809, during the Napoleonic Wars.

Early career during the Revolutionary Wars
Born in Troyes on 23 April 1761, Songis des Courbons entered the Royal Artillery corps as a student on 1 August 1779 and became a Second Lieutenant in the 4th artillery regiment on 18 July 1780, and a Captain on 3 June 1787. He took part to the Wars of the French Revolution with the "Army of the North". When General Dumouriez was appointed commander of the army, Songis des Courbons was second-in-command of the army's 80 high-calibre guns artillery reserve.

Named interim chief of battalion in 1794, his promotion was made permanent in the 8th foot artillery regiment. Songis was transferred to the "Army of Italy" the same year, displaying exceptional talent and knowledge of his arm, which drew the attention of the army's commander-in-chief, General Napoleon Bonaparte. Songis des Courbons rendered invaluable services during the Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars, at the battles of Salo, Lonato, Castiglione. Impressed by Songis's battlefield performances, Bonaparte obtained for him the rank of chef de brigade (colonel) from the French Directory.

A commander of artillery in the French "Army of the Orient" artillery, Songis des Courbons campaigned in Egypt and Syria taking part to the numerous battles that the French had to give during this expedition. Named commander of the 1st horse artillery regiment in 1798, he displayed an extraordinary activity during the siege of Saint Jean d'Acre, in 1799. The bravery and intelligence he showed on this occasion deservedly earned him the rank of brigadier general. During this campaign, Songis des Courbons spent every minute he could spare studying his arm, earning the rank of general of division in January 1800. He took part to the battle of Heliopolis in 1800 and to the defense of Alexandria in 1801.

Returned to France with the army, Songis des Courbons took command of the artillery of the Guard of the Consuls. He became First Inspector General of Artillery and Grand Officier of the Légion d'honneur in 1804, then a Grand Aigle (Grand Eagle) of the Légion d'honneur the next year.

Napoleonic Wars
Between 1805 and 1807, General Songis des Courbons served as commander-in-chief of artillery in the Grande Armée, taking part to the army's great victories during the War of the Third Coalition and War of the Fourth Coalition. In 1808, he resumed his duties as Inspector General of Artillery and was created a Count of the Empire, thus becoming a dignitary of the Empire.

At the outbreak of the War of the Fifth Coalition in 1809, Songis retained his position as commander-in-chief of the artillery in the Army of Germany. In this capacity, on 11 May, just 10 days before the battle of Aspern-Essling, he was sent on a crucial mission to reconnoiter the Danube river line between Vienna and Pressburg, in search of a suitable crossing location. He then commanded the army's artillery during the bloody struggle at Aspern and Essling. After the battle, Songis was active in coordinating the set-up of numerous French artillery batteries, as Napoleon was preparing another crossing of the Danube and wanted to deploy his batteries in such a way as to deceive the Austrians into thinking that he would cross in the same location as at Aspern-Essling. However, the health of Songis severely declined before he could finish his assignment and Napoleon allowed him to return to France, leaving his command to General Lariboisière.

General of Division count Nicolas-Marie Songis des Courbons died in Paris on 27 December 1810, following a long illness.

Recognition
During his lifetime, General Songis was rewarded for his military activity. He was created a Count of the Empire, a title for which the letters patent were issued on 1 April 1809, thus making him a dignitary of the Empire. He was also made a Knight of the Iron Crown, a military order in the Kingdom of Italy. On 30 June 1807, Songis had also received the Polish domain of Zelgniewo, in the Bromberg department, as well as an endowment of 30,000 Francs paid by the Kingdom of Westphalia and another of 5,882 Francs on the Empire's Grand Livre. Additionally, he received an endowment of 100,000 Francs for the purchase of a Hôtel particulier.

As a recognition to his military merits, General Songis is buried at the Panthéon in Paris, alongside other fellow soldiers of the Napoleonic Wars.

The name SONGIS is inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe, Eastern Pillar.

References

Sources

  Fierro, Alfredo; Palluel-Guillard, André; Tulard, Jean - "Histoire et Dictionnaire du Consulat et de l'Empire", Éditions Robert Laffont,
  Gotteri, Nicole - "Grands dignitaires du Premier Empire", NEL, 1990,
  Hourtoulle, François-Guy - "Wagram, L'apogée de l'Empire", Histoire & Collections,
  Mullié, Charles - "Biographie des célébrités militaires des armées de terre et de mer de 1789 à 1850"

  Tulard, Jean - "Dictionnaire Napoléon"; volume 1, Librairie Artème Fayard, 1999,

French military personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars
French commanders of the Napoleonic Wars
People from Troyes
1761 births
1810 deaths
Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe

Nicolas-Marie Songis des Courbons


Rhamphorhynchus is a genus of long-tailed pterosaurs in the Upper Jurassic. It is the best-known of the long-tailed pterosaurs, the sub-order Rhamphorynchoidea.

Rhamphorhynchus had a long tail, stiffened with ligaments, which ended in a small diamond-shaped rudder on the end of its tail which helped keep it stable when it was flying.

The jaws of Rhamphorhynchus housed needle-like teeth, which were angled forward, with a curved, sharp, beak-like tip lacking teeth. Their diet was mainly fish and insects.

Like other pterosaurs, its body was covered with hairs, which suggests it had termperature regulation ('hot-blooded') and a high rate of metabolism. This is also found in birds and bats, and seems necessary for active flight.

The genus was quite successful: it is the most common pterosaur found in the Solnhofen limestone beds in Bavaria, Germany. These are the same strata where Archaeopteryx was found.

Rhamphorhynchoids
This early group flourished from the Upper Triassic to the end of the Jurassic. When we first see them in the fossil record they have developed three families, so biologists know their early evolution is not yet revealed.p240, 246 These three families are represented by the three genera Rhamphorhynchus, Dimorphodon and Eudimorphodon. This sub-order was the earliest kind or pterosaur, which were succeeded by the more 'derived' short-tailed pterosaurs, the Pterodactyloids, such as Pterodactylus. In the Upper Jurassic both the two sub-orders were extant (living).

The group always has a long tail, stiffened by rod-like bony tendons to keep it straight. This indicates their flight was extremely stable, which means it kept on course, and did not dart about much. This feature is also found in Archaeopteryx and in early bats, and in insects like dragonflies.

It can be interpreted like this. To dart about quickly requires special advanced brains and reflexes to keep control. Later birds and pterosaurs had extra 'control wiring' in their brains, but early ones did not. The evidence for this is the extra size of pterodactyl and bird brains compared with the reptile brains the groups started out with. That much of this increase is connected to seeing and flying is clear from how bird brains work.

The analogy would be planes. Early planes were highly stable, and so are airliners. Fighter planes are fundamentally much less stable, and have to be in order to jink about. This needs such fast reactions that the details are worked out by computer, with the pilot indicating where to go.

It requires more 'brains' to control an unstable craft than it does a stable one. And the same principle applies to pterosaurs, birds and bats. Early birds, bats, pterosaurs and insects were all more stable, with tails or (insects) long abdomens. This helped the flying animal to keep on track, which is what we mean by 'stable'.

All species in the group have teeth. The group died out at the end of the Jurassic, which suffered a minor extinction event.p270

Taxonomy
This classification is simple, but unfortunately it is paraphyletic, because the two suborders are not sister groups. But there is not enough evidence to see which earlier group the pterodactyloids arose from. So this is the best we can do:

Pterosauria
Rhamphorhynchoidea
Dimorphodontidae
Anurognathidae
Rhamphorhynchidae
Scaphognathinae
Rhamphorynchinae
Pterodactyloidea

References

Pterosaurs

Rhamphorhynchus


The Dujiangyan () is an ancient irrigation system in Dujiangyan City, Sichuan, China. Originally constructed around 256 BC by the State of Qin as an irrigation and flood control project, it is still in use today. The system's infrastructure develops on the Min River (Minjiang), the longest tributary of the Yangtze. The area is in the west part of the Chengdu Plain, between the Sichuan Basin and the Tibetan Plateau. Originally, the Min would rush down from the Min Mountains and slow down abruptly after reaching the Chengdu Plain, filling the watercourse with silt, thus making the nearby areas extremely prone to floods. King Zhao of Qin commissioned the project, and the construction of the Dujiangyan harnessed the river using a new method of channeling and dividing the water rather than simply damming it. The water management scheme is still in use today to irrigate over  of land in the region and has produced comprehensive benefits in flood control, irrigation, water transport and general water consumption. Begun over 2,250 years ago, it now irrigates 668,700 hectares of farmland. The Dujiangyan, the Zhengguo Canal in Shaanxi and the Lingqu Canal in Guangxi are collectively known as the "three great hydraulic engineering projects of the Qin."

Dujiangyan Irrigation System were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2000. It has also been declared a State Priority Protected Site, among the first batch of National Scenic Areas and Historical Sites, and a National ISO14000 Demonstration Area.

History

Planning

During the Warring States period, people who lived in the area of the Min River were plagued by annual flooding. Qin hydrologist Li Bing investigated the problem and discovered that the river was swelled by fast flowing spring melt-water from the local mountains that burst the banks when it reached the slow moving and heavily silted stretch below.

One solution would have been to build a dam, but the Qin wanted to keep the waterway open for military vessels to supply troops on the frontier, so instead an artificial levee was constructed to redirect a portion of the river's flow and then to cut a channel through Mount Yulei to discharge the excess water upon the dry Chengdu Plain beyond.

Construction
King Zhao of Qin allocated 100,000 taels of silver for the project and sent a team said to number tens of thousands. The levee was constructed from long sausage-shaped baskets of woven bamboo filled with stones known as Zhulong held in place by wooden tripods known as Macha. The construction of a water-diversion levee resembling a fish's mouth took four years to complete.

Cutting the channel proved to be a far greater problem, as the tools available at the time, before gunpowder was invented, could not penetrate the hard rock of the mountain, so a combination of fire and water used heat and cool the rocks until they cracked and could be removed. After eight years of work, a -wide channel had been gouged through the mountain.

Legacy

After the system was finished, no more floods occurred. The irrigation made Sichuan the most productive agricultural region in China for a time. The construction is also credited with giving the people of the region a laid-back attitude to life; by eliminating disaster and ensuring a regular and bountiful harvest, it left them with plenty of free time.

Turmoil surrounding the conquering of Chengdu by peasant rebel leader Zhang Xianzhong in 1644, and the Ming-Qing transition more generally, led to depopulation and the deterioration of the Dujiangyan irrigation system to the point where rice cultivation was set back for decades. The original Dujiangyan irrigation system was destroyed by the 1933 Diexi earthquake. The current Dujiangyan irrigation system was rebuilt after the Diexi earthquake in 1933 by Zhang Yuan (张沅) and his sons, including Zhang Shiling (张世龄).

In 2000, Dujiangyan became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Today it has become a major tourist attraction.

2008 Sichuan earthquake

On May 12, 2008, a massive earthquake struck a vast portion of west Sichuan, including the Dujiangyan area. Initial reports indicated that the Yuzui Levee was cracked but not severely damaged. Diversion of flow could still be seen as the river turns.

Engineering constructions

Irrigation head
The irrigation system consists of three main constructions that work in harmony with one another to ensure against flooding and keep the fields well supplied with water:

The Yuzui or Fish Mouth Levee (Chinese:鱼嘴), named for its conical head that is said to resemble the mouth of a fish, is the key part of the construction. It is an artificial levee that divides the water into inner and outer streams. The inner stream is deep and narrow, while the outer stream is relatively shallow but wide. This special structure ensures that the inner stream carries approximately 60% of the river's flow into the irrigation system during dry season. While during flood, this amount decreases to 40% to protect the people from flooding. The outer stream drains away the rest, flushing out much of the silt and sediment.

The Feishayan or Flying Sand Weir (Chinese:飞沙堰) has a -wide opening that connects the inner and outer streams. This ensures against flooding by allowing the natural swirling flow of the water to drain out excess water from the inner to the outer stream. The swirl also drains out silt and sediment that failed to go into the outer stream. A modern reinforced concrete weir has replaced the original weighted bamboo baskets.

The Baopingkou or Bottle-Neck Channel (Chinese:宝瓶口), which was gouged through the mountain, is the final part of the system. The channel distributes the water to the farmlands in the Chengdu Plain, whilst the narrow entrance, that gives it its name, works as a check gate, creating the whirlpool flow that carries away the excess water over Flying Sand Fence, to ensure against flooding.

Anlan Suspension Bridge
Anlan or Couple's Bridge spans the full width of the river connecting the artificial island to both banks and is known as one of the Five Ancient Bridges of China. The original Zhupu Bridge only spanned the inner stream connecting the levee to the foot of Mount Yulei. This was replaced in the Song dynasty by Pingshi Bridge which burned down during the wars that marked the end of the Ming dynasty.

In 1803 during the Qing dynasty a local man named He Xiande and his wife proposed the construction of a replacement, made of wooden plates and bamboo handrails, to span both streams and this was nicknamed Couple's Bridge in their honour. This was demolished in the 1970s and replaced by a modern bridge.

Geographical Conditions

Location

The Dujiangyan irrigation system, located in the western portion of the Chengdu flatlands at the junction between the Sichuan basin and the Qinghai-Tibet plateau.

Geology
The Dujiangyan irrigation system is located at the turning point of the two topographic steps of the western plateau mountains and the Chengdu Plain. It is the southwest extension of the Longmen Mountains and the area through which the Longmen Mountain Fault Zone passes.

Topography and Geomorphology
The Dujiangyan irrigation system is higher in the northwest and lower in the southeast. The west belongs to the southern section of Longmen Mountains, with the mountain elevation below 3000 meters. The east is Chengdu Plain, with an altitude of 720 meters.

Hydrology

The Dujiangyan irrigation system was built at the entrance of Minjiang River, with an average annual inflow of 15.082 billion cubic meters. There are two hydrological stations in the upper reaches of the Minjiang River. One is the Zipingpu Dam at the mouth of the main stream. The water catchment area of the control survey is 22664 square kilometers, accounting for 98.38% of the total water catchment area of the upper reaches of the Minjiang River. The other is Yangliuping Dam at the outlet of Baisha River, with a controlled catchment area of 363 square kilometers, accounting for 1.58% of the total catchment area. There is a catchment area of 10 square kilometers from Estuary of Baisha River to Dujiangyan lrrigation system, accounting for 0.04% of the total catchment area.

Temple Sites

Two Kings Temple

Erwang or Two Kings Temple is on the bank of the river at the foot of Mount Yulei. The original Wangdi Temple built in memory of an ancient Shu king was moved, so locals renamed the temple here.

The 10,072 m2 Qing dynasty wooden complex conforms to the traditional standard of temple design except that it does not follow a north–south axis. The main hall, which contains a modern statue of Li Bing, opens up onto a courtyard facing an opera stage. On Li Bing's traditional birthday, 24th day of the 7th month of the lunar calendar, local operas were performed for the public, and on Tomb Sweeping Day a Water Throwing Festival is held.

The rear hall contains a modern statue of the god Erlang Shen. Some say Erlang Shen was Li Erlang, but historic records do not confirm this, and it is possible that he was invented by locals as a false god. Guanlantin Pavilion stands above the complex and is inscribed with wise words from Li Bing such as, When the river flows in zigzags, cut a straight channel; when the riverbed is wide and shallow, dig it deeper.

Dragon-Taming Temple

Fulongguan or Dragon-Taming Temple in Lidui Park was founded in the third century in honour of Fan Changsheng. Following Li Bing's death a hall was established here in his honour and the temple was renamed to commemorate the dragon fighting legends that surrounded him. It is here that Erlang Shen, the legendary son of Li Bing, is said to have chained the dragon that he and his seven friends had captured in an ambush at the River God Temple when it came to collect a human sacrifice. This action is said to have protected the region from floods ever since.

During the East Han dynasty a statue of Li Bing was placed in the river to monitor the water flow, with the level rising above his shoulders to indicate flood and falling beneath his calves to indicate drought. Recovered from the river in 1974 and placed on display in the main hall, this is the oldest known stone statue of a human in China.

See also

 Turfan water system
 Grand Canal of China

References

AAAAA-rated tourist attractions
Canals in China
Chinese architectural history
Chinese inventions
Irrigation in China
Irrigation projects
Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Sichuan
National parks of China
Qin (state)
Tourist attractions in Chengdu
World Heritage Sites in China
Qin dynasty architecture

he:הר צ'ינגצ'נג ומערכת ההשקיה של דוג'יאנגין#מערכת ההשקיה של דוּגְ'יָאנְגְיֵן

Dujiangyan


Llanddoged is a small village which lies in the hills a little over a mile to the north of Llanrwst, in Conwy county borough, Wales.  The village itself has a small population, with a surrounding rural farming community.  Most of the population are Welsh speakers.  Llanddoged shares its community council with the rural community of Maenan.
Llanddoged has two small hamlets attached to it - Groesffordd and Tan-Lan. Groesffordd has a motor repair garage known as 'Garej Groesffordd'. Tan-lan was known for its notorious bends on the A470 where, before road improvements, many road traffic collisions had occurred. Tan-lan is also home to an Environment Agency Wales depot.

Amenities
It has a primary school, Ysgol Llanddoged, and education is delivered through the medium of Welsh. Many of the children at the school are from Llanddoged or Maenan but some also from Llanrwst. The school hall also acts as a community centre.  Several organisations such as 'Merched y Wawr' and the Women's Institute also meet here.

The village has views on the many walking paths and routes that circle it. There is also a small playground park and playing field, known as 'Cae Cetyn'.

The parish church is called Eglwys St Doged, after whom the village is named. The church is part of the diocese of St Asaph within the Church in Wales.  Services are conducted Bilingually every Sunday from 9:30 to 10:30.

Ras Fawr Llanddoged
Every year the village is host to 'Ras fawr Llanddoged' (Welsh for: Llanddoged's Great Race).  The race is run over 10 km, mostly uphill, course.  Approximately 60 people race each year.
The race was started by Arfon Jones, Ffrith Galed.

History
Saint Doged's Church, set in a circular churchyard in Llanddoged, was rebuilt in 1839, but was originally a sixth-century martyrium constructed to shelter the grave of Saint Doged.  It is Grade II* listed.  Nearby, the waters of Saint Doged's Well were reputed to cure eye-disorders. The church is open to visitors and inside still has the original layout, with a large seating box for each wealthy family and seats for their servants behind. Some old house names can still be seen on the doors. The area across the aisle was provided for the villagers to use.
The church also has three pews above each other, much like a chapel. The altar is at the front of the church, before the village seating but diagonal to the families with their own seating boxes.
An old well can be seen behind the church to which the myths above relate.
The church originally had 12 trees planted around it to signify the 12 disciples with Christ in the middle. Unfortunately, now there are only 10 trees standing around the church.

A Roman road passes close to Llanddoged, indicated by the nearby place-name: 'Sarn Ddu' shown on the map as the name of the local sewage works. Sarn, which means causeway in Welsh, has been commonly used to name Roman roads such as Sarn Helen, also in Roman Wales. Sarn is also used to indicate defences against water (flood, tide) where these, like Roman roads, involve significant built-up lines of layers of stones. There are also indications of a causeway.

A possible route on which this may stand is a NNW-SSE road starting close to the edge of the east bank of Afon Conwy, just SE of the Tan-yr-Allt building in Coed Bortho, facing the confirmed Roman fort at Caerhun, suggesting this road may have been to a Ferry or ford. It may have run SSE via Sarn Ddu towards Nebo, & the A5, but this is still being researched. Another possible route is a WSW-ENE road the route of which may run close to the nearby Caer Faban, another unconfirmed possible Roman site, in which case Llanddoged / Sarn Ddu may stand in the vicinity of Roman crossroads.

See also
 Llanddoged and Maenan

References

External links

 www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Llanddoged and surrounding area
 historical information

Llanddoged and Maenan
Villages in Conwy County Borough

Llanddoged


The Blue Ridge Railroad was incorporated by the Commonwealth of Virginia in March 1849 to provide a state-financed crossing of the Blue Ridge Mountains for the Virginia Central Railroad, which it became a part of after completion.

History
The early railroads in Virginia were privately owned, but often received partial state-funding through investments by the Virginia Board of Public Works, which was always keen to help with internal improvements in the state's transportation infrastructure.  The Louisa Railroad Company (renamed Virginia Central in 1850) was chartered by the Commonwealth in 1836 and had reached a western point around Mechum's River by 1852.  This railroad, which was planned to link the Piedmont region of Virginia with the Shenandoah Valley and points west, had found a planned crossing at Swift Run Gap to be financially unfeasible.

To protect its investment and enable transportation, the Virginia General Assembly then incorporated and financed the Blue Ridge Railroad to accomplish the hard and expensive task of crossing the Blue Ridge mountain barrier to the west.  Rather than attempting the more formidable Swift Run Gap, the Blue Ridge Railroad built over the mountains at the next gap to the south, Rockfish Gap near Afton Mountain, from an eastern point around Blair Park to a western point near Waynesboro.  Under the leadership of the great early civil engineer Claudius Crozet, the railroad bored four tunnels, from east to west:  Greenwood Tunnel, Brooksville Tunnel, Little Rock Tunnel, and the 4,273-foot Blue Ridge Tunnel at the top of the pass, then one of the longest tunnels in the world.  The tunnel was 'holed-through' on December 29, 1856, and was less than six inches off perfect alignment, as construction had proceeded from either end.  Rail service didn't begin until April 1858, although temporary tracks over the top of the gap were placed in operation by the Virginia Central as early as 1854.  This line enabled the Virginia Central to offer rail service over its entire length, which had reached a western point around Jackson's River Station, near present-day Clifton Forge, by 1857.  Due to the extreme grade of the temporary tracks (approximately 5.6%), the first train to cross over the mountain wrecked on its return journey eastwards the following day. The completion of the Blue Ridge Tunnel eliminated this grade.

During the American Civil War, the tunnels on the Blue Ridge Railroad were utilized as part of the so-called foot cavalry movements of the Confederate troops of General Stonewall Jackson.

After the completion of the tunnels, the Blue Ridge Railroad was operated by the Virginia Central Railroad (which paid annual fees to the Commonwealth of Virginia for its use) until it was bought by and incorporated into the Virginia Central's successor road, the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, in 1870.

Use of Slaves
At least three hundred enslaved African Americans were used to construct the Blue Ridge Railroad, either directly in the construction or indirectly  making materials such as bricks. These slaves were generally hired from owners in the locality.

Aftermath
After the Civil War, the Virginia Central and former Blue Ridge Railroads became part of Collis P. Huntington's Chesapeake and Ohio Railway and helped complete Virginia's longtime dream of linking its navigable rivers of the Chesapeake Bay watershed with the Ohio River, which led to the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico.

The Blue Ridge Railroad and the former Virginia Central Railroad are both now part of CSX Transportation and are operated under lease by the Buckingham Branch Railroad.

Three of the original four tunnels were either replaced by newer ones or eliminated around World War II. Over 50 years later, still passable in the early 21st century, portions of the old tunnels and route were included in a rail trail project. The $1.6 million project is planned to turn the main Blue Ridge Tunnel into a "dark, chilly and 'mystical' hiking and biking trail".

References

Defunct Virginia railroads
Predecessors of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway
Railway companies established in 1849
Railway companies disestablished in 1870
1849 establishments in Virginia

Blue Ridge Railroad (1849–1870)


Cecilie Landsverk (born 13 June 1954) is a Norwegian diplomat.

She is a cand.mag. by education. She started working abroad for the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1982. She was a sub-director from 1998 to 2001 and a head of department from 2001 to 2006, both in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2006 she was appointed Norwegian ambassador to Turkey. In 2011 she was appointed Norwegian ambassador to Pakistan.

References

1954 births
Living people
Ambassadors of Norway to Turkey
Ambassadors of Norway to Pakistan
Norwegian women ambassadors

Cecilie Landsverk


The Doomsday Prophets (Swedish: Domedagsprofeterna) is an opera by Wilhelm Peterson-Berger, to his own Swedish libretto, composed from 1912–17. It was first performed at the Royal Opera, Stockholm on 21 February 1919.

Background
Based on a story which the composer found in the journal Den svenska Mercurius (1759), the opera features several historical characters (Bure, Skytte, Queen Kristina), and is set in the university city of Uppsala just before the end of the Thirty Years' War in which Sweden became a major European power. The war increased people's worries about the end of the world and two academics claim to have calculated when Doomsday will take place. The opera's composition was completed during the First World War.The first performance was conducted by Armas Järnefelt.

Roles
Captain Lennart Sporre
Elin, daughter of Klas Mugg
Lars Bryngelsson, student, sweetheart of Elin
Klas Mugg, Elin's father
Östen, brother of Lars
Johan Bure, professor
Simon Wolimhaus, apothecary
Rector Magnificus
Queen Kristina of Sweden
Bengt Skytte, a noble, governor of Uppsala
Fru Kerstin
Görvel Mårdh, Captain Sporre's beloved
Johan Papegoja
Brita, aunt of Elin
Emerentia, daughter of Brita
Måns Korck, noble student
Johan Stjernadler, noble student
Göran Sperling, noble student
Arvid Ribbing, noble student
Professors, students

Synopsis
Act 1
The Muggen Inn in Uppsala on 27 May 1647. Due to a wager between the university don Johan Bure and Queen Kristina's apothecary Simon Wolimhaus, as to when the world will end (which the professor seems to be fated to lose), the innkeeper, Klas Mugg, and his daughter, Elin, look set to lose their home. Elin is in love with the studious but poor Lars, who is bullied by the 'nobler' students. (Lars's aunt is also trying to match him with her own daughter.) Lars gets arrested for threatening his tormentors with Johan Papegoja's pistol and is arraigned in front of a university tribunal, which could result in him being expelled.
Act 2
Outside Uppsala cathedral.
With Lars afraid for his future and marriage to Elin, army captain Lennart Sporre convinces Klas to let Elin marry Lars, in return for upsetting the wager, which he does by setting fire to Wolimhaus' dog kennel (this invalidates the terms of the wager as the fire devalues the latter's effects) under cover of a thunderstorm. He argues with the university officials that passing judgment on Lars when the end of the world is nigh is pointless. They ignore this and proceed to condemn Lars, but when the fire is discovered, he escapes during the tumult.
Act 3
On Uppsala Castle Hill. Lars is now in despair, wondering whether he should enlist in the army or emigrate. Sporre and the noble students sing a serenade to Görvel and city musicians assemble in the castle tower to welcome the queen. Sporre explains that the wager is no longer valid as the value of the properties has changed because of the fire (as he planned). As the brass blare out, Wolimhaus believes the Doomsday has arrived, but it is the Queen's arrival and acclaim from the crowd. Lars is pardoned, is able to marry Elin and Sporre gets his beloved Görvel. The two prophets are left confounded.

References

Operas
1919 operas
Swedish-language operas
Operas set in Sweden
Cultural depictions of Christina, Queen of Sweden

The Doomsday Prophets