Alauddin Johan Syah

Sultan Alauddin Johan Syah (died 1760) was the twenty-fourth sultan of Aceh in northern Sumatra. He represented the second generation of the Bugis Dynasty of Aceh and ruled from 1735 to 1760.
Rivalry for the throne.
Originally named Pocut Auk (or Pocut Uk), the future sultan was the eldest son of the preceding Sultan Alauddin Ahmad Syah. When the latter died in May or June 1735 the succession became contested. At this time, dynastic succession was not automatically from father to eldest son but was dependent on the approval of the three "sagis" (regions) of the kingdom. A previous sultan, Jamal ul-Alam Badr ul-Munir who had been deposed and exiled in 1726, now came forward and claimed the throne. Since Jamal ul-Alam was a sayyid, descendant of the Prophet, he carried a certain prestige. However, Purbawangsa, "panglima" (headman) of the XXV Mukims, one of the three Acehnese "sagis", proclaimed Pocut Auk under the throne name Sultan Alauddin Johan Syah. Jamal ul-Alam was ensconced in the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in the capital but was shot at from the fortress and withdrew to Kampong Jawa. While the XXII Mukims and XXV Mukims supported Sultan Alauddin Johan Syah, the XXVI Mukims supported Jamal ul-Alam.
Exploits of Pocut Muhammad.
The following civil war has been described in circumstantial detail in the Acehnese epic "Hikayat Pocut Muhammad". The hero of the story, Pocut Muhammad, was the youngest brother of Sultan Alauddin. In spite of the sultan's admonitions not to attack a descendant of the Prophet, Pocut Muhammad went to Pidië and collected troops. His efforts were successful, and he returned to the area of the capital with a large army. Jamal ul-Alam was attacked at Kampong Jawa and suffered a complete defeat. By dressing in women's cloths he was able to sneak away, dying some time later in Kampong Kandang. Sultan Alauddin Johan Syah was now acknowledged by the three "sagis". According to the various accounts, the civil war lasted for either four months or ten years. The dire economic consequences are mentioned in a Dutch report from April 1736: no ships from Aceh visited the important port town Barus in West Sumatra, "which was blamed on the demise of the king and the subsequent division of the kingdom between the son of the deceased and another one, who had previously ruled as king but had again been deposed."
New uprisings.
After the defeat of Jamal ul-Alam, Sultan Alauddin seems to have enjoyed a long and relatively peaceful reign. However, fresh trouble erupted in 1757 or 1759. One of the "sagis", the XXII Mukims, was governed by the "panglima" Sri Muda Perkasa of the Panglima Polim line, descendants of Iskandar Muda. He was dissatisfied with the trading policy of the sultan who tried to redirect trade and the collection of duties to the capital Kutaraja. He unfolded the banner of rebellion and marched against the capital, allegedly supported by 20,000 men. When he came to Lamsepong his troops came under fire from the sultan's soldiers. After having held out in Lamsepong for two months Sri Muda Perkasa withdrew. Meanwhile the Seven Years' War between the European powers affected the East Indies. Already in 1750 a French fleet is reported to have sought shelter in Aceh, to the consternation of the British in India. Ten years later two French warships under Comte d'Estaing cooperated with the Panglima Laut (sea commander) of Aceh. Acenese vessels accompanied d'Estaing when he attacked and captured the British ports Natal and Tapanuli (Sumatra's west coast) in February 1760. This was a prelude to Acehnese attempts to regain their power on the west coast under the next reign.
The circumstances of Sultan Alauddin's demise are somewhat murky; according to at least one chronicle he was deposed by the "panglimas", perhaps as a consequence of the rebellion of Sri Muda Perkasa. At any rate he died in late August 1760, leaving a son called Tuanku Raja. The latter was proclaimed sultan under the name Alauddin Mahmud Syah I but only found general acceptance in December in the same year.


Azerbaijan Customs History Museum

Azerbaijan Customs History Museum is a museum of State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, located in Baku, Azerbaijan.
History.
The museum was established by the State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan on March 23, 2006, with order No. 034. The work on the establishment of the Azerbaijan Customs History Museum was completed on the eve of the 15th anniversary of the State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan. On January 27, 2007, a section of the Museum of the History of Customs, the union of "Azerterminalcomplex" was opened.
In 2008 the Museum was accepted into the Azerbaijan National Committee of the International Council of Museums. Since September 2008 the museum is a member of the International Association of Customs Museums. In 2010, the "Azerterminalcomplex" section transformed into a branch of the Museum of Customs History. After confirmation from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Azerbaijan, the branch of the museum obtained its own fund and permanent exposition.
Exhibition.
Most of the museum's collection is arranged of cultural, scientific, historical and artistic cultural assets seized by customs officers and seized by the judicial authorities. From time to time most of these examples of art have been donated to museums, scientific institutions, and religious organizations, churches and mosques in Baku.
Exhibits of the Customs Museum are exhibited mainly in EU countries.
The collection of the museum is broadly focused on both thematic and regional aspects. The museum collection mainly consists of documents and photographs reflecting the customs history, as well as works of art created by various masters. The museum exhibition covers different periods, as well as exhibits exported for smuggling from Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijan Customs History Museum, which exhibits various antique goods and other works of historical and artistic value, is evidence of the fight against smuggling of customs officials and serves as a sign of observance of national interests and moral values. Until 2006, customs officers were transferring all confiscated art objects to museums. Later they began to systematize the found antiques, which were tried to be exported abroad.
The collection of the branch of the Customs History Museum has a modern fine art department represented by painting, sculpture, art and crafts. The first millennium excavations, carpets, oriental sculptures, copper items, ancient coins, antique and ancient icons, jewelry, firearms, weapons of the 17th-19th centuries, Quran and Bible copies, that were confiscated while trying to be exported from Azerbaijan are kept in the department. This department was created by the joint efforts of the museum and the Union of Artists of Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan Customs History Museum exhibits confiscated historical and religious books, icons, other religious and religious rites and historical and cultural objects that have been confiscated as of today. For the first time, a museum was established by the State Customs Committee in 1999 for the transfer of religious books and icons confiscated by the Azerbaijani customs authorities in relevant religious assemblies.
Philately.
Below is a gallery of postage stamps depicting the exhibits of Azerbaijan Customs History Museum


Mir Qasim

Mir Qasim (; died 8 May 1777) was the Nawab of Bengal from 1760 to 1763. He was installed as Nawab with the support of the British East India Company, replacing Mir Jafar, his father-in-law, who had himself been supported earlier by the East India Company after his role in winning the Battle of Plassey for the British. However, Mir Jafar eventually ran into disputes with the East India Company and attempted to form an alliance with the Dutch East India Company instead. The British eventually defeated the Dutch at Chinsura and overthrew Mir Jafar, replacing him with Mir Qasim. Qasim later fell out with the British and fought against them at Buxar. His defeat has been suggested as a key reason in the British becoming the dominant power in large parts of North and East India.
Life.
Upon ascending the throne, Mir Qasim repaid the East India Company with lavish gifts, as thanks for their support in his ascension to the throne. However, Qasim soon ran into disputes with the Company over trade issues, as they objected to Qasim's attempt to levy import and export tariffs on their goods. In particular, they objected to a 9% duty imposed of all foreign traders. The relationship between Qasim and the company slowly deteriorated, and he shifted his capital from Murshidabad to Munger in present-day Bihar where he raised an army, financing his new troops by streamlining tax collection.
Qasim vigorously opposed the East India Company's position that their Mughal license ("a dastak") meant that they could trade without paying taxes (other local merchants with "dastaks" were required to pay up to 40% of their revenue as tax). Frustrated at the British refusal to pay these taxes, Mir Qasim abolished taxes on the local traders as well. This upset the advantage that the European traders had been enjoying so far, and hostilities built up. Mir Qasim invaded the Company offices in Patna in 1763, killing several Europeans including the Resident. Mir Qasim allied with Shuja-ud-Daula of Avadh and Shah Alam II, the incumbent Mughal emperor against the British. However, their combined forces were defeated in the Battle of Buxar in 1764. Qasim also launched a brief invasion of Nepal in 1763 during the reign of Prithvi Narayan Shah, the first King of Nepal. Kanak Singh, a local Indian chief, had requested Qasim's intervention against Shah after he had taken Bikram Sen, the king of Makwanpur, hostage. Qasim dispatched a military force under the command of his general Gurgin Khan to invade Nepal. Khan was swiftly defeated by Shah's army, and retreated.
Unlike Siraj-ud-Daulah before him, Mir Qasim was an effective and popular ruler. Their victory at Buxar established the East India Company as a powerful force in the province of Bengal in a much more real sense than at Plassey seven years earlier and at Bedara five years earlier. By 1793 the East India company had abolished the "Nizamat" (referring to the Mughal suzerainty) and became completely in charge of the former Mughal province. Mir Qasim was defeated during the Battle of Murshidabad, Battle of Gherain and the Battle of Udhwa nala.
Death.
Having lost all his men and influence after his defeat at Buxar, Qasim was expelled from his camp by Shuja-ud-Daula on 23 October 1764; fleeing to Rohilkhand, Allahabad, Gohad and Jodhpur, and eventually settling at Kotwal, near Delhi ca. 1774.
Mir Qasim died in obscurity and abject poverty possibly from dropsy, at Kotwal, near Delhi on 8 May 1777.


