History of the Ruhr

The actual boundaries of the Ruhr vary slightly depending on the source, but a good working definition is to define the Lippe and Ruhr as its northern and southern boundaries respectively, the Rhine as its western boundary, and the town of Hamm as the eastern limit.
In the Middle Ages, local power was vested primarily in the counts ("Grafen") of Berg, Mark and Cleves. The left bank of the Rhine was held by the Archbishop of Cologne. The Hellweg was an important trade route crossing the region from Duisburg to Dortmund and beyond as far as the rivers Weser and Elbe. The most important towns of the region were concentrated along the Hellweg.
As a result of the Congress of Vienna, the entire area came under the control of Prussia (the state had already gained possessions there). This event was almost concomitant with developments which would eventually make the region one of the most important industrial areas in the world.
In 1946, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia came into being centred on the Ruhr. Nowadays, its hitherto important coal and steel industries have drastically declined and the region is in a state of re-adjustment.
Carboniferous period.
During the Carboniferous Period, in the Paleozoic era, which began 360 million years ago and ended 300 million years ago, layers of slate, coal and sandstone were formed. 400 to 300 million years ago, new mountains were uplifted during the Variscan mountain-building period.
During the Silesian period, layers were deposited which became seams of coal over a period lasting millions of years. During this period there was a constant shifting between marshy conditions and overflowing seas such that the depositing of plant material and sediment from the sea resulted in the current situation of coal layers separated by stone layers.
The main representatives of flora in the coal marshes were of the genus "Lepidodendron" and genus "Sigillaria", tree-like plants, which belong to the plant classification Lycopodiophyta. Members of both genus reached heights of up to 40 meters with a trunk diameter of over a meter.
Cretaceous Period.
In the Cretaceous, 135 million to about 66 million years ago, the region was submerged under a tropical ocean. In its waters lived ammonites. On the floor of the sea, a thick layer of marl formed. The sediments covered the layers of carbon and contained also the shells of giant ammonites.
Quaternary.
The Ice Age brought changes between warm and cold weather. During the Drenthe Stadium of the Wolstonian Stage, an ice sheet over Northern Germany covered the Ruhr and reached as far as the northern hills of the Central Uplands. The shape of the middle and lower Ruhr valley is due to meltwaters and the powerful force of the ice. Meltwater from the glaciers flowed westwards through the Ruhr valley. Where Essen lies today, this flow was temporarily hindered by a barrier of ice and rocky debris, forming an enormous lake which filled the valley at Schwerte.
Prussian Absolutism.
Large areas of the Ruhr come under Prussian control. Ironworks are started up and coal-mining accelerates. Industry in general receives some direct and indirect encouragement from the Prussian state.
First half of the 19th century – Industrial Revolution.
The Industrial Revolution advances in the Ruhr. At the start of the 19th century, the steam engine is used there for the first time, and Napoleonic measures abolish feudal influences. When the entire area comes under Prussian hegemony in 1815, further advances are made in transportation and encouragement of industry. By the 1830s, the important deep-lying coking-coal seams of the Emscher Basin are reached for the first time, railways make their appearance and in 1849 smelting iron ore with coke is successfully carried out for the first time in the Ruhr.
Second half of the 19th century – industry booms.
The advances made in the first half of the century were built upon, producing a significant advance in production. In 1850, the district produced 2 million tonnes of coal, by 1913 it produced 114 million tonnes. Likewise, in 1850 it produced 11,500 tonnes of cast iron which rose by 1913 to 8.2 million tonnes. Coal production moved northwards as steam engine technology allowed the exploitation of deep coking coal seams (the earlier mines, generally nearer the River Ruhr, had tended to be drift mines exploiting the anthracite lying nearer the surface). 'Vertical' concerns came into being, with collieries, cokeries and ironworks under common ownership, and it was not uncommon to have all constituents located on the same site or close together.
First half of the 20th century (to 1945).
The coal and steel industries continue to expand, with the Ruhr reaching a position whereby its coal and steel production is in each case almost equivalent to the rest of continental Europe put together (excluding the USSR)
The Ruhr industrialist Fritz Thyssen assists the NSDAP with a massive financial sum.
Second Half of the 20th century (from 1946).
Industry in the district is restored after the war, but by the end of the 20th century the coal and steel industries have declined drastically


William Comyn, Lord of Kilbride

William Comyn, Lord of Kilbride was a son of David Comyn and Isobel de Valognes. Sheriff of Ayr in 1263, he died in 1283.
Life.
William was a son of David Comyn, Lord of Kilbride and Isabel de Valognes. William was the Sheriff of Ayr in 1263 - 1265. He succeeded upon his father's death, as Lord of Kilbride in 1247.
Marriage and issue.
William married Euphemia, the daughter of Roger FitzJohn, Lord of Warkworth and Clavering and Isabel de Dunbar, they had the following known issue:


Bartholomeus Spranger

Bartholomeus Spranger or Bartholomaeus Spranger (21 March 1546 in Antwerp – 1611 in Prague) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman, sculptor and designer of prints. Working in Prague as a court artist for the Holy Roman emperor Rudolf II, he responded to his patron's aesthetic preferences by developing a version of the extreme style, full of conceits, which has become known as Northern Mannerism. This style stressed sensuality, which was expressed in smoothly modeled, elongated figures arranged in elegant poses, often including a nude woman seen from behind. Spranger's unique style combining elements of Netherlandish painting and Italian influences, in particular the Roman Mannerists, had an important influence on other artists in Prague and beyond as his paintings were disseminated widely through prints.
Life.
Bartholomeus Spranger was born in Antwerp as the third son of Ioachim Spranger and Anna Roelandtsinne. His father was a trader who had spent time abroad including a long stint in Rome. Showing a keen interest in drawing, he was first apprenticed with Jan Mandijn, where he stayed for 18 months. Upon the death of Mandijn, Spranger studied for some time with Frans Mostaert who died after only a few weeks. He finally studied wwth with Cornelis van Dalem for two years after which he stayed on for another two years in the workshop of van Dalem. As his three masters were mainly known as landscape painters. Spranger further copied prints of Frans Floris and Parmigianino. He traveled to Paris on 1 March 1565 where he worked for six weeks in the workshop of Marc Duval. He then travelled on to Italy, where he first stayed for eight months in Milan. He then worked for three months in Parma as an assistant to Bernardino Gatti on the painting of the dome of the Santa Maria della Steccata.
He worked on wall paintings in various churches. In Rome he became, like El Greco, a protégé of Giulio Clovio. Here he also met Karel van Mander who later included a biography of Spranger in his "Schilder-boeck", first published in 1604 and containing, amongst others, biographies of important Netherlandish painters. Pope Pius V appointed him court painter in 1570. He was summoned to Vienna by Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, who died soon after his arrival in 1576.
Maximilian II's successor Rudolf II was even more keen to employ him, and in 1581 he was appointed court painter and also valet de chambre, the court having moved its seat to Prague, where he stayed until his death there in 1611, shortly before Rudolf was deposed. Spranger occupied a house just outside the castle walls. The artist developed a close personal relationship with Rudolf and the two spent many days together engaged in conversation. The emperor would regularly visit Spranger's studio. The emperor bestowed on Spranger the coat of arms of a liegeman in 1588 and granted him a hereditary title in 1595. In the meantime, Spranger supplied the emperor with a continuous stream of paintings of mythological scenes with nudes drawn from nature as well as propaganda pieces which extolled the virtues of Rudolf as a ruler. An example of a work combining the two elements of eroticism and propaganda is the (Kunsthistorisches Museum) which shows Bellona (the Roman goddess of war) sitting on a globe surrounded by Venus, Amor, Athene and Baccus and emblems symbolising Hungary and the Croatian river Sava. The propagandic message is that the empire is safe with Rudolf at the helm. Thanks to the emperor's patronage, Spranger became very wealthy and owned many properties by the time he died.
Spranger married Christina Müller, the daughter of a rich jeweller from Prague in 1582. His wife died in 1600 after all their children had died. This sad story is depicted in Aegidius Sadeler's .
Work.
Spranger's paintings for Rudolf mostly depict mythological nudes in various complex poses, with some connection to the Emperor's esoteric Late-Renaissance philosophical ideas. His paintings are the most characteristic of the final phase of Northern Mannerism. By far the best collection is in Vienna. His drawings have great energy, in a very free technique.
Spranger also worked as a sculptor. He may have acquired his knowledge of sculpture through his collaboration with the Flemish sculptor Hans Mont, who also worked at the Prague court. After Mont left the Prague court, Spranger appears to have worked intermittently as a sculptor for the emperor, at least until Adriaen de Vries arrived in Prague in 1601. A terracotta relief of the 'Body of Christ Supported by an Angel' (Courtauld Gallery) is by his hand. The Walters Museum holds a bronze 'Achelous and Deianeira' which is attributed to him. There is no record of any sculpture by Spranger in Rudolf II's collection.
Aegidius Sadeler, who lived in his house in Prague for some time, and Hendrik Goltzius made engravings of his paintings, spreading Spranger's fame around Europe.
Collections.
Much the best collection is in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, mostly from the Imperial collection. Most museum print rooms have examples of his prints. There are three oil paintings by Spranger in the Blanton Art Museum in Austin, Texas ("Saint Catherine", "Saint Ursula", "Saint Margaret"), along with "Memento mori" in the Wawel Castle Museum in Cracow, Poland and "Epitaph of Nicolas Müller, Goldsmith of Prague" in the National Gallery Prague.


Melitopol

Melitopol (, translit. "Melitópol’", ) is a city in Zaporizhzhia Oblast (region) of southeastern Ukraine. It is situated on the Molochna River that flows through the eastern edge of the city and into the Molochnyi Lyman, which eventually joins the Sea of Azov. Its population is approximately .
Melitopol is incorporated as a city of oblast significance and is the second largest city in the oblast after Zaporizhzhia. It serves as the administrative center of Melitopol Raion, though it does not belong to the raion.
The city is located at the crossing of two major European highways E58 Vienna - Uzhhorod - Kyiv - Rostov-on-Don and E105 Kirkenes - St. Petersburg - Moscow - Kyiv - Yalta. An electrified railway line of international importance goes through Melitopol. The city is called "the gateway to the Crimea", prior to the 2014 Russian occupation of Crimea 80% of passenger trains heading to the peninsula passed through the city and during summer road traffic would reach 45,000 vehicles per day.
History.
In medieval times, there was a small Noghai aul of Kyzyl-Yar where the modern Melitopol is settled. In July 1769, Russian military commanders built a redoubt there, and Zaporizhia Cossacks carried out their duty service there. On 2 February 1784, Catherine II issued the decree to create the Taurian Province on the lands that had been won. The deputy of Novorossiya Grigory Potemkin signed the relation to establish a town that very year - and Cossacks' families and those of retired soldiers of Suvorov settled on the right bank of the Molochna River. Among others, Germans were encouraged to settle in the new province, and some villages in this area were for many years German-speaking, such as Heidelberg (now Pryshyb) some to the north of Melitopol.
In 1816, the settlement got the name "sloboda" "of Novoalexandrovka". Its population was increasing due to the importation of peasants from the northern provinces of Ukraine and Russia. On J7 January 1842, the sloboda was recognized as a town and received the new name of Melitopol after a port city of Melita (from Greek "Μέλι" (meli) - "honey") which had been situated on the mouth of the Molochna River. At the end of the 19th century, the "Honey-city" had been developed as a trade center - there were some banks, credit organizations and wholesale stores. The largest enterprises in the city at the time were the iron foundry and the Brothers Klassen's machinery construction factory (1886), the railroad depot and the workshops.
Further development of the city was closely connected with trade, iron and engineering industries, and Crimean direction railway service. In the early twentieth century there were 15 thousand people living in Melitopol. 30 factories and 350 shops operated in the city at that time. In the second half of the twentieth century there was a strong economic growth of the city: new factories, plants, and housing estates were constructed. 16 Melitopol business enterprises have received the All-Soviet Union significance status. Industrial products were exported to more than 50 countries.
Melitopol in World War II.
In 1941, the Soviet Union was attacked by Nazi Germany. The city became strategically important due to its location. The Red Army was not ready for the war and had to retreat. The German Wehrmacht occupied Melitopol on 6 October 1941. Within one week the entire remaining Jewish population of Melitopol (2,000 men, women and children) were murdered by Einsatzgruppe D actively supported by the Wehrmacht.
The Wotan Line Battle.
After breaking through on the Mius River and defeating Axis troops in the Donbas and Taganrog, the Soviet Southern Front army pursuing the retreating enemy came to the Molochna River on 22 September 1943. Here, in the basin of the Milk River, German troops had built a strong long-term defence which they called the Panther-Wotan line. It was on this line that the fate of the Crimean peninsula and the whole course of offensive operations in the southern Soviet Union were decided.
The German defense consisted of four lines, covered with solid anti-tank ditches and land mines. The first attempt of the Soviet Southern Front army to break through was unsuccessful. Soviet commanders decided to prepare thoroughly a new attempt: the so-called “Melitopol operation”, which was carried out successfully from 26 September to 5 November 1943.
Despite the courage and heroism of Soviet soldiers, fighting lasted long, as the Germans introduced fresh reserves in order to keep Melitopol. Finally, after many days of heavy street fighting against vastly superior numbers of men and equipment, German resistance was broken and on 23 October the Red Army took complete control of the city. By decrees of the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet, 87 Red soldiers and airmen were awarded the title of "Hero of the Soviet Union" for their actions in the reconquest of Melitopol.
Culture.
Melitopol is a melting pot of different ethnicities and cultures. Representatives of more than 100 ethnic groups have been living here together in peace. An association of national-cultural societies is actively working in the city. In 2008 Melitopol became a member of the international project of the Council of Europe "Intercultural Cities". The City confidently and clearly stated its goals in this program. Three flagship projects were identified as belonging to the future of the municipal program "Melitopol - European Intercultural City." The project on which the city works under the Council of Europe project, is called "Creation of Intercultural Park “Melito-Park”. The aim of the project is to create an intercultural park where people of different nationalities could meet and communicate. There is a design project of the Intercultural Park, prepared by a group of European architects and designers led by Mark Glaudemans - Director of the European Laboratory for urban planning, the Dean of the Academy of Architecture and Urbanism (city of Tilburg, Netherlands).
In Melitopol removed first short film in 2015, "The Zone".
As ethnic conflicts are not a problem for Melitopol, city authorities are trying to identify the potential diversity for the mobilization of efforts and creativity of different ethnic groups to develop and implement innovative projects revival.
Among all the diversity of cultural events in Melitopol there are these unique activities:
Melitopol has 38 monuments, memorials and statues registered.
One of them is the statue of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, the famous hetman of Ukraine. His images are printed on Ukrainian 5 hryvnia's banknotes.
The other one represents Ostap Bender a hero of the book of Ilf and Petrov "12 chairs".
Special notes.
The Stone Grave.
There is the unique relic of the Stone Grave (, translit. "Kamyana mohyla", ) north of Melitopol. It is a relic of sandstone from the Sarmatian epoch of the Tertiary period. Its exact coordinates are
Melitopol cherries.
Melitopol has justly gained fame as "the city of cherries". In the city territory there is, unique in CIS, the Sidorenko Scientific Research Institute of Irrigated Horticulture (Ukrainian Academy of Agrarian Sciences), that is professionally engaged in selection of stone fruit crops (such as cherries, apples, and peaches). The main base of this research institute is located in Melitopol. There are experimental black cherry orchards located in the heart of the city. Citizens of Melitopol rightly call it the "city-garden". A symbol of Melitopol is "Chereshnya Melitopolska" ("Melitopol cherry"), a type of cherry for which the city is known.
Melitopol honey.
Recently, the city actively created its own brand as a "city of honey", which is the translation of the Greek word "melitos". The city formed a cluster of honey producers, prepared investment projects for the establishment of an apitherapy center (treatment with the help of bee products) and encourages the creation of souvenir products made from honey.
Commemorative silver coin.
In October 2013, the National Bank of Ukraine introduced a new commemorative silver coin on the 70th anniversary of the Melitopol offensive against German troops and the liberation of the city of Melitopol on 23 October 1943. The new coin was called "The Breakthrough of Soviet Troops Against the German Defence Line Wotan and liberation of Melitopol" and each of the 30,000 limited edition coins worth was the equivalent of $US5.
Twin towns – sister cities.
Melitopol is twinned with:
Education.
In 1874, a technical school was founded in the city, which, after a series of reforms and transformations, became Tavria State Agrotechnological University.
The city now has two public universities − Tavria State Agrotechnological Academy and Bohdan Khmelnytsky Melitopol State Pedagogical University, as well as a private institute - Zaporizhzhia Institute of Economics and Information Technologies.
A long history of universities and schools is one of the reasons that Melitopol is called "the city of students". More than 10% of its citizens are students.
The strong system of education is represented by different types of educational institutions at all levels of accreditation: two universities, four branches of different universities in Ukraine, seven professional schools, and three colleges.
26 pre-schools are operating in the city, in which 6,000 young citizens are being educated. In addition, for more than 500 children with special needs under the age of seven years there are rehabilitation programs to provide the needed services.
Educational services for 14,000 students are provided by 23 secondary schools. There is a center of labor training and professional orientation for young people. A network of six non-school institutions are the following: the Centre of Ecological-Naturalistic Art for Youth, the Center of Tourist and Local Lore Creativity for Youth, the Station of Young Technicians, the Vodvudenko Palace for Children and Teenagers Creativity, Small Academy of Sciences, and the Center of Children and Teenagers. Other creative centers unite nine communal hobby clubs.
Industry.
There is a well-developed, internationally important engine-constructing industry. Thanks to the rich historical heritage, economic and geographical situation and enterprising citizens the city has developed mechanical engineering, light and food industry. The city's development is driven by engineering industries, that have received new impulse with the establishment of more than 100 new small and medium engineering business enterprises, united in the cluster "AgroBOOM".
Machine engineering complex of the city is represented by 8 large plants and more than 100 small and medium-sized enterprises formed after 1991. Mechanical engineers of the city mainly produce goods for the agricultural sector.
Enterprises include:
The following companies can be called the basis of light industry in the city:
Thanks to the proximity of agricultural areas and raw materials of Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, Kherson, and Dnipropetrovsk regions, the food industry is well presented in the city. The main enterprises of the food industry are:


County of Rietberg

The County of Rietberg () was a state of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the present-day German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It was situated on the upper Ems in Westphalia, between the Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn and the Prince-Bishopric of Münster. It existed as an independent territory from 1237 to 1807, when it was mediatised to the Kingdom of Westphalia.
History.
Rietberg was first mentioned as "Rietbike" around the year 1100. This name refers to the German words "ried" (an old name for "reed") and "bach" ("creek"). There was a castle that dated back to the 11th century. From 1237 until 1807, Rietberg was an independent German territory, although very small. Nevertheless, the county had its own militia, its own currency and its own laws; even foreign policy, on a small scale, was conducted independently. Until the 17th century, Rietberg coined its own money.
In 1699, the County of Rietberg came into the possession of the Moravian noble family of the Counts of Kaunitz () through the marriage of heiress Maria Ernestine Francisca von Rietberg with Maximilian Ulrich von Kaunitz, and that family subsequently renamed itself as Kaunitz-Rietberg. Under the rule of this comital (later princely) family, the territory remained independent until the end of the Holy Roman Empire.
In 1807, Rietberg became mediatised to the Kingdom of Westphalia. After the dissolution of that kingdom in 1813, the territory of Rietberg became part of the Kingdom of Prussia, which integrated it into its Province of Westphalia.
Comital title.
The title of Count of Rietberg ("Graf zu Rietberg") remains extant in the House of Liechtenstein, which has claimed it since 1848, when the last member of the Moravian branch of the Kaunitz family died. Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein, and all dynastic members of his family (and their dynastic wives) bear the title currently.


Anhalt Castle

Anhalt Castle () is a ruined medieval fortification near the town of Harzgerode in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.
Location.
The castle is located in the eastern, lower part of the Harz mountain range ("Unterharz"). The ruins stand on the Großer Hausberg, a hill situated between the villages of Meisdorf and Mägdesprung, above the Selke valley. The area is part of the Harz/Saxony-Anhalt Nature Park; at a short distance up the Selke river is the preserved Falkenstein Castle.
History.
The fortress was probably built by Count Otto of Ballenstedt (d. 1123), a member of the Saxon noble House of Ascania. Otto's grandfather Count Esico, mentioned in a 1036 deed issued by Emperor Conrad II, had ruled in the Saxon "Schwabengau" and the adjacent territories of the Saxon Eastern March. Otto assumed comital rights in Saxony after the assassination of his father Count Adalbert II in 1080; he married Eilika, the daughter of Duke Magnus of Saxony, and launched several campaigns against the Polabian Slavs. Shortly before his death, he turned the collegiate church in Ballenstedt into a Benedictine abbey and had Anhalt Castle erected as the dynasty's ancestral seat, from which the Ascanian Principality of Anhalt got its name.
The castle was first mentioned in 1140: while Otto's son Albert the Bear fought for the Saxon ducal title against the rivalling Welf dynasty, the fortress was devastated by the forces of the Archbishop of Magdeburg and Margrave Conrad of Meissen. Shortly afterwards, however, Albert had it rebuilt. The new castle complex was one of the mightiest fortifications in the Harz region. The scale of the castle was comparable to that of the Wartburg in Thuringia. The dry moat with its outer rampart (the "Vorwall") that surrounded the castle, had a length of . This castle was built of brick, a material uncharacteristic of its time and the area. According to legend, the name is derived from Middle Low German: "An-Holt", "(built) without wood".
The castle remained occupied until the early 14th century and afterwards decayed. Early excavations were initiated by Duke Alexius of Anhalt-Bernburg in 1822. From 1901 to 1907 excavations were carried out on the site of the ruins under the direction of the Brunswick surveyor, Brinckmann. All that remains of the castle today are a few wall sections from the chapel, living quarters and outbuildings, and the base of the "bergfried", which is about three metres high. Large parts of the premises were restored and made accessible to the public in 2012, on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of the establishment of the Anhalt principality.
Hiking.
Anhalt Castle ("Burgruine Anhalt") is checkpoint no. 197 in the Harzer Wandernadel hiking system.


Louis Gunther of Nassau

Count Louis Günther of Nassau (15 February 1575 in Dillenburg – 12 September 1604, outside Sluis) was a Count of Nassau-Katzenelnbogen and a Dutch lieutenant general of cavalry in the Eighty Years' War.
He was the thirteenth and youngest child of John VI of Nassau and his first wife Elisabeth of Leuchtenberg (1537–1579).
He studied in Switzerland and then, like many of his brothers, he joined the Ducht army. He fought under his brother William Louis and his cousin Maurice. In 1596 he participated as a volunteer in the Capture of Cadiz. His cousin appointed him to lieutenant general in 1600 and he excelled in the Battle of Nieuwpoort. He then managed to take Wachtendonk. In 1602 he led an attack on Luxembourg. In 1604 he took part in the siege of Sluis, where he died of a fever.
He married on 7 June 1601 with Countess Anna Margareta of Manderscheid-Gerolstein (10 August 1575 – 4 March 1606). Anna Margareta was the daughter of Count John Gerhard of Manderscheid-Gerolstein and the widow of Wirich VI, Count of Daun-Falkenstein. The marriage remained childless.


William de Cicon

Sir William de Cicon.
Guillaume de Cicon appears in the English archives variously as; Cykun, Cycons, Chycun, Sicoms, Sicun, Sycun.
From Vanclans, 24 kilometres north of Pontarlier in the Jura. Introduced to King Edwards service by Otto de Grandson.
An ancestor of Cicon’s had been with the Fourth Crusade that had sacked Constantinople in 1204, one Othon de Cicon. Othon de Cicon had accompanied his uncle Othon de la Roche (who became Duc d’Athènes and built a Frankish tower atop the Acropolis) on the fourth crusade, and became lord of Karystos from 1250 (at least) to his death around 1266. Guillaume de Cicon’s first arrival in the English record of 13th November 1276 follows closely on the heels of the recapture of Karystos by the Byzantines under Licario also in 1276.
First mentioned 13 November 1276 when he comes to England with a message from Otto de Grandson to King Edward I. With the army in South Wales in 1277. Constable of Rhuddlan Castle between February 1282 and May 1284 including the period of the Siege of Rhuddlan. First Constable of Conwy Castle from its construction until his death in 1310 or 1311.
His appointment at Conwy Castle was recorded
“The king has committed in like manner to William de Cycun [Guillaume de Cicon], the castle of Aberconewey [Conwy], with the armour, etc, and has granted to him 190 livres yearly for the custody thereof, to be received as above, on condition that he shall have continuously have in garrison, in addition to himself and his household, at his cost thirty fencible men, of whom fifteen shall be crossbowmen one chaplain, one artiller, a carpenter, a mason and a smith, and of the others shall be made janitors, watchmen and other ministers of the castle. Order is given to all bailiffs etc (as above).”
In the winter of 1294-5 Cicon held Conwy Castle alongside King Edward I whilst under siege during the rebellion of Madog ap Llywelyn.


Catharina de Grebber

Catharina de Grebber (1496 – after 1515) was a Dutch woman. She is known as the victim of a famous case of kidnapping and rape in the Netherlands in 1515. The case was widely famed in the contemporary Netherlands, where it was published and popular within literature: it was also the subject of a song, where Catharina de Grebber was described as a rabbit persecuted by a hunter.
Catharina de Grebber was the daughter of the wealthy shipper Pieter Claeszoon Grebber and Alyt van Tetrode in Leiden. In 1509, at the age of thirteen, she was abducted by the nobleman Gerrit van Raaphorst and four accomplices on her way to church with her father in Wassenaar. Raaphorst took her to Sassenheim, where he married her. During this period, she was reportedly raped and locked up. Four months later, she returned to her parents. When Raaphorst wished to have her returned, her parents sued him for forcing her to marry him. Raaphorst claimed that both the marriage and intercourse were voluntary. The court case continued for years, until 1515, when Raaphorst was judged guilty for rape and sentenced to a public walk of repentance and to pay for a painted window in the church. Raaphorst was executed for the murder of a man in 1524. The life of Catharina de Grebber after 1515 is not known.


Civil Survey

The Civil Survey was a cadastral survey of landholdings in Ireland carried out in 1654–56. It was separate from the Down Survey, which began while the Civil Survey was in progress, and made use of Civil Survey data to guide its progress. Whereas the Down Survey was a cartographic survey based on measurements in the field, the Civil Survey was an inquisition which visited each barony and took depositions from landholders based on parish and townland, with written descriptions of their boundaries. The Civil Survey covered 27 of Ireland's 32 counties, excluding 5 counties in Connacht which had been covered in the 1630s by the Strafford survey commissioned by Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford. The original Civil Survey records were destroyed by fire in 1711, but a set of copies for 10 counties was discovered in the 19th century.


William Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Harburg

Duke William Augustus of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Harburg (15 March 1564 in Harburg – 30 March 1642 in Harburg) was Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Harburg.
Life.
William Augustus was a son of Duke Otto II of Brunswick-Harburg (1528-1603) from his second marriage with Hedwig (1535-1616), the daughter of the Count Enno II of East Frisia.
William Augustus was regarded as extremely learned and, like his father, as a follower of the Lutheran doctrine. In 1575, he became rector of the University of Rostock. He later continued his studies at the University of Leipzig. In 1582, he undertook a Grand Tour to France and England and then enrolled with his brothers at the University of Helmstedt. In 1594, he again went on a journey that took him through Germany, Poland, Switzerland, Italy, Holland, Denmark and Livonia. William Augustus kept a journal about his travels.
After the death of his father, he took up the government of Harburg jointly with his brothers Christopher and Otto III. After they died, he ruled alone.
In 1618, William Augustus began the construction of the palace at Moisburg. After the death of the Duke Frederick Ulrich of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, he received the County of Hoya from his inheritance. August Wilhelm died unmarried and childless. His inheritance was divided by Dukes of Frederick IV of Brunswick-Celle and Augustus II of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.


Castles of Sardinia

Between existing and disappeared there are 82 castles in Sardinia, all built during the Middle Ages. Some date back to the Byzantine period, but most of them were built during the Giudicati period and the della Gherardesca, Malaspina and Doria domination, especially from the second half of the 13th century onwards.
Realized mainly for strategic-military purposes, they had the function of supervising the judicial borders and the most important communication routes. With the unification of Sardinia under the Aragonese their importance faded away and over time almost all of them went into ruin.


John de Bonvillars

Sir John de Bonvillars (c. ?–1287) was a medieval Savoyard knight in the service of Edward I. He was the brother in law of Otto de Grandson, and like William de Cicon, had been introduced to English service by Otto.
From Bonvillars in Savoy, now the Canton of Vaud in Switzerland, close to Grandson Castle, he was brother-in-law to Otto de Grandson. Knight of King Edward I's household and deputy Welsh Justicier to Otto de Grandson from 1284 to 1287. On 2 April 1277 he was bearer of a letter to Otto de Grandson who was besieging Dolforwyn Castle. Was at Chester in September 1277. Revisited Savoy in 1278, was at Evian on 22 March 1279. With Otto in Wales in 1282 when latter was commanding forces based on Montgomery. In 1283 was sent to Wales, in 1284 he was described as Otto de Grandson's Knight Companion.
Bonvillars oversaw the construction of Conwy Castle. First Constable of Harlech Castle from 1285 to his death by drowning (probably during siege of Dryslwyn in South Wales) between July and November 1287. Married to Agnes de Bevillard (likely sister of Otto de Grandson) who held on to the Constable of Harlech role until succeeded by James of Saint George in 1290.


Macedonian Revolution

Macedonian Revolution may refer to:


Brunswick State Electoral Association

The Brunswick State Electoral Association () was an electoral alliance in Germany in the late 1910s and early 1920s.
History.
The alliance first contested elections in 1918, when it ran in the state elections in the Free State of Brunswick. In the federal elections the following year the alliance won a single seat in the Weimar National Assembly. The alliance went onto contest state elections in 1920 and 1922, but split into two factions in May 1922.


Sandown-Shanklin Urban District

Sandown-Shanklin was an urban district on the Isle of Wight, England, from 1933. It was created by the merger of Shanklin and Sandown urban districts along with part of Isle of Wight Rural District. It was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, to form part of the South Wight district.


Broadway (cyclecar)

The Broadway was a British 4 wheeled cyclecar made only in 1913 by the Broadway Cyclecar Co of Coventry.
The car was powered by an air-cooled, V twin, engine made by Fafnir driving the rear wheels by a two speed gearbox and belts. It cost GBP80.


William II, Lord of Egmond

William II, Lord of Egmond or Willem II, heer van Egmond ( – 30 March 1304) was a ruling Lord of Egmond.
Life.
He was the son of Gerard, Lord of Egmond and an unknown mother, possibly Beatrix, daughter of Wouter of Haarlem, or Mabilia. He became Lord of Egmond after his father's death around Christmas 1242. Because he was still underaged, he was supervised by a regent, his second cousin Walter / Wouter "Stoutkind" ("naughty child") van Egmont until 1248.
In 1258, he transferred the ambachtsheerlijkheden of Spanbroek, Oudedorp, Oudkarspel and Wadeweij to Count Floris V of Holland. In return he was enfeoffed with the heerlijkheid of Warmhuizen. He purchased some territory to the North of Egmond, near Huisduinen and Bergen and started to develop this area in the following years.
Willem participated in a campaign against Friesland in 1282 and was rewarded with tithes from the heerlijkheid of Hemert. John I, Count of Holland invited him over for John's wedding to Elizabeth of Rhuddlan in 1297. Later in the year William's wife died, and Gerard, his only son, died in 1300. Upon his death in 1304, he was succeeded by his grandson, William III.
Marriage and issue.
Willem was married to Ada. They had at least two children:


Action off Bastia

The action off Bastia (French: "bataille navale de Pietracorbara") was a naval battle fought on 9 September 1943 off Bastia in the Mediterranean Sea. It was one of the few successful Italian reactions to Operation Achse, and one of the first acts of resistance by the Italian armed forces against Nazi Germany after the armistice of Cassibile.
Background.
When the armistice between Italy and the Allied forces was announced, on the evening of 8 September 1943, the harbour of Bastia, in Italian-occupied Corsica, was packed with both Italian and German vessels; moored in the harbour were the Italian "Ardito" and "Aliseo", the Italian merchant ships "Sassari" and "Humanitas", and a small German flotilla which included the submarine chasers "UJ 2203" (former French Navy survey vessel "Austral") and "UJ 2219" (former Belgian yacht "Insuma") and five Marinefährprahme ("F 366", "F 387", "F 459", "F 612" and "F 623"). The "Cormorano" was on watch off Bastia.
The local Italian and German commanders soon reached a "gentlemen’s agreement" according to which the German forces would be allowed to safely retreat to mainland Italy.
Meanwhile, however, the German forces secretly prepared to launch a surprise attack on the Italian ships moored inside the harbour, planning to capture them. The attack started at 23:45 on 8 September, when two groups of German soldiers, after hearing a whistle (the signal to attack), stormed "Ardito"; the torpedo boat was heavily damaged (70 of her 180 crew were killed) and captured, and the merchant ships "Sassari" and "Humanitas" also fell into German hands. On board "Humanitas", German gunners manning the anti-aircraft guns turned their weapons on the Italian crew and soldiers aboard, and the Italian lookouts were stabbed or killed with hand grenades.
Action.
"Aliseo" had just left the harbour when the German attack began.
Shortly after dawn on 9 September, a combat group of the Tenth Bersaglieri Group ("10° Raggruppamento Celere Bersaglieri") staged a counterattack which led to the recapture of the port. "Ardito", "Sassari" and "Humanitas" were also recaptured. The German flotilla was ordered to leave the harbour, but as soon as they left, the ships were shelled by the Italian coastal batteries (armed with 76 mm guns), which damaged "UJ 2203" and some of the MFPs.
"Aliseo" (under the command of commander Carlo Fecia di Cossato) was then ordered by the port commander to attack and destroy the German units. Shortly after 7:00 the flotilla, proceeding in a column led by "UJ 2203", opened fire on "Aliseo", which returned fire at 7:06, from a distance of ; at 7:30 "Aliseo" was hit by an 88 mm shell in the engine room and temporarily left dead in the water, but the damage was quickly repaired and the torpedo boat closed in and engaged her adversaries in succession, destroying them one after the other. At 8:20 "UJ 2203", after suffering several hits, blew up; ten minutes later "UJ 2219" was also destroyed when her magazines exploded. Between 8:30 and 8:35 "Aliseo" also sank "F 366", "F 459" and "F 623"; "Cormorano" intervened during the final phase of the battle and, together with "Aliseo", forced "F 387" and "F 612" to run aground, after which they were abandoned and destroyed. "Cormorano" also sank the 43-ton Luftwaffe service motorboat "FL B. 412".
Twenty-five German survivors were picked up by "Aliseo", which then (along with the damaged "Ardito") proceeded towards Portoferraio, as ordered. The damage suffered by "Ardito" later caused this ship to be left behind in Portoferraio, where she was eventually captured by German forces.


Alessandro Cagliostro

Count Alessandro di Cagliostro (, ; 2 June 1743 – 26 August 1795) was the alias of the occultist Giuseppe Balsamo (; in French usually referred to as Joseph Balsamo).
Cagliostro was an Italian adventurer and self-styled magician. He became a glamorous figure associated with the royal courts of Europe where he pursued various occult arts, including psychic healing, alchemy and scrying. His reputation lingered for many decades after his death, but continued to deteriorate, as he came to be regarded as a charlatan and impostor, this view fortified by the savage attack of Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) in 1833, who pronounced him the "Quack of Quacks". Later works—such as that of W.R.H. Trowbridge (1866-1938) in his "Cagliostro: the Splendour and Misery of a Master of Magic" (1910), attempted a rehabilitation.
Biography.
Origin.
The history of Cagliostro is shrouded in rumour, propaganda, and mysticism. Some effort was expended to ascertain his true identity when he was arrested because of possible participation in the Affair of the Diamond Necklace.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe relates in his "Italian Journey" that the identification of Cagliostro with Giuseppe Balsamo was ascertained by a lawyer from Palermo who, upon official request, had sent a dossier with copies of the pertinent documents to France. Goethe met the lawyer in April 1787 and saw the documents and Balsamo's pedigree: Balsamo's great-grandfather Matteo Martello had two daughters: Maria, who married Giuseppe Bracconeri; and Vincenza, who married Giuseppe Cagliostro. Maria and Giuseppe Bracconeri had three children: Matteo; Antonia; and Felicità, who married Pietro Balsamo (the son of a bookseller, Antonino Balsamo, who had declared bankruptcy before dying at age 44). The son of Felicità and Pietro Balsamo was Giuseppe, who was christened with the name of his great-uncle and eventually adopted his surname, too. Felicità Balsamo was still alive in Palermo at the time of Goethe's travels in Italy, and he visited her and her daughter. Goethe wrote that Cagliostro was of Jewish origin, and it may be that the name "Balsamo" comes from the hebrew Baal Shem (Cagliostro himself publicly ascertained that he was a disciple of Haĩm Falk, the Baal Shem of London).
Cagliostro himself stated during the trial following the Affair of the Diamond Necklace that he had been born of Christians of noble birth but abandoned as an orphan upon the island of Malta. He claimed to have travelled as a child to Medina, Mecca, and Cairo and upon return to Malta to have been admitted to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, with whom he studied alchemy, the Kabbalah, and magic.
Early life.
Giuseppe Balsamo was born to a poor family in Albergheria, which was once the old Jewish Quarter of Palermo, Sicily. Despite his family's precarious financial situation, his grandfather and uncles made sure the young Giuseppe received a solid education: he was taught by a tutor and later became a novice in the Catholic Order of St. John of God, from which he was eventually expelled.
During his period as a novice in the order, Balsamo learned chemistry as well as a series of spiritual rites. In 1764, when he was twenty one, he convinced Vincenzo Marano—a wealthy goldsmith—of the existence of a hidden treasure buried several hundred years previously at Mount Pellegrino. The young man's knowledge of the occult, Marano reasoned, would be valuable in preventing the duo from being attacked by magical creatures guarding the treasure. In preparation for the expedition to Mount Pellegrino, however, Balsamo requested seventy pieces of silver from Marano.
When the time came for the two to dig up the supposed treasure, Balsamo attacked Marano, who was left bleeding and wondering what had happened to the boy—in his mind, the beating he had been subjected to had been the work of djinns.
The next day, Marano paid a visit to Balsamo's house in via Perciata (since then renamed via Conte di Cagliostro), where he learned the young man had left the city. Balsamo (accompanied by two accomplices) had fled to the city of Messina. By 1765–66, Balsamo found himself on the island of Malta, where he became an auxiliary ("donato") for the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and a skilled pharmacist.
Travels.
In early 1768 Balsamo left for Rome, where he managed to land himself a job as a secretary to Cardinal Orsini. The job proved boring to Balsamo and he soon started leading a double life, selling magical "Egyptian" amulets and engravings pasted on boards and painted over to look like paintings. Of the many Sicilian expatriates and ex-convicts he met during this period, one introduced him to a seventeen-year-old girl named Lorenza Seraphina Feliciani (ca. 8 April 1751 – 1794), known as "Serafina", whom he married 1768.
The couple moved in with Lorenza's parents and her brother in the vicolo delle Cripte, adjacent to the strada dei Pellegrini. Balsamo's coarse language and the way he incited Lorenza to display her body contrasted deeply with her parents' deep-rooted religious beliefs. After a heated discussion, the young couple left.
At this point Balsamo befriended Agliata, a forger and swindler, who proposed to teach Balsamo how to forge letters, diplomas and myriad other official documents. In return, though, Agliata sought sexual intercourse with Balsamo's young wife, a request to which Balsamo acquiesced.
The couple traveled together to London, where Balsamo, now styling himself with one of several pseudonyms and self-conferred titles before settling on "Count Alessandro di Cagliostro", allegedly met the Comte de Saint-Germain. Cagliostro traveled throughout Europe, especially to Courland, Russia, Poland, Germany, and later France. His fame grew to the point that he was even recommended as a physician to Benjamin Franklin during a stay in Paris.
On 12 April 1777 "Joseph Cagliostro" was admitted as a Freemason of the Espérance Lodge No. 289 in Gerrard Street, Soho, London. In December 1777 Cagliostro and Serafina left London for the mainland, after which they travelled through various German states, visiting lodges of the Rite of Strict Observance looking for converts to Cagliostro's "Egyptian Freemasonry". In February 1779 Cagliostro traveled to Mitau, where he met the poetess Elisa von der Recke. In September 1780, after failing in Saint Petersburg to win the patronage of Russian Tsaritsa Catherine the Great, the Cagliostros made their way to Strasbourg, at that time in France. In October 1784, the Cagliostros travelled to Lyon. On 24 December 1784 they founded the co-Masonic mother lodge "La Sagesse Triomphante" of his rite of Egyptian Freemasonry at Lyon. In January 1785 Cagliostro and his wife went to Paris in response to the entreaties of Cardinal Rohan.
Affair of the diamond necklace.
Cagliostro was prosecuted in the Affair of the Diamond Necklace which involved Marie Antoinette and Prince Louis de Rohan, and was held in the Bastille for nine months but finally acquitted, when no evidence could be found connecting him to the affair. Nonetheless, he was banished from France by order of Louis XVI, and departed for England. There he was accused by French expatriate Theveneau de Morande of being Giuseppe Balsamo, which he denied in his published "Open Letter to the English People", forcing a retraction and apology from Morande.
Betrayal, imprisonment, and death.
Cagliostro left England to visit Rome, where he met two people who proved to be spies of the Inquisition. Some accounts hold that his wife was the one who initially betrayed him to the Inquisition. On 27 December 1789 he was arrested and imprisoned in the Castel Sant'Angelo. He was tried and originally sentenced to death, but the sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment at the Forte di San Leo, where he would die on 26 August 1795.
Legacy.
Portuguese author Camilo Castelo Branco credits to Balsamo the creation of the Egyptian Rite of the Freemasons and intensive work in the diffusion of Freemasonry, by opening lodges all over Europe and by introducing the acceptance of women into the community. The idea of an "Egyptian freemasonry" was maintained in Italy by the Rite of Misraim, founded in 1813 by the three Jewish Bédarride brothers and in France, the Rite of Memphis founded in 1838 by Jacques Etienne Marconis de Nègre; these unified under Giuseppe Garibaldi as the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm in 1881.
Cagliostro was an extraordinary forger. Giacomo Casanova, in his autobiography, narrated an encounter in which Cagliostro was able to forge a letter by Casanova, despite being unable to understand it.
Occult historian Lewis Spence comments in his entry on Cagliostro that the swindler put his finagled wealth to good use by starting and funding a chain of maternity hospitals and orphanages around the continent.
He carried an alchemistic manuscript The Most Holy Trinosophia amongst others with him on his ill-fated journey to Rome and it is alleged that he wrote it.
Occultist Aleister Crowley believed Cagliostro was one of his previous incarnations.


Benedicta Henrietta of the Palatinate

Princess Palatine Benedicta Henrietta (Benedicta Henrietta Philippina; 14 March 1652 – 12 August 1730) was Duchess of Brunswick-Lüneburg, or of Hanover, by her marriage to Duke John Frederick. She was the third and youngest daughter of Prince Palatine Edward and the political hostess Anna Gonzaga.
Life.
Born in Paris to the landless Prince Palatine Edward, "Bénédicte Henriette"'s paternal grandparents were Frederick V, Elector Palatine and Elizabeth Stuart, the "Winter Queen". Her maternal grandparents were Charles I, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat and his French wife Catherine de Mayenne, daughter of Charles de Lorraine-Guise, Duke of Mayenne. She was the youngest of three daughters.
Bénédicte was reared by Louise de La Fayette, a courtier-turned-nun known as Sister Louise-Angélique.
Duchess of Brunswick-Lüneburg.
She was married at the age of sixteen to a distant cousin, John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, who was the same age as her father, and childless. They were married on 30 November 1668. The union, which had been arranged by the French diplomatist produced four daughters.
John Frederick died in 1679 without a male heir, and the duchy of Brunswick was inherited by his Protestant younger brother, Ernest Augustus, the husband of Benedicta Henrietta's paternal aunt, Sophia of Hanover, and father of George I of Great Britain. After her husband's death, Benedicta returned to her native France and resided there with her sister, the princess of Condé.
She corresponded with Gottfried Leibniz.
Benedicta died the age of 78, at Asnieres, her late sister's residence near Paris, on 12 August 1730.


Erwin Lutz

Erwin Lutz is an Austrian "Righteous Among the Nations".
In 1944 the police officer Erwin Lutz was working as a chef in a prison in Innsbruck. Together with police inspector Rudi Moser he decided to save five Jewish Polish girls from deportation into a concentration camp. He convinced his bosses in the prison administration to remove the girls' papers from the files and to give them jobs in his prison kitchen.
When orders came to transport all prisoners to KZ-Bergen-Belsen on January 18, 1945 they organized the escape of the five girls. Two of them managed to flee.
Erwin Lutz offered them his apartment in Ahorndorfstraße 3 as first shelter.


Battle of Focchies

The Battle of Focchies was a significant naval engagement that took place on 12 May 1649, in the harbour of Focchies, Smyrna between a Venetian force of nineteen warships under the command of Giacomo da Riva, and an Ottoman force of eleven warships, ten galleasses, and seventy-two galleys, with the battle resulting in a crushing victory for the Venetian fleet. The battle was an episode in the Cretan War from 1645 to 1669 between the Venetian Republic (along with its allies, the Knights of Malta, the Kingdom of France and the Papal States) and the Ottoman Empire over dominance of various territories in the Mediterranean Sea. The war was one in a series of wars between the two warring powers, which contested for control of the Adriatic and Mediterranean trade routes. The primary territory that was contested during the war was Crete, the largest and most profitable of the overseas holdings of the Venetian Republic. The battle came after a squadron of Venetian ships under the command of Giacomo da Riva, a Venetian admiral, came to the rescue of the blockading Venetian force in the Dardanelles Straits, after the blockade had run into unexpected weather conditions and many ships sunk as a result.
Admiral da Riva moved to engage the Ottoman fleet, attempting to prevent them from sailing to Crete and reinforcing the Ottoman forces that were laying siege to the island. To reinforce his fleet before engaging the Ottomans, da Riva hired several English and Dutch armed merchantmen, promising to their captains that he would compensate them for any damages or casualties that they suffered. The Venetian fleet set sail towards the harbour, with the intention to destroy the Ottoman fleet while it was trapped. When the Ottomans saw that the Venetian fleet advancing, ten galleasses were placed in front of the harbour entrance to cover the other ships. The Venetians easily broke through the galleasses, and intense combat began and lasted for four hours, with the Venetian (and hired) warships engaging the Ottoman fleet, easily overwhelming them with superior firepower. The Ottomans put up a spirited defence, but could not stop the Venetians from destroying a significant portion of the fleet. Despite the overwhelming victory, it was not a complete one, and Ottoman naval forces were able to sail to Crete to bring reinforcements, with Crete falling to the Ottomans two decades later.
Background.
After the loss of Cyprus to the Ottomans in the fourth Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573), the island of Crete (the "Kingdom of Candia") was the last major overseas possession of the Venetian Republic. Its important strategic position made it an obvious target for future Ottoman expansion, while its size and fertile ground, together with the bad state of its fortresses, made it a more tempting prize than Malta. On the Venetian side, the Serenissima, with its weak military and great dependence on uninterrupted trade, was anxious not to provoke the Ottomans. Hence Venice scrupulously observed the terms of its treaty with the Ottomans, securing over sixty years of peaceful relations. By the early 17th century moreover, Venetian power had declined considerably. Its economy, which had once prospered because of its control over the Eastern spice trade]], had suffered as a result of the opening of the new Atlantic trade routes, and from the loss of the important German market because of the Thirty Years' War. In 1645, the war broke out as Ottoman forces moved to capture Crete from the Venetians.
A Venetian fleet had been ordered to blockade the Dardanelles Straits since April of 1648. On 19 November, most of the fleet withdrew, leaving thirteen warships, under da Riva to maintain the blockade. In Spring 1649, he was joined by Bertucci Civrano with seven more warships, bringing up the total strength of his fleet to nineteen warships, as he had lost a warship to bad weather in the previous months. In early May, the Ottoman fleet appeared from the direction of Istanbul. Only two of Riva's ships actually managed to engage them, and in the ensuing chaos, the Ottoman fleet safely made it out of the Strait and headed southwards. Giacomo da Riva, marshaling his fleet, ordered them to follow and successfully trapped the Ottoman fleet at the port of Focchies, on the mainland. Many of the Venetian ships were hired Dutch or English armed merchantmen, and da Riva had to promise to compensate their captains for any damage, due to da Riva realizing that the Dutch or English captains would be unwilling to risk their ships unless they knew that they were going to be adequately compensated for their efforts. On May 12, da Riva ordered his fleet to sail into the harbour and engage the Ottoman ships lying at anchor.
Battle.
Leading the action from his flagship, the "Rotta Fortuna", da Riva led his into the harbour. The larger and taller Venetian warships easily smashed aside the galleasses, and the minuscule amount of cannon that a single galleass