Battle of Quang Duc

The Battle of Quang Duc took place from 30 October to 10 December 1973 when North Vietnamese forces attempted to occupy part of Quang Duc Province to expand their logistical network from Cambodia into South Vietnam. While the North Vietnamese attacks were initially successful they were eventually forced out by the South Vietnamese.
Background.
Quang Duc Province was important commercially for its vast timber resources and militarily for both sides in the war because of the lines of communication that passed through it. After the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) had closed surface travel from Saigon to Phước Long by the direct route through Bình Dương Province, the only land access available to the South Vietnamese was via Ban Me Thuot and Quang Duc. As far as the PAVN was concerned, Quang Duc was essential to the extension of its Route 14 out of Mondulkiri Province, Cambodia, and Darlac Province, South Vietnam.
Because Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) forces controlled Highway 14 as far south and west from Ban Me Thuot as the Tuy Đức crossroads (), the PAVN's new Route 14 had to pass through Cambodia and reenter South Vietnam in that salient of Mondulkiri Province that juts into Quang Duc near Bu Prang. The site of the abandoned U.S. Army Special Forces Bu Prang Camp was perched atop a high, forested ridge astride Highway 14 near the Tuy Đức crossroads at the Cambodian border. Before reaching the Phuoc Long border of South Vietnam's III Corps, Highway 14 was joined at the hill town of Kien Duc () by Local Route 344, coming over from the Quang Duc Province capital of Gia Nghĩa. This road junction was vital because its control provided an alternative route from Ban Me Thuot through Dak Song and Gia Nghĩa on Provincial Route 8B. Important as well was the road junction at Dak Song (), where Provincial Route 8B left Highway 14.
Until mid-May 1973 when the PAVN's projection of its new line of communication reached Bu Prang and while the South Vietnam's access to Phước Long through Quang Duc remained unthreatened, neither side paid much attention to Quang Duc. ARVN engineers were working on local roads, primarily to improve access to the timber forests in the northeast section of the province, and the only PAVN activity of any note was mining to
harass and delay this project. Only three Regional Force battalions were located in the province, supported by six 105-mm. howitzer platoons (12 guns), which had had no occasion to fire since the 28 January ceasefire. Additionally, 27 Popular Force platoons were scattered about the province. These were nearly all Montagnards, and the province population was 60 percent tribal.
Around the beginning of May, a Regional Force patrol, moving out from its outpost near Bu Prang made contact with a PAVN reconnaissance party and killed four. The rest of May and June were quiet until PAVN harassment of the RF positions around Bu Prang began in early July, evidently in response to the unusually aggressive patrolling ordered by Col. Nguyen Hau Thien, Quang Duc's province chief. Mortar attacks, accompanied by some light infantry probes, continued through July, as did RF forays into the old Bu Prang positions on the border west of the Tuy Đức crossroads. In the last week of August, Col. Thien tried a
reconnaissance in force with two RF battalions. Both met heavy resistance short of their objectives on the border and returned to camp. This inconclusive skirmishing took on an ominous note in early September when the first evidence appeared disclosing that COSVN had sent two battalions of its 271st Independent Regiment from southwest of Tây Ninh up to Quang Duc. The presence of a PAVN main force regiment was a new and dangerous development in Quang Duc. Colonel Thien asked for reinforcement and was given an RF battalion from Darlac Province. He complained about the poor performance of the Darlac battalion, and II Corps commander General Nguyễn Văn Toàn agreed to replace it with another battalion from Khanh Hoa Province. This gave Colonel Thien a force of four RF battalions, which he located at the mutually supporting bases of Bu Prang and Bu Bong (), each with a platoon of 105-mm, howitzers.
The 271st Independent Regiment had been roughly handled by the ARVN and Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) in the early months of 1973 in marsh and ricelands along the Vàm Cỏ Đông River and the Cambodian border in Hậu Nghĩa and southern Tây Ninh Provinces. COSVN had pulled it back to Cambodia in April for reorganization and recuperation. Afterwards the regimental headquarters and two of its battalions, the 8th and 9th, were trucked to Bù Đốp Camp in northern Phước Long Province, while the other, the 7th, was sent to operate under Long An Province authority. Leaving Bù Đốp, the 271st marched through Bù Gia Mập District and arrived northwest of Bu Prang in late August, ready to assist in the defense of the new line of communication and to deny the ARVN use of Highway 14 in the border region. Successive attempts by the Quang Duc territorials failed to gain any ground west of the Tuy Đức crossroads, while the rest of Quang Duc Province remained relatively quiet.
Meanwhile, PAVN preparations for the Quang Duc campaign continued. A task force headquarters, designated Unit 95, was established at Bù Đốp, and the PAVN 205th Independent Regiment was assembled there for movement to Quang Duc. The 205th had been operating since the ceasefire in South Vietnam's III Corps, and before moving to Bù Đốp it had been in northern Bình Dương Province east of the Michelin Rubber Plantation. Three more maneuver elements joined the task force at Bù Đốp before its composition was complete: the 429th Sapper Regiment, the 46th Reconnaissance Battalion, and a tank battalion (probably the 20th) from the COSVN 26th Armor Group. Artillery support was provided by the 208th Artillery Regiment, 69th Group, COSVN, which had been operating in Bình Long Province. Antiaircraft artillery, including 23 mm automatic cannons, joined the force as well as a detachment equipped with SA-7 antiaircraft missiles.
Unit 95 had reached division strength, but this was not yet realized at South Vietnam's II Corps headquarters. Given the meager defenses in Quang Duc, it was surprising that the PAVN leadership committed a force of such overwhelming size. The fact that it did so appeared to reflect the inadequacy of PAVN tactical intelligence and a respect for South Vietnamese capabilities. Such a commitment also underscored the importance attached to the principal objective-construction and protection of the line of communication. Much later South Vietnamese intelligence officers discovered that continued offensive operations by the PAVN's Quang Duc task force were designed to draw South Vietnamese forces into the province and keep them occupied, thereby reducing the forces available for employment against the PAVN's B3 Front.
By the end of September 1973, reconnaissance and survey parties from the 208th Artillery Regiment had selected firing positions and observation posts near the Tuy Đức crossroads at Bu Prang, Bu Bong and Kien Duc. Firing batteries moved into Quang Duc by the end of October with their 85 and 122 mm field guns and 120mm mortars. To ensure consistency in survey and firing, the only maps authorized for use in the 208th Artillery were the 1:50,000 series printed in Hanoi. The PAVN 205th Infantry Regiment, with the 429th Sapper Regiment attached, arrived in assembly areas near Bu Prang in mid-October and on 23 October the 208th Artillery began a five-day rehearsal preparatory to the attack. Meanwhile, the 271st Regiment with the 46th Reconnaissance Battalion moved toward Dak Song.
Battle.
The 208th Artillery began softening up Bu Prang and Bu Bong on 30 October. Each day 122 mm rockets and mortar and artillery shells fell on the two camps. The camp commander kept his four RF battalions outside the perimeter, patrolling near the Tuy Đức crossroads and the local defense of the two positions was the responsibility of an RF company, an engineer platoon and the two platoons of artillery. The attack began just before dawn on 4 November. The PAVN 205th Regiment, with the 429th Sappers and two companies of tanks and armored personnel carriers, overran the badly outnumbered and outgunned defenders. They destroyed
two ARVN howitzers, towed the other two away and outside the camps dispersed the four RF battalions. During the assault on Bu Bong, the commander of the PAVN 205th Regiment was seriously wounded and had to be evacuated.
General Toàn responded rapidly to the situation in Quang Duc Province, although he had only sketchy information concerning the PAVN's strength and dispositions. He immediately ordered the ARVN 23rd Division to pull the 53rd Infantry out of western Kontum Province and get it started toward Ban Me Thuot. As this order was being executed the PAVN attacked Dak Song on Route 8B, the only land access to Quang Duc from Ban Me Thuot. The defenses at Dak Song crumbled under assault of the PAVN 271st Regiment and Gia Nghĩa, the province capital, was cut off. But the 53rd Infantry was on the way and by 8 November, its 1st Battalion was approaching Dak Song. The 2nd Battalion, 53rd Infantry, was flown into Nhon Co airfield () west of Gia Nghĩa and began moving north on Highway 14 toward Bu Prang and Bu Bong.
Meanwhile, the PAVN 205th Regiment began executing the next phase of its orders: it turned over the defense of the newly won positions at Bu Prang and Bu Bong to another element of the task force and began deploying south generally along Highway 14 from Bu Prang toward the Doan Van bridge. In the early morning of 14 November, the PAVN 3rd Battalion, 205th Regiment, with a platoon of tanks hit the defensive perimeter of the ARVN 2nd Battalion, 53rd Infantry. The 2nd Battalion held, knocking out 2 tanks and capturing 9 crew-served weapons and 27 automatic rifles. The PAVN left 100 dead on the field. A second attack was repulsed the next day with moderate losses to the PAVN. The 3rd Battalion, 205th Regiment, had to be withdrawn as only 100 effective soldiers remained in the ranks. Despite these serious losses the 205th continued its advance south toward Kien Duc. With only the 2nd and 3rd Battalions available (the 1st was still engaged near Dak Song), the ARVN 53rd Infantry prepared to defend the Kien Duc road junction.
The 205th Regiment began probing these defenses on 21 November. On the 23rd PAVN leaflets were found around Kien Duc, signed by the Commander in Chief VC Forces, advising the South Vietnamese to stop trying to retake Bu Prang, Bu Bong and Dak Song and threatening to attack Gia Nghĩa with tanks if the South Vietnamese persisted.
While skirmishing took place around Bu Prang, Dak Song, and Kien Duc, General Toàn continued to send forces to Quang Duc. The 21st Ranger Group and the 44th and 45th Infantry Regiments of the 23rd Division began their deployments. In the highlands, the 22nd Division pulled back from western Pleiku in order to assume the defense of Kontum, vacated by the departing 23rd Division. On 28 November the 44th Infantry Regiment with a battalion of Rangers, attacked into Dak Song, forcing the withdrawal of the reinforced PAVN 271st Regiment, which pulled back toward Duc An, leaving blocking elements on Route 8B.
On 4 December the 205th Regiment, reinforced with the 429th Sappers and supported by tanks and the 208th Artillery Regiment, attacked the Kien Duc road junction, wounding the regimental commander and forcing the elements of the 53rd Infantry to withdraw 6 km east to Nhon Co airfield. Casualties were moderately heavy on both sides; the 53rd lost 40 killed, 40 wounded, and 80 missing. The 205th quickly began to replace some of its losses; about 100 fresh troops, recently arrived from North Vietnam, joined the regiment at Kien Duc on 8 December.
General Toàn flew to Saigon to report on the Quang Duc situation to President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu and General Cao Văn Viên. Thiệu told him not to be concerned about lost outposts, but to direct his
efforts to the destruction of the PAVN forces in Quang Duc. That same day Toàn ordered the 23rd Division commander to put his command post in Gia Nghĩa and to fly his 45th Regiment to Nhon Co. Within hours six C-130s landed elements of the 23rd Division at Nhon Co, although the airfield there was under intermittent artillery and rocket attack. That night and the next day, the 21st Rangers removed the last road blocks on Route 8B south of Dak Song. Casualties were heavy, but the first convoy since September soon rolled into Gia Nghĩa from Ban Me Thuot.
Although the commander of the 53rd Infantry had recovered from his wound and asked for the mission of retaking Kien Duc, Colonel Tuong, commanding the division, assigned the task to the 45th Infantry. This
regiment was fresh, while the 53rd's battalions had been in nearly constant action for a month. Following an intense and effective artillery and air preparation, the 23rd Division's Reconnaissance Company
and the 3rd Battalion, 45th Infantry, led the attack into the trenches, bunkers, and rubble at the Kien Duc road junction. The PAVN 205th Regiment was forced to withdraw with heavy losses; its 1st Battalion lost 40 percent of its strength at Kien Duc, and its sapper company was so decimated that it was disbanded after the battle. A rallier later reported that the 205th lost more than 200 killed and 400 wounded in its Quang Duc campaign.
Aftermath.
The 23rd Division, using its 44th Regiment continued operations during December and early January, primarily in the Bu Prang-Bu Bong area against the PAVN 271st Regiment's forces remaining there. With the route again secured from Ban Me Thuot through Gia Nghĩa to Phước Long. General Toàn's responsibilities in the highlands and Bình Định Province demanded that the 23rd Division leave Quang Duc Province to deal with more pressing threats.
In Quang Duc the PAVN exploited the benefits of prolonged and detailed preparation and capitalized on its ability to concentrate overwhelming force against lightly defended objectives. Although these factors combined to produce success in the initial battles, the South Vietnamese, employing rapid air deployment, close air support and artillery fire, and its experienced regular infantry won the campaign. The PAVN was denied the use of Highway 14 through Quang Duc, its line of communications in the border region around the Tuy Đức crossroads remained subject to harassment and interdiction, and the South Vietnamese were able to
regain and keep control of the logistical route to Phước Long. Quang Duc proved once again that the South Vietnamese, provided sufficient ammunition, fuel and maintenance support, could overcome the traditional advantages enjoyed by the attacker.


Vikramaditya V

Vikaramaditya V (r. 1008–1015 CE) succeeded Satyashraya on the Western Chalukya throne. Vikramaditya was born to Dashavarman (alias Yashovarman), the younger son of the dynasty's founder Tailapa II, and his wife Bhagyavati. He was Satyashraya's nephew and had a very uneventful short reign.
Vikramaditya V was followed on the throne by his brother Jayasimha II in 1015.


Ottoman Cyprus

The Eyalet of Cyprus (, "Eyālet-i Ḳıbrıṣ") was an eyalet (province) of the Ottoman Empire made up of the island of Cyprus, which was annexed into the Empire in 1571. The Ottomans changed the way they administered Cyprus multiple times. It was a sanjak (sub-province) of the Eyalet of the Archipelago from 1670 to 1703, and again from 1784 onwards; a fief of the Grand Vizier (1703–1745 and 1748–1784); and again an eyalet for the short period from 1745 to 1748.
Ottoman raids and conquest.
During Venetian rule, the Ottomans at times raided Cyprus. In 1489, the first year of Venetian control, Ottomans attacked the Karpass Peninsula, pillaging and taking captives to be sold into slavery. In 1539 the Ottoman fleet attacked and destroyed Limassol. Fearing the ever-expanding Ottoman Empire, the Venetians had fortified Famagusta, Nicosia, and Kyrenia, but most other cities were easy prey.
In the summer of 1570, the Ottomans struck again, but this time with a full-scale invasion rather than a raid. About 60,000 troops, including cavalry and artillery, under the command of Lala Mustafa Pasha landed unopposed near Limassol on July 2, 1570, and laid siege to Nicosia. The city fell on September 9, 1570; 20,000 Nicosians were put to death, and every church, public building, and palace was looted. Only women and boys who were captured to be sold as slaves were spared.
Word of the massacre spread, and a few days later Mustafa took Kyrenia without having to fire a shot. Famagusta, however, resisted with the Siege of Famagusta and put up a defense that lasted from September 1570 until August 1571.
The fall of Famagusta (with the death of Venetian commander Marcantonio Bragadin) marked the beginning of the Ottoman period in Cyprus, and Lala Mustafa became the island’s first Turkish Governor.
On 25 May 1571, Pope Pius V formed the Holy League, a coalition between the Papal States, Malta, Habsburg Spain, the Republic of Venice, the Republic of Genoa, and some other Italian states. Four months later, on 7 October, the naval forces of the League, composed mainly of Venetian, Spanish, and Papal ships under the command of Don John of Austria, defeated the Turkish fleet at the Battle of Lepanto in one of the decisive battles of world history. The victory over the Ottomans, however, came too late to help Cyprus, and the island remained under Ottoman rule for the next three centuries.
In 1573 the Venetians left Cyprus, removing the influence of the Roman Catholic Church.
Administrative history.
As soon as Nicosia was conquered, Cyprus was declared an eyalet under the administration of a beylerbey, and Mustafa Pasha, the former beylerbey of Avlonya, was appointed to the post. Cyprus was divided into three sanjaks: Famagusta, Kyrenia and Paphos. Additionally, the sanjaks of Alâiye, Tarsus, İçel, Sis, Zülkadriye and Tripoli (Trablusşam) on the mainland were placed under the administration of the Cyprus eyalet. Cyprus was also divided into several "kaza"s: Tuzla, Limassol, Episkopi, Kythrea, Paphos, Kukla, Lefka, Morphou, Hirsofu, Famagusta, Kyrenia and Mesariye.
These "kaza"s each had their own "kadı" or "naib". The sanjak of Tripoli, however, was removed from the jurisdiction of Cyprus in 1573 due to its distance and given to the Damascus Eyalet. The sanjaks of İçel, Alâiye and Tarsus were also removed in 1610 and given to the newly created Adana Eyalet.
However, after the Ottoman conquest of Crete, the Cypriot Orthodox Church argued that Cyprus had lost importance, that trade volume had decreased and that people were emigrating. It thus requested a change in the administrative status as Cyprus could not afford remaining an eyalet. Thus, in 1670, Cyprus became a sanjak under the Eyalet of the Archipelago, under the direct control of the Kapudan Pasha, the head of the Ottoman Navy. This control was exercised through an appointed "mütesellim". However, under this system, local aghas were the tax collectors. This magnified their power and resulted in discontent, with the rivalry between them causing a two-year long revolt in the 1680s, led by Boyacıoğlu Mehmed Agha. This proved that the existing system caused a power vacuum and was ineffective, so in 1703 Cyprus was placed directly under the control of the Grand Vizier, administered on his behalf by a "muhassıl". To reduce the powers of the aghas, the "muhassıl" was given the power to collect taxes, as well as increased political and military authority. Between 1745 and 1748, Cyprus briefly became an eyalet again. These three years, especially the reign of governor Ebubekir Pasha (1746–48), were a period of development and relative prosperity. After the end of Ebubekir Pasha's tenure, Cyprus reverted to its former status.
Greek Cypriots had two very important administrative positions: the Archbishop, who headed the Orthodox Church, was recognized as the sole representative of the Greek Cypriot population from the 1670s onwards, and the Dragoman, chosen from the candidates determined by the Archbishop.
The "muhassıl" administration slowly became more and more dysfunctional. In 1764, "muhassıl" Çil Osman Agha was killed amidst a chaotic environment caused by his rule. Meanwhile, the ongoing war with Russia meant a deterioration in the people's welfare. Thus, on the request of the Archbishop and the Dragoman, Cyprus was placed directly under the administration of the Imperial Council in 1785, with the "muhassıl" being directly appointed. These new "muhassıl"s lacked some of their old powers, which greatly increased the influence of the Orthodox clergy as they became tax collectors. In 1839, with the reforms of Abdülmecid I, the island once again became a sanjak of the Eyalet of the Archipelago but gained significant autonomy. The island was governed by a "mutasarrıf", the "kaza"s were consolidated into six larger "kaza"s with their own administrative and judicial councils. A sanjak administrative council, in which Turks, Greeks and other minorities were proportionally represented, was established.
In 1861, Cyprus became an independent mutasarrifate under the direct control of the Porte. However, this changed again in 1868, when Cyprus became a sanjak under the Vilayet of the Archipelago under the newly established vilayet system. This would not last long, as the vilayet was administered from Çanakkale, and the long distance made the administration impractical. With the efforts of Archbishop Sophronios III of Cyprus, as well as given the drought and ravages of locusts, Cyprus was made an independent mutasarrifate once again in 1870. This arrangement lasted until 1878, when the British took over the island.
Social history.
The Ottoman occupation brought about two radical results in the history of the island: A new ethnic element appeared, the Turks. The population of Cyprus, the Cypriots, now had a new ruler: the Ottomans.
The Ottoman Empire gave "timars"—land grants—to soldiers under the condition that they and their families would stay there permanently. An action of far-reaching importance because the predefined soldiers became the nucleus of the island's Turkish community. During the 17th century the Turkish population grew rapidly, partly by conversion (including converts who retained some pre-Islamic practices). Most of the Turks who had settled on the island during the three centuries of Ottoman rule remained when control of Cyprus—although not sovereignty—was ceded to Britain in 1878. The distinction between the two groups was by both religion and language.
The Ottomans applied the millet system to Cyprus, which allowed religious authorities to govern their own non-Muslim minorities. This system reinforced the position of the Orthodox Church as the ethno-religious institution of the ethnic Greek population. Gradually, the Archbishop of Cyprus became not only religious but ethnic leader as well, something the Ottoman Turks promoted, wanting to have somebody responsible for the loyalty of the Greek flock. In this way, the Church undertook the task of the guardian of the Greek cultural legacy until the island was ceded to Britain.
Greek independence movement.
1821–1829.
Many Greek Cypriots supported the Greek independence effort that began in 1821, leading to severe reprisals by the Ottoman Empire. On 15 October 1821, a massive Turkish mob seized and hanged an archbishop, five bishops, thirty six ecclesiastics, and hanged most of the Greek Cypriots in Larnaca and the other towns. By September 1822, sixty-two Cypriot villages and hamlets had entirely disappeared.
1849–1878.
In 1869 the Suez Canal opened, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland showed increasing interest in the island, which is situated in what had suddenly become a very convenient location. When the Ottomans were defeated by the Russians in 1877 and the Berlin Congress took place the next year in order to revise the Treaty of San Stefano which was signed by Russia and the Ottoman Empire according to terms dictated by the former, it was officially announced on 9 July 1878 that on the 4th of preceding June, the British and the Sultan had secretly countersigned the Convention of Constantinople by virtue of which the possession and administration of Cyprus was vested in Great Britain. As exchange for control of Cyprus, the UK agreed to support the Ottoman Empire in the Russian-Turkish War. This agreement was formalised as the Cyprus Convention.
Architecture and public works.
Architecture.
During the Ottoman era, numerous mosques, masjids, churches, public baths, bazaars, caravanserais, medreses, schools and libraries were built in Cyprus. Ottoman architecture in Cyprus is closely linked to mainstream Ottoman architecture, however, there are some features that make it distinctly Cypriot. This stems from the fact that, whilst leaving Greek Orthodox churches intact, many buildings used by the Catholics, built in Gothic architecture, were converted into mosques or palaces, such as the Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque in Famagusta and Selimiye Mosque in Nicosia. These buildings were later modified for use and thus synthesised with distinctly Ottoman elements. Gothic architecture also influenced Ottoman architecture in the island as Gothic elements were used by the Ottomans, such as in the minaret of Cami Kebir in Larnaca.
The two surviving caravanserais are the monumental Büyük Han and Kumarcilar Han in Nicosia, considered to be some of the finest examples of Ottoman architecture in the island. The best known of the many libraries is the Library of Mahmud II. Bazaars were very important parts of Ottoman commercial lives and in 1872, 23 bazaars were present in Nicosia alone, each with its own specialty. In 1883, waqf reports published by the British authorities in Cyprus listed 81 mosques that belonged to the Evkaf Administration in Cyprus. This figure is believed to be a major underestimation by archaeologist Tuncer Bağışkan. Two of the most prominent Muslim religious sites built in the Ottoman period are Hala Sultan Tekke in Larnaca and Arab Ahmet Mosque in Nicosia.
Infrastructure.
The Ottoman administration brought a significant improvement to Cyprus in terms of water supply. The most notable example of this is the Bekir Pasha Aqueduct, built under the auspices of Ebubekir Pasha between 1746 and 1748. This aqueduct supplied fresh water to Larnaca and prior to its construction, local residents had to carry water on their backs for two hours. Silihtar aqueduct, built between 1801 and 1803, and the Arab Ahmet aqueduct supplied water to Nicosia.
The authorities also encouraged the construction and improvement of artificial channels for water supply and irrigation, which greatly increased crop yield and allowed large-scale fruit production. Among villages described as prosperous due to artificial irrigation upon the British takeover of the island are Morphou, Lapithos, Polis, Lefka, Avdimou and Kolossi. Samuel Baker, who visited Cyprus in 1879, noted "mills turned by water" and "narrow lanes streaming with water" in Lefka. He also wrote that "every garden and farm was irrigated by water conducted from the mountains in artificial channels" in the northern slopes of the Kyrenia Mountains extending to the Karpas Peninsula. In Karavas, streams were diverted into artificial channels to supply water to the village.
In the 19th century, a major effort was undertaken by a series of Ottoman governors to straighten and regulate the course of the Pedieos. Edhem Pasha, who served as governor in the 1840s, completed the construction of the Larnaca-Nicosia road and several bridges. Governor Mehmet Halet in the 1850s further improved the road network and harbour of Larnaca and established a grain store and market in Nicosia to encourage cattle breeding.


Thimma Bhupala

Thimma Bhupala (died 1491) was the elder son of Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya, the King of Vijayanagara Empire. During the reign of his father, he was holding the office of "Yuvaraja" Prince Thimma succeeded his father in 1491 but was soon murdered by an army commander during a period of political unrest in Vijayanagara. He was succeeded by his younger brother Narasimha Raya II.


Kailali District

Kailali District (), a part of Sudurpashchim Province in Terai plain, is one of the 77 districts of Nepal. The district, with Dhangadhi as its district headquarters, covers an area of and has a population (2011 census) of 775,709 (616,697 in 2001 census).
Before the reunification of Nepal by Gorkha King PN Shah, this district was the part of Doti Kingdom. Nepal lost it to the East India Company after the Anglo-Nepalese war (1814-1816) between the then Kingdom of Nepal and the East India Company followed by territorial concessions of Sugauli Treaty. Later on after the treaty of 1860, Nepal recovered this land along with Kanchanpur, Banke and Bardiya.
Demographics.
At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, Kailali District had a population of 775,709. Of these, 41.1% spoke Tharu, 27.8% Nepali, 18.7% Doteli, 6.2% Achhami, 1.4% Magar, 0.9% Maithili, 0.8% Hindi and 0.5% Bajureli as their first language. The largest ethnic group is Khas/Chhetri makes 35% of total population. Tharu make 30% of total population, Thakuri makes 11% of total population. And Bahun and Sanyasi/giri makes 11% of total population and khas dalit makes 8% of total population. Madheshi makes 3% of total population. Magars makes 1.5% and Tamangs make 1%.
Administration.
The district consists of 13 Local Levels, of which one is a sub-metropolitan city, six are urban municipalities and six are rural municipalities. These are as follows:


The Mahabharata Secret

The Mahabharata Secret is the debut novel by Indian author Christopher C. Doyle and was released on 21 October 2013 by Om Books. The story follows Vijay and his friends, as they try to decipher a series of clues which would lead them to a devastating Secret hidden by a brotherhood known as the Nine Men. Doyle had initially started writing a story for his daughter, which gradually expanded into the book. The author was primarily inspired by the Indian epic "Mahabharata", believing its events to be based on scientific facts. The book was followed by Doyle's second novel, "", which is the first book in a planned trilogy of sequels.
Doyle believes in the possibility of the existence of a secret history which was probably not recorded in antiquity. While researching he also came across legends prevalent about King Ashoka and linked the story with him. Following its release, "The Mahabharata Secret" was a commercial success, which enabled the author to get signed for further thriller novels based on the subject matter and was also nominated for the 2014 Crossword Book Award.
Plot synopsis.
In 244 BC, Indian emperor Ashoka finds a hilly cave with an astonishing secret. Believing it could destroy the world, he creates a secret brotherhood of Nine Men, who would guard the cave's contents through the centuries. He also removed the Vimana Parva chapter of the Indian epic, "Mahabharata", from its written transcripts.
In present day, Vikram Singh, an Indian nuclear scientist, is murdered at his fort in Jaungarh. Before his death he sent four cryptic emails to his nephew Vijay, who with his business partner Colin, childhood friend Radha and her father, linguist Dr. Shukla, start analyzing it. They are aided by Bheem Singh, current owner of Rajvirgarh fort and Greg White, an archaeologist mentioned in Vikram's emails. The group deduce that the emails refer to the Nine Men and their secret, which can be revealed by using a metal disc, a key, a ball of rock and a riddle. Their mission is interrupted by a man called Farooq, a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant. The group find that the metal disc and the key together point to the Edicts of Ashoka. They travel to Bairat and find a hidden library of the Nine, but are imprisoned inside by Farooq and his men. The group find an alternate route and the ball of rock.
In the meantime, Intelligence Bureau (IB) official Imran Kidwai gets information about Farooq and starts investigating. Vijay and his friends travel to the Barabar Caves in Bihar after interpreting a clue in Bairat. Inside the caves they unearth another such ball with inscriptions on it. However, Vijay and Radha are kidnapped by Farooq. Imran suspects Bheem Singh and investigates in his basement, but gets caught. Bheem explains that the Vimana Parva of the "Mahabharata" spoke about ancient arsenal which could be made invisible by covering them with an undisclosed element, thus making them fatal. This was what the Nine tried to protect. Imran understands that Bheem was allied with Farooq and were trying to discover the secret location of the weapons. In an ensuing conflict, Bheem's attack on Imran backfires and he himself is killed.
Farooq had given 48 hours time to Vijay's friends to decipher the meaning of the final clue in the ball. They unearth the final secret to be at Hazaribagh, atop a hill called Marang Buru. Farooq and his men escape with Vijay on being notified of Imran's advance, leaving Radha behind. As the whole group reaches Marang Buru, there it is revealed that Greg was actually an assassin employed by Farooq called Murphy, impersonating the real Greg White. On Farooq's insistence, Vijay and Colin enter the hill and through numerous chambers reach the secret vault of the Nine. There they discover the giant artillery, including the nuclear weapons. Farooq and his henchmen start collecting the weapons, unaware that Imran and Indian commandos had surrounded them. Colin, Shukla and Vijay are rescued and reunite with Radha, with Imran driving them away from Hazaribagh. A mistimed grenade blasts the secret cavern, destroying the hillside and killing off Farooq and the others, thereby wiping out the Nine's secret.
A few days later, Vijay re-reads his uncle's e-mails and finds another clue, directing him to the vicinity of Jaungarh fort. There he finds a secret chamber containing the documents belonging to the Nine, as well as important texts, scriptures and ancient artifacts. A letter from his uncle reveals him as the last member of the Nine, and a request for Vijay to accept the guardianship of the documents. Vijay accepts and becomes a member of the Nine Men.
Development.
Author Christopher C. Doyle had studied Business Management from Indian Institute of Management Calcutta and runs a firm for training CEO and CXOs. However, he always had a childhood weakness for fantasy novels, being inspired by authors like Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, J. R. R. Tolkien as well as Robert Jordan. One day he started writing a novel for his daughter, who was interested in stories based on fantasy and science. However, as she grew older, she wanted a more mature story. It was then that Doyle decided to expand the story and write it into a full novel. He was inspired by a 1917 book he had read, "The Hindu History" by Akshay Majumdar, which wrote about an alternate history of India by combining legends and mythology. Doyle was also intrigued by the Indian epic "Mahabharata" which translated into "this is what happened". He thought about the basis of the epic in history and science and moved forward with his writing. Two other books contributed to his inspiration and research, "Fingerprints of the Gods" by Graham Hancock and "Uriel's Machine" by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas. His reading led him to the conclusion that the Mahabharata might be true, and he stated that:
And if the "Mahabharata" was true, then it was possible that some of the fantastic events described in the "Mahabharata" could have a scientific base as well, which no one has explored as of now. This fascinating thought lingered in my mind and propelled me to explore this aspect further. So that's really how history, mythology and science came together.
Doyle researched the legends surrounding King Ashoka, including those of the Nine Men, and Ashoka's alleged suppression of science. Doyle says he used such legends to develop a plot about the brotherhood of the Nine, setting it between 200 BC and 500 BC. Doyle visited The Asiatic Society in Kolkata to review material on Ashoka and emperor's edicts that are preserved there. Doyle stated that it took him two years to finalize and complete "The Mahabharata Secret". According to Doyle, the fictional weapon in the book "used a totally different scientific concept which I had to build from scratch. The use of hard core science and accepted scientific fact to explain mythology was something that makes my books different".
Release and reception.
"The Mahabharata Secret" was released by Om Books on 21 October 2013. Following its release, the book was a commercial success, selling over 100,000 copies within two years. It was nominated for the 2014 Crossword Book Award with Vivek Tejuja of Scroll.in giving a positive feedback, comparing the novel with that of author Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" (2003), and adding "A suspense thriller served with large helpings of history makes for a good in-flight read." Seeing the success of the book, Westland Publishers signed Doyle to write a thriller trilogy inspired by the "Mahabharata". "", Doyle's second novel and the first in the planned trilogy, was released in October 2014.


United Nations Security Council Resolution 365

United Nations Security Council Resolution 365, adopted on 13 December 1974, after receiving General Assembly resolution 2312 (which regarded the Cyprus Question) and noting with satisfaction in unanimous adoption the Council endorsed the General Assembly resolution and urges the parties concerned to implement it as soon as possible, requesting the Secretary-General to report on the progress of the implementation of this resolution.
No details of the voting were given, the resolution states it was adopted "by consensus".


Bharat Mihir

Bharat Mihir was an Indian publishing company and newspaper which published in Bengal during the colonial British Raj. It had branches in Calcutta and Mymensingh (now in Bangladesh). It was banned by the 1878 Vernacular Press Act of the British government.


St. Nicholas Church, Klenovskoye

St. Nicholas Church - is an Orthodox church in Klenovskoye village, Sverdlovsk oblast.
The church was granted the status of regional significance in 31 December 1987 (decision № 535 by the executive committee of Sverdlovsk oblast Council of People's Deputies). The object number of cultural heritage of regional significance is 661610747140005.
History.
It is located on a hill in the central part of the village, next to the Siberian tract. Built and consecrated in the name of St. Nicholas in 1842. The building was closed in 1941. In 1987 received the status of a monument. Under the authority of the Russian Orthodox Church it was established in 1991. Since 1997, the reconstruction works.
Architecture.
The building is a model of Russian classicism, built on the project of Ivan Podyachev. The only, in volume-spatial composition, the rotundal building of the church in the Sverdlovsk region, represents the St. Petersburg architectural school.
To the round in terms of the temple part adjoin: in the direction from the east to the west a rectangular altar and a porch, in the direction from the north to the south four-columned porticoes of the Roman-Doric warrant. Similar porticos from the trehchetvertnyh columns make out an altar and a porch. Cylindrical temple volume crowns the dome on a low drum. Above the porch rose the bell tower, which harmoniously complemented the temple, its composition was based on the classic contrasting combination of longlines architecture. Above the rectangular volume of the first tier of ringing the second - cylindrical level rose, it was crowned by a slender spire. Facades in height are dissected by horizontal thrust, cut by rectangular and semicircular windows placed one above the other, completed with Doric frieze from triglyphs and metopes.
The leading theme for the organization of the temple interior was chosen arch. Large and small arches connect the wall pylons, cut through the walls. Together, the arches form a closed arcade, supporting a flat dome. On the walls of the church there are partially preserved murals.


Jayasakti

Jayasakti (r. 1146–51) was a king of Bali. He is known through his copper plate inscriptions, especially the "Prasasti Desa Depaa".
He was a descendant of the famous ruler Airlangga.


List of heads of state of Vietnam

The following is a list of the heads of state of modern Vietnam since 1945, from the establishment of the Empire of Vietnam to the present day.


Laosuchus

Laosuchus is an extinct genus of chroniosuchian known from the Permian-Triassic boundary of Asia. Two species have been named.
Discovery.
"L. naga" was found in the Luang Prabang Basin of Northern Laos, part of the Indochina block. The site was first discovered by J. B. H. Counillon in 1896 as part of the Pavie's third Mission. Counillon was tasked with mapping mineral resources for the French colonial empire. "L. naga" was discovered during a 2005 expedition to the area, along with remains of dicynodonts. It was later described by Arbez, Sidor, and Steyer in 2018. Its name comes from the Nāga, a snake-like deity that appears in multiple east Asian religions. In 2021 a new species "L. hun" was described from the Naobaogou Formation of the Daqing Mountains of Inner Mongolia, China.
Description.
"Laosuchus naga" is represented by a single skull and articulated left hemimandible designated as specimen MDS-LPQ 2005-09, stored at the Musée des Dinosaures in Savannakhet. The skull, roughly 26 centimeters in length, is similar in shape to that of crocodiles. Its long snout bore marginal labyrinthodont teeth with an average height of 9 millimeters. Its nares are similar in shape to "Madygenerpeton pustulatus." Like "M. pustulatus," it also has oval-shaped orbits that are raised above the skull roof, but the orbits are proportionally smaller. Its choanae are relatively long compared to other chroniosuchians.
"L. naga" has a number of traits that make it unique among chroniosuchia. It lacks palatal tusks, bearing only small denticles on the palate. Its pineal foramen is significantly reduced with a 1mm diameter("M. pustulatus, C. dongusensis," and "B. schumanni" have diameters of 2mm, 2.5mm, and 3.5mm respectively). A transverse flange extends from the pterygoid, contacting the maxilla. CT-scanning revealed an autapomorphic internal crest on the dorsal palate that follows the internal margin of the choanae. The parasphenoid bears a thin ventro-medial ridge, a condition also seen in "Discosauriscus austriacus" Its tabular horn and posterior squamosal contact, closing the otic notch.
There are a number of traits that "L. naga" share with other chroniosuchians. It bears a subtriangular fontanelle on its premaxilla, a poorly ossified braincase, a well developed pterygoid flange, and a relatively narrow parasphenoid bearing a crest between the basicranial joint.
CT-scanning also revealed the presence of canals within the mandible, snout, and bones in front of the orbit. The canals in the skull roof are interpreted as being related to a lateral line system. Canals in the tip of the snout and mandible are more complex and could be neurovascular canals, which modern animals use for thermoreception, electroreception, or mechanoreception. The paleontologists who described "L. naga" suggest that the lateral line system was used to detect prey beneath the water surface while the neurovascular system could let it detect movement at the water surface similar to modern crocodiles.
"L. hun" is distinguished from "L. naga" by several traits, including reduced palatal dentition, with a few denticles present on the vomer and pterygoid bones, and an irregular posterior cheek margin.
Classification.
The two families within chroniosuchia, Chroniosuchidae and Bystrowianidae, are differentiated primarily based on postcranial elements, such as the shape of their vertebrae and the degree of overlap between their dorsal osteoderms. Thus, while "L. naga" has numerous characteristics supporting its inclusion to chroniosuchia, the lack of postcranial elements in addition to several cranial traits preclude their inclusion to either family. As a result, "L. naga" was classified as Chroniosuchia "incertae sedis". In the 2021 description of "L. hun" postcranial remains indicated that "Laosuchus" belonged to the Chroniosuchidae.
Paleoecology.
The depositional environment that "L. naga" occurred in consisted of braided rivers transitioning into alluvial plains, with an input of volcanic sediment. In addition to this, the presence of a lateral line system and poorly ossified braincase imply that "L. naga" spent much of its time in the water. According to the paleontologists who described "L. naga", Its placement in nonmarine sediment provides a line of support for the scenario that the North China Block, South China Block, and Indochina block were connected like a peninsula and linked to Laurussia during the Permian and Triassic.


The Mohammadi

The Mohammadi was a Bengali language monthly art journal. It was founded by Mohammad Akram Khan who worked as its editor.
History.
"The Mohammadi" was founded in August 1903 in Kolkata, Bengal Presidency, British Raj by Mohammad Akram Khan. The purpose of the Ahmadi was to shape a unique literary culture of Bengali Muslims. It was supportive of the two nation theory of Mohammed Ali Jinnah. It closed down for a while and reopened in 1937. It supported Pakistan and the partition of India. It moved to Dhaka, East Pakistan after the Partition of India. Muhammad Wajed Ali served as its editor for a while.
Its first issue in Dhaka was published in December 1949. It was edited by Mujibur Rahman Khan. A number of issues were edited by Akram Khan and Badrul Anam Khan. The magazine published stories by Bengali Muslim authors like Sufia Kamal, Shawkat Osman, Abdullah Al-Muti Sharafuddin and Alauddin Al Azad. The magazine because of its pro-Pakistan and Muslim position opposed Bengali nationalism. Its last issue was published in 1970, one year before the Independence of Bangladesh.


Kondapadumati

Kondapadumati is the name of a medieval dynasty that resided in the modern day state of Andhra Pradesh, India. They held the Kondapadumati or Sallapaschalya Vishaya, the country to the west of the Kondavidu range of hills, corresponding to the eastern portion of Sattenapalla Talug (of Guntur District) for one and a half centuries. They had their capital at Nadendla not far from Tsandavole, the Velanadu capital. They started off as subordinates to the Chalukya Cholas. The Kondapadumatis secured an important military success over the Kalinga and the Telugu Chodas and were allied to the Velanadu Chodas by marriages. A branch of the Kondapadumatis are the Kotas.
Origin.
They trace their genealogy to Kubjavishnu of the Chalukya dynasty and then pass on to Buddhavarman, the first ancestor of the dynasty. The Chebrole inscription says that Brahma was born from the navel lotus of Vishnu, from Vishnu born Buddhavarman. According to other inscriptions Buddhavarman served valiantly at the side of Kubjavishnu and received from him the country to the west of the hill which contained seventy three villages along with royal emblems. As Kubjavishnu founder of the Chalukyas of Vengi flourished from 615-633 A.D., his subordinate Buddhavarman must have flourished in this period. The Kondapadamatis were semi-independent for most of their reign and had their own coinage.


Front Palace Crisis

The Front Palace Crisis or the Front Palace incident () (Wang Na crisis) was a political crisis that took place in the Kingdom of Siam from 28 December 1874 to 24 February 1875 (93 of the Rattanakosin Era). The crisis was a power struggle between the reformist King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) and the conservative Prince Bovorn Vichaichan, the Vice King. Chulalongkorn came to the throne in 1868, Vichaichan was appointed Front Palace or Vice King in the same year.
The progressive reforms of King Chulalongkorn aroused the ire of Prince Vichaichan and the nobility, who saw their power and influence being slowly eroded. A fire in the Grand Palace led to an open confrontation between the two factions. Prompting Vichaichan to flee to the British Consulate, as a result the crisis reached stalemate. The crisis was finally resolved with the presence of Sir Andrew Clarke the Governor of the Straits Settlements, who supported the king over his cousin. Afterwards the Front Palace was stripped of its power and after Vichaichan's death in 1885 the title was abolished.
Prelude.
Vichaichan.
Since the elevation of Vice King Pinklao by his brother King Mongkut (Rama IV) twenty years earlier, the office of Front Palace had gained considerable amount of power and prestige. Since Siam did not have a law of succession, the position of Vice King was seen as the strongest claimant and was therefore also the position of the heir presumptive to the throne. The Vice King also had his own army of over 2,000 men, western trained and western armed. He also controlled a naval forces of several steam powered gunboats. The Prince also had a large share of state revenues over one-third of which is given directly to him for the maintenance of his officials, retinue, court, concubines and advisors.
In August 1868 King Mongkut contracted malaria whilst on an expedition to see a solar eclipse in Prachuap Khiri Khan province, six weeks later he died on 1 October. The young Chulalongkorn (who was only 15 years old at the time) was unanimously declared king by a council of high-ranking nobility, princes of the Chakri Dynasty and monks. The council was presided by Si Suriyawongse who was also appointed Regent for the young King.
During the meeting when one of the Princes nominated Prince Yodying Prayurayot Krom Muen Bovorn Vichaichan as the next Front Palace, many in the council objected. The most notable objection of this nomination came from Prince Vorachak Tharanubhab. The Prince argued that the appointment of such an important position was the sole prerogative of the king and not of the council, and that the council should wait until the king was old enough to appoint his own. Furthermore, the position was not hereditary and the appointment of the son of the former could set a dangerous precedent. The nomination of Vichaichan however was supported by the powerful Regent Chao Phraya Si Suriyawongse (Chuang Bunnag) who wanted to secure a line of succession by appointing an able and experienced Front Palace (as the first-in-line to the throne). Si Suriyawongse was determined, he retorted by accusing the Prince of wanting to be appointed himself, saying: "You don't agree. Is it because you want to be (Uparaja) yourself?" ("ที่ไม่ยอมนั้น อยากจะเป็นเองหรือ"). The Prince replied wearily "If you want me to agree then I agree" ("ถ้าจะให้ยอมก็ต้องยอม"). As a result, Prince Vichaichan, at the age of 30, was appointed Front Palace (Krom Phra Rajawang Bovorn Sathan Mongkol) and Second King without the full consent of the incoming monarch. The relationship between Chulalongkorn and the Vichaichan would remain difficult for the rest of the latter's life, based on this fact. On 11 November 1868 Vichaichan's cousin Chulalongkorn was crowned "Supreme" King of Siam at the Grand Palace.
Chulalongkorn.
On 20 September 1873 King Chulalongkorn formally reached his majority at the age of 20, resulting in the dissolution of the regency of Si Suriyawongse. During the five years of the regency, Vichaicharn decided to limit his role and power out of reverence for the Regent, who arranged for his appointment. With the dissolution of the regency, Vichaichan was ready to reassert the powers of his office. Unfortunately, Chulalongkorn and his brothers (the "Young Siam" group) were at the same time trying to consolidate his own authority and return to the Grand Palace the power it had lost since the death of his father. Spurred on by their Western education, Young Siam was intent on creating a centralized and strong nation under an absolute monarch. To achieve this goal, Chulalongkorn needed to implement radical reforms in all parts of the Royal Government.
In 1873 the king established the 'Auditing Office' (หอรัษฎากรพิพัฒน์, now the Ministry of Finance). It was created to modernize and simplify the collection of state revenues and taxes to the treasury. At the same time, however, it deprived the control of nobility (as landowners) over tax farms, which for generations had constituted a large part of their income. The following years the king by Royal Decree created the 'Privy Council of Siam' (สภากรรมการองคมนตรี). Copied from the European tradition, the council was an effort by the king to shore up his own legitimacy and to create an elite he could rely on. In their inauguration speeches, the forty-eight councilors pledged allegiance to the Monarch and his heirs.
These reforms infuriated the conservative faction at court, the "Old Siam" composed mainly of old aristocratic families, as the financial reforms eroded some of their old privileges. Politically the creation of the Privy Council meant that only royal favourites had access to political offices, depriving the old families of their influences. This group included Vichaichan, whose role in the finance and the government of the kingdom was slowly being eroded. Conflict between the opposing sides seemed inevitable. Vichaichan had the support of the British Consul-General to Siam, Thomas George Knox. He was originally recruited by Pinklao to modernize the Front Palace's armed forces. After Mongkut's death, Knox greatly preferred the mature and experienced Vichaichan — who was also the son of one of the most westernized member of the elite to ascend the throne — over the young, unknown and radical Chulalongkorn.
Crisis.
Fire within the Grand Palace.
In early December 1874, Vichaichan received an anonymous letter threatening his life. In response he mobilized up to 600 troops and quartered them within his own Palace. As tensions grew, King Chulalongkorn also mobilized his own troops. However, this underlined the fact that the Front Palace's guards both outnumbered and were better equipped than the King's men, besides creating great unease and tension between the two kings. On the night of the 28 December, a mysterious fire broke out after a small explosion within the walls of the Grand Palace. The fire quickly spread and was in danger of consuming the King's own residential halls and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha itself.
The Front Palace guards immediately set off from their quarters to help extinguish the fire. However, they were turned away by the suspicious Royal guards, who suspected the fire was started by the Front Palace as an excuse to enter the Grand Palace under false pretense. fortunately, the fire was soon extinguished. Vichaichan had remained in his palace, instead of leading his men to the Grand Palace. This was contrary to ancient custom, which dictated that he must take an active role in defending the Royal compound and the king in any situation. Using this as his pretext, Chualongkorn ordered his guards to surround to the Front Palace compound in attempt to contain the situation.
Once the confrontation began, Chulalongkorn and his ministers agreed immediately that the only person with enough clout to settle the crisis was the ex-regent, Si Suriyawongse, who was in Ratchaburi west of Bangkok. The king commented privately that he was being forced to "Swim to the crocodile". This demonstrated that the king was still incapable of asserting his will over the nobility, and needed the help of others to rule. Si Suriyawongse took immediate action, seeing an opportunity to redress the balance of power between the king and Vichaichan and perhaps increase his own influences. First, he advised the king to strip Vichaichan of the rank of "Vice King" but allow him to keep the title of "Front Palace". At the same time he wrote, hinting to the acting Consul-General a Mr. Newman (Knox having returned to England earlier that year) that given the situation, he should send a British gunboat to protect British lives and interests. The Royal Navy steam frigate was immediately despatched from Singapore to the Chao Phraya river for this purpose. Lastly, he wrote to Prince Vichaichan, hinting that Chulalongkorn favoured his execution as punishment for the crisis, when in fact Chulalongkorn only wanted to curb the Front Palace's power over men and weapons. This gave Si Suriyawongse the power to mediate between the factions in the crisis to boost his own control.
Escape to the Consulate.
In the early hours of 2 January 1875, Vichaichan fled his palace to seek refuge in the British Consulate (south of Phra Nakhon, in Bang Kho Laem) and under protection and support of the British Government. Vichaichan was immediately condemned by a council of high officials (convened by Si Suriyawongse), a resolution was written accusing the Prince of seeking foreign intervention in an internal dispute at the expense of national sovereignty and royal authority. Chulalongkorn intervened before the document could be passed, by suggesting simply that they should try to invite the Front Palace to return instead. Vichaichan refused reconciliation and remained in the British Consulate with the support of both the British and French representatives.
The king followed Si Suriyawongse's advice by having his ministers offer Vichaichan amnesty. As punishment he must relinquish the title of "Vice King", but again Vichaichan refused. As a counter offer Vichaichan wanted to keep his men and his revenues, with the British and the French acting as guarantors on these terms. Because of the last item the offer was rejected by the council of the nobility and the King. Lest as 'guarantors' the two prolific colonialists (the British to the west and the French to the east) see it as a right to intervene in future Siamese domestic affairs. After much discussion both Chulalongkorn and Vichaichan were pressured by Si Suriyawongse to compromise, however no agreement could be reached.
The crisis remained unresolved mostly due to the warm support given to Vichaichan by the Acting-Consul Newman and his staff. Vichaichan thus waited for British intervention and refused all reconciliation with Chulalongkorn. After the crisis reached stalemate, Si Suriyawongse advised the Consulate to seek assistance by inviting an influential person to intervene. On 5 January, Newman contacted Sir Andrew Clarke the Governor of the Straits Settlements to Bangkok presumably to mediate. Chulalongkorn himself had earlier written to Clarke at the beginning of the crisis in an effort to rally foreign support for himself. Clarke as it turned out was very sympathetic to the King's reforms and situation. The king and Clarke had personally met in 1873, when the king had his second coronation after receiving his majority. During that trip Clarke was extremely impressed with the young King's zeal for reform and his modern attitudes, particularly his abolition of the prostration and crawling required by subjects in the presence of the King. Clarke immediately requested instructions from London, pointing out that if Britain did not intervene then France would. The Colonial Secretary Lord Carnarvon quickly directed Clarke to go to Bangkok as soon as possible, for as Newman reported:"There is little likelihood of a settlement being effected, and trade and commerce are in a great measure stopped".
Arrival of Clarke.
When Clarke arrived in Bangkok on 18 February on (commanded by Admiral Alfred Ryder), Newman came on board to report that there has been no change in the situation. It was clear that Newman and the Consul's staff were on the side of Vichaichan and had wanted to support him against the King. They suggested to Clarke that Vichaichan should be sent to British Burma for his own safety. On 20 February Chulalongkorn formally gave audience to Clarke at the Grand Palace; the meeting took over three hours. During the meeting Clarke assured the king that he had no intention of interfering in the dynastic conflict of the House of Chakri, but he was determined to reaffirm the King's power over the Kingdom's finances and military against that of Vichaichan's powers. The Governor asked the king to dictate his terms in full. The king also gave reassurance to Clarke that he had no wish to harm Vichaichan, and displayed a conciliatory disposition towards his royal cousin. Afterwards the king asked Clarke to put the terms on paper.
After dining with Si Suriyawongse on board the Valiant, the Governor gave the 70-year-old ex-Regent a lecture on sowing dissension in the Royal Family and "the duty of thinking of his country before everything". He also called a meeting between the different consuls in Bangkok to put before them his plan of reconciliation between the two 'Kings'. He assured them that the terms offered by Chulalongkorn must be accepted and that it was in the interests of the commerce of all countries for the crisis to end. The consuls unanimously agreed with him.
Vichaichan meanwhile had also requested a meeting with Clarke by sending him a letter of welcome. Clarke, who has been purposefully avoiding the Vice King, asked for permission from Chulalongkorn before any contact would be made. After he received Chulalongkorn's permission, the Governor' asked Vichaichan to send a letter laying out his case, Vichaichan wrote that: "Some foolish men, wishing to change the customs and usages of the country, has turned the king against him."' The King, Governor Clarke and Admiral Ryder met again at the home of the American missionary Reverend J.H. Chandler, whose service as a translator was needed in the final document. The document itself ended with words from Chulalongkorn to Vichaichan: "I beg you, who sign these Articles of Reconciliation, to have Full faith in me that I will assuredly devise no mischief whatever to Krom Phra Rachawang [Vichaichan], which would be unjust, and I will keep to these Articles in every respect."
On the evening of 24 February, Clarke and Ryder dined at the British Consulate, finally meeting with Vichaichan. The Governor put before him the terms of the offer. After much complaint the humiliated Vichaichan was forced to accept Chulalongkorn's terms in full. For he had come to realize that these were the most favourable terms he could hope to receive and that the hospitality of the British was finite. That evening Chulalongkorn wrote to Clarke: "My good Friend, My private secretary has reported his conversation with Your Excellency. I am glad to agree that my cousin shall return to his palace quietly in the early morning, and come to me at eleven o'clock, when, as I must meet the wishes of my own people, I think it better that only Siamese should be present at our reconciliation, Your faithful friend, Chulalonkorn Rex" After spending a day and a night as guests of the king at the Grand Palace, Clarke and his company returned to Singapore.
Aftermath.
The final agreement stripped Vichaichan of the title of Vice King, although he could retain the title and office of Front Palace. He was allowed to keep 200 guards of small weaponry. From then on the king also had a monopoly on all ships, weapons and ammunition. The king also pledged to guarantee and take responsibility for Vichaichan's financial rights and interests once he had: "placed the Finances of Our Kingdom on a more secure and firmer basis, so as to [...] prevent the waste of our resources." The agreement greatly reduced the powers of Vichaichan, it also deprived the nobility and the conservatives of a leader who could really challenge the king and his reforms.
After the crisis Vichaichan was consigned to his palace and his role in the administration of the Kingdom ceased to exist. The crisis also led to the decline of Si Suriyawongse and to a large extent the nobility and the Bunnags themselves. Si Suriyawongse quietly withdrew from politics and retired after the crisis ended. The crisis also brought the end to the councils of the nobility, from then on only those in the Privy Council were given any role in the administration of the kingdom. The ignominious ending of the dependent relationship between the king and his nobles meant that from then on all ministers of state, high-ranking military and government officials were drawn not from the nobility but almost exclusively from the House of Chakri (primarily of Chulalongkorn's own brothers), a situation that was not rectified until 1932.
Although his power and authority for the first time since his coronation was unchallenged, Chulalongkorn and "Young Siam" decided to slow down and at times suspend their reforms altogether. Writing to Clarke a year later that he had decided: "to defer the prosecution of further plans of reform until I shall find some demand for them among the leaders of my people. I have not relinquished them, but act, according to my opportunities." The terms of his agreement with Vichaichan were kept until the latter's death.
Abolition of the Front Palace.
Vichaichan died on 28 August 1885 at the age of 47. After his death the office of Front Palace was left vacant until 14 January 1886, when Chulalongkorn's son with Princess Consort Savang Vadhana was made Crown Prince Maha Vajirunhis or Somdet Phra Boromma-orasathirat Sayam Makutrajakuman. The title of Front Palace the heir presumptive to the throne, which was first created in 1688 by King Petracha of Ayutthaya was thus abolished and replaced with an heir apparent, whose succession is to be based on the principle of male primogeniture. The new invented title brought Siamese succession in line with the European tradition. Prince Bovorn Vichaichan was cremated with great ceremony on the field of Sanam Luang on 14 June 1886.
The Front Palace compound itself was partly demolished, parts that remain were given to Vichaichan's consorts, daughters and sisters as residences (sons were excluded). Today all that remains make up the main buildings of the Bangkok National Museum. Lands from the demolished parts were given to the new Royal Siamese Army (which was founded in 1874 and benefitted from the merger of the troops of the Front Palace to that of the Grand Palace) as barracks and to the ministries of the new government. The Front Palace navy was also merged to that of the Grand Palaces' to form the Royal Siamese Navy in 1887.


Jumeira Baccalaureate School

Jumeira Baccalaureate School (JBS) is a Pre KG to Grade 12 school in Jumeirah District, Dubai City, the United Arab Emirates. It is a private institution managed by Taaleem, a UAE-based company and one of the largest education providers in the Middle East.
Curriculum.
The school is an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School, providing education from Pre-KG to Grade 12. The Pre-K and KG 1 curriculum is built around the British Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum, while KG2 to Grade 5 curriculum is organized around the Literacy and Numeracy programmes for England and Wales and the International Primary Curriculum (IPC). These are followed by the IB's Middle Years Programme (MYP), Diploma Programme (DP), IB's Careers-related Programme (IBCP) and the Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) National Diploma.
Campus and facilities.
The school spreads over 8 acres of landscaped grounds. JBS has a large multi-purpose auditorium/elementary gym, senior indoor sports hall, computer information and communication, technologies laboratories, well-equipped design and technology rooms, science laboratories, indoor playroom, 25m shaded swimming pool, two rooftop tennis courts, extensive grass sports pitches, sports field with changing facilities, two-storey library/learning resources and media centre, indoor and outdoor shaded learning spaces and playgrounds.
Languages.
The school language of Instruction is English. Arabic and French are offered from KG onwards.
Activities.
Students at JBS are able to participate in a broad range of activities offered including Yoga, Rock Choir, Cricket, Arabic Reading, Arabic Dance, Swim Squad, Football, Drama Club, Chess, Dance Club, Quran Club, Cooking, Spanish Club, Manga club, Kickboxing, Badminton, Netball, Tennis, Arabic Drama Club, DIY (students create and design different items- clothing, household, items, school stationery, etc.), debate club, Table tennis, Rock / Raggae Band, Designing and creating Arabic Blogs, Rugby, Arabic Calligraphy Club, Painting club, MUN (Modern United Nation), creative writing, Dodgeball, LEGO, school Newspaper, Basketball, and Guitar Club.
KHDA inspection reports.
The Knowledge and Human Resources Authority (KHDA) is an educational quality assurance authority in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. They are responsible for the growth, direction, and quality of private education and learning in Dubai. They have consistently rated the school as "very good."


Taj ul-Alam

Sulṭāna Taj ul-Alam Safiatuddin Syah (1612 – 23 October 1675; born Putri Sri Alam) was the fourteenth ruler of Aceh. She was the daughter of the sultan Iskandar Muda and the wife of his successor, Iskandar Thani. She became sulṭāna upon the death of her husband and ruled from 1641 to 1675, being the first of four women to hold the position in succession.
Marriage and accession.
The future sultana was originally named Putri Sri Alam Permisuri. In 1617, her father Iskandar Muda conquered Pahang on the Malay Peninsula. A son of the defeated sultan, the future Iskandar Thani was brought as a prisoner to Aceh where he was raised as the foster son of Iskandar Muda. In 1619, when he was 9 years old, he was married to Putri Sri Alam Permisuri. The couple was provided with a palace next to that of the sultan, called Sri Warna. After the death of Iskandar Muda, Iskandar Thani succeeded to the throne but died after a short reign on 15 February 1641. The news of his demise created grave disturbances among the grandees of the kingdom and some people lost their lives. However, after three days it was agreed that the sultan's widow would be enthroned.
Female rule in Aceh.
Putri Sri Alam ascended the throne and took the title Sultana Taj ul-Alam Safiatuddin Syah. Taj ul-Alam Safiatuddin literally meaning "world crown, purity of the faith". She became first of four queens regnant or sultanas who sat on the throne in the period 1641-1699. Given the strongly Muslim profile of Aceh, this has evoked considerable debate among historians. The enthronement of Taj ul-Alam has been seen as an effort of the Acehnese nobility to weaken royal power following Iskandar Muda's administrative reforms aimed to undermine them. According to this view, these efforts were largely successful. From her reign on the sultanate became a weak symbolic institution, whose authority was limited to capital city itself. Meanwhile, real power was held by the hereditary rulers of outlying districts (the "uleëbalang" set up by Iskandar Muda) and the religious leaders (imam or ulama). However, it has also been suggested that old Southeast Asian tradition, which acknowledged inheritance on the female line, was more important here than orthodox Muslim principles. This would have been the reason for the enthronement of Taj ul-Alam, rather than a conscious strategy by the grandees to weaken the power of the court. Closer analysis of the age of queens has furthermore pointed out that the period should not necessarily be seen as one of societal decline, that it was ruled by softer and more flexible hands than before 1641, and that Aceh after all was able to withstand Western pressure to the extent that it preserved its independence. In the rest of the East Indies, once-powerful indigenous states such as Mataram, Ternate, Banten and Makassar lost their autonomy or became heavily dependent on the VOC in the late seventeenth century.
Dutch advances on Sumatra.
The reign of Taj ul-Alam saw a contraction of the sultanate's power outside the Acehnese heartland. On the Malay Peninsula, Johor's subordinated position vis-à-vis Aceh was abrogated. Pahang was also given up; however, Aceh retained the tin-producing Perak. The Dutch East India Company (VOC) coveted the tin. After some preliminary problems, a number of Dutch staying in Perak were murdered in 1651. The VOC ships blockaded Aceh for periods before a treaty was made in 1659. Half of the tin of Perak would go to the VOC which also obtained the monopoly of trade on Acehnese ports. Furthermore, a trading post was permitted in Padang on Sumatra's west coast. The monopoly clause was not fulfilled, however. Meanwhile, the towns on the west coast began to seek association with the VOC. After secret negotiations the Painan treaty was signed in 1663 between the Dutch and a number of dissatisfied chiefs. In the next year 1664, Jacob Couw appeared with an armada of 300 men and expelled the Acehnese from the coastal area, from Indrapura in the south to Tiku in the north. Meanwhile, Aceh had to endure more Dutch blockades and was forced to sign new treaties. The west coast Malays nevertheless often preferred the rule of Aceh before the VOC "protection", so that Acehnese influence endured for a long time. On the east coast, Deli fell away from Acehnese rule in 1669.
Achievements.
In spite of these political setbacks, Taj ul-Alam was praised by both indigenous and European writers. The chronicle "Bustanus Salatin" characterized her as virtuous and pious, implying that her qualities made Aceh peaceful and prosperous. Likewise a Dutch witness asserted that she led a "good-natured but awe-inspiring" rule. She inherited a tradition of Islamic scholarship in the court. She was not as favorable to Nuruddin ar-Raniri as her predecessor, and he left the royal employ in 1644. The major writer in her reign was Abdurrauf of Singkil, who wrote on Shafi'i jurisprudence as well as mysticism. A proliferation of Islamic literature and learning took place under the reign of Taj ul-Alam and the three queens who succeeded her. This cultural renaissance was, among other things, conditioned by an effective collaboration between the queens and the ulamas. Acehnese Muslims are known to have appeared in Siam in 1668 with the intention to spread the faith.
Taj ul-Alam died on 23 October 1675. She did not leave any children. Her successor was yet a queen, Sultan Nurul Alam Naqiatuddin Syah, whose relationship with Taj ul-Alam is uncertain.
References.
https://historynusantara.com/mengenal-sosok-ratu-aceh-tajul-alam-safiatuddin/


Cobangbang Ancestral House

The Cobangbang Ancestral House is a heritage house in Manila, Philippines built in 1930 by Aurelio Cobangbang. It is located within the heritage zone of Santa Ana, the only district in Manila which was spared from destruction during World War II.
Architecture.
The two-storey ancestral house has a mezzanine (entresuelo) on the ground floor. Board panels at the facade of the house were arranged horizontally, while the walls on the lateral part was made of reinforced concrete. Galvanized iron sheets were utilized as main roof and canopies, and eaves have cut-and-pierced metal coffers. Soffits were pierced for ventilation and add a decorative function.
The entrance to the mezzanine is in the right lateral part of the house, at the side of the garage. An antique bed made from Narra tree as well as cabinets made of hardwood can be found inside.
Terrazzo stairs lead to the second level porch. Three steps of the stairs have been buried over time due to road elevation.
The porch has two wooden framed glass swing-out windows facing the street and another at the lateral side. Glass transoms were installed above the windows while metal grills are attached to the walls underneath each window. Ornamental brackets are noticeable on posts at the entrance to the second floor.
Original machuca tiles are laid on the second floor. More antique furnitures and furnishings can be found. One of the most remarkable furniture found inside is the round dining table - made from the root of a Narra tree, and was built the same time the ancestral house was constructed.
Aside from the traditional capiz windows at the left lateral portion of the house, rare patterned glass windows are also displayed. A tracery transom sets the dining area apart from the receiving area.
Since its construction in 1930, no renovations have been made to the house, according to Dr. Amelia Cobangbang, the daughter of Engr. Aurelio Cobangbang.


Ramechhap District

Ramechhap District (), a part of Bagmati Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal, a landlocked country of South Asia. The district, known as Kirat Ramechhap, with Manthali as its district headquarters, covers an area of and has a population (2011) of 202,646 and a density of 137.4 per km2.
According to LLRCNepal there are now eight local administrations in the district: Manthali Municipality, Ramechhap Municipality, Umakunda Rural Municipality, Khandadevi Rural Municipality, Gokulganga Rural Municipality, Doramba Rural Municipality, Likhu Rural Municipality and Sunapati Rural Municipality.
The district has the highest population of the endangered native group the Kusunda and has the lowest population growth rate in Nepal.
Etymology.
The district was named after Ramechhap village. The word Ramechhap comes from two Nepali words, "Ram" (person's name) and "Chhap" (mark). According to folklore, the village of Ramechhap was once occupied by Tamang people. A Tamang of the village, Ram by name received mukhtiyari of the village by royal decree. So, the land ownership and other legal activities were performed in the village by the stamp (chhap) of Ram.
Similarly, according to another folklore, the grassland of Ramechhap village was occupied by Tamang people. Those people daily used to rear their domesticated animals such as Buffalo, Goat and others in the open meadow. In Tamang language, "Ra" means Goat, "Mey" means ox, and "Chhawa" means their small offspring. By the time and mouth to mouth pronunciation the meadow has become "Ramechhap" and later the place has been named Ramechhap. Hence, the district is called Ramechhap.
Demographics.
At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, Ramechhap District had a population of 202,646. Of these, 59.5% spoke Nepali, 18.2% Tamang, 6.9% Newari, 5.1% Sherpa, 3.7% Sunuwar, 2.1% Majhi, 2.0% Magar, 1.0% Thami and 0.5% Hyolmo/Yolmo as their first language.
35.5% of the population in the district spoke Nepali and 0.5% Bahing as their second language.


Charles Eyre

Sir Charles Eyre (died 1729) was an administrator of the British East India Company and founder of Fort William, Calcutta. He was a President of Fort William.
Career.
While in office, Eyre started work on Fort William, Calcutta in 1696. On 10 November 1698, Eyre signed the document legalizing the British occupation of three small villages that formed the basis of the Fort William settlement; his signature, and not that of his father-in-law Job Charnock (who died in 1692) appears on the document signed with the original landlords, the Sabarna Roy Choudhury family. In December 1699, Eyre was appointed President and Governor of Fort William in Bengal, and Bengal was at the same time constituted a Presidency. He was the first governor appointed by the Company to Bengal since William Hedges (agent and governor) in 1681 and William Gyfford (president and governor) in December 1683 (after which the title of governor had been temporarily dropped in favour of agent and chief of the bay of Bengal, Bengal having again been subordinated to Madras).
As a merchant, Eyre amassed a fortune of 23,000 Pagodas, which through the ingenuity of Thomas Pitt he converted into diamonds to take back with him to England in 1702, having first been ensured a sum of £13,800 through a bill of exchange. His will was proved on 23 October 1729.
Personal life.
Eyre was from Kew, Richmond, Surrey. Eyre was married to Mary, eldest daughter of Job Charnock. Eyre was a sometime resident of Kew, where he leased a house within the Kew Palace grounds from Sir Richard Levett, Lord Mayor of London who owned the palace as well as the house he leased to Eyre and the estate surrounding them. Levett was a powerful early London merchant who was a merchant adventurer in the Honourable East India Company and one of the first governors of the new Bank of England. He was a knight. Eyre was also one of the contributors to the founding of St Anne's Church in Kew in 1714.


Dappula IV of Anuradhapura

Dappula IV was King of Anuradhapura in the 10th century, whose reign lasted from 939 to 940. He succeeded his father Kassapa V as King of Anuradhapura and was succeeded by his brother Dappula V.


Treaty of Kalat

The Treaty of Kalat (Urdu: قلات کے معاہدے) was an 1875 agreement between the British Raj and the Baloch tribes bordering the Punjab region in modern-day Pakistan.
Negotiated by British "chargé d'affaires" Robert Groves Sandeman, the treaty reconciled the warring tribes of the region with their Khan and recognised the direct rule of the British over the Khanate of Kalat.
The subsequent treaty was signed by the Khan and the Viceroy of India, Lord Lytton in 1876 at Jacobabad in modern-day Sindh, Pakistan.


Revolutionary Site

Revolutionary Sites () are designated historical sites in North Korea. The sites were designated by Kim Jong-il when he began working at the Propaganda and Agitation Department of the Workers' Party of Korea in 1966. He would send troops all over the country to unearth sites that "were supposedly once forgotten and undiscovered". By converting North Korea into a "huge open museum", Kim's goal in designating the sites was to solidify the North Korean cult of personality centered around him and his father Kim Il-sung.
In 1988, there were 27 such sites. Today, there are more than 60. Of them, 40 commemorate Kim Il-sung, 20 Kim Jong-il, and many others Kim Hyong-jik, Kim Jong-suk, Kim Hyong-gwon and other members of the Kim family.
There are two categories of sites, "Revolutionary Sites" and "Revolutionary Battle Sites". Rather than a single building or a point of interest, the sites spawn large areas. Some famous Revolutionary Sites include Mangyongdae, the birthplace of Kim Il-sung, in Pyongyang, and Jangjasan Revolutionary Site and Oun Revolutionary Site associated with the youth of Kim Jong-il. The Mount Paektu area in particular hosts many sites.
South Koreans have criticized the sites for "wip[ing] out traditional culture".


Party of Economic Freedom

The Party of Economic Freedom (, "Partiya Ekonomicheskoi svobody") was a political party in Russia led by Konstantin Borovoy.
History.
The party was established in May 1992. It joined the "August" bloc for the 1993 parliamentary elections, but the bloc failed to obtain the 100,000 signatures necessary to get on the ballot. However, two party members, Irina Khakamada and Leonid Nekrasov, were elected after running as independents.
The party did manage to run in the 1995 parliamentary elections, but received 0.13% of the proportional representation vote, failing to cross the electoral threshold. However, it did win a single constituency seat in the State Duma, taken by Borovoy. Prior to the 1999 parliamentary elections the party was in negotiations to become part of the Union of Right Forces alliance, which it eventually joined. The Union won 29 of the 450 seats.
The party was deregistered in January 2003, then registered again on 8 February, and finally deregistered on 17 December.


City of Singapore (historical entity)

The City of Singapore existed from 1951 to 1965 in the then British Crown colony of Singapore, with the City Council as the governing authority. Before 1951 the City Council was known as the Municipal Commission. The rest of the crown colony was under the authority of the Singapore Rural Board.
History.
Creation and subsequent elections.
In the 1948 and 1951 general elections in Singapore, constituencies were drawn along the boundary of the Municipal Commission and the Rural Board, each area was subdivided into a number of constituencies.
The municipality was then conferred city status by a royal charter from King George VI on 22 September 1951, when Singapore was then a Crown colony. The original Municipal Commission was therefore renamed City Council, and the Municipal Building was renamed City Hall.
Between the 1957 election and the phasing out of the city, Ong Eng Guan of the People's Action Party (PAP) was the mayor as the leader of the largest party within the City Council. Ong went on to become Minister of National Development under Lee Kuan Yew's premiership.
Dissolution.
After the PAP gained power following the 1959 general election and formed the first government after self-government was granted to the Crown colony, the city was phased out, with powers transferred to statutory boards.
In 1965, upon Singapore's expulsion from Malaysia, the "Republic of Singapore Independence Act 1965" provided the following clause which empowered the President to abolish the City Council and the Rural Board, with the powers of the local authorities assumed by the Government.
Legacy.
Today, the Central Area, which sits in the south-eastern corner of Singapore, mostly corresponds with what was once the City of Singapore.


Asela of Anuradhapura

Asela was an early monarch of Sri Lanka of the Kingdom of Anuradhapura, based at the ancient capital of Anuradhapura from 215 BC to 205 BC. Asela was the youngest of the many sons of Mutasiva and brother of previous monarchs Devanampiya Tissa, Uttiya and Mahasiva. Asela fought Sena and Guttika in a battle to re-establish Vijaya rule in 215 BC, but in 205 BC the kingdom of Anuradhapura was again invaded by a Tamil, a Prince of the Chola dynasty named Ellalan killing Asela.


Thawiphop

Thawiphop () is a 1986 Thai historical romance novel written by Thommayanti. It tells the story of Maneechan, a contemporary woman who is transported back in time via a magical mirror to the late 19th century, during the reign of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V). There she falls in love with a young nobleman, and ultimately ends up helping defend the country against the threat of colonisation by the French and the British.
The novel has become widely popular, and has been adapted into multiple television series, films and musicals. It has been cited by scholars as a prominent example of nationalist thought in mainstream Thai literature.
Adaptations.
"Thawiphop" has seen many adaptations, including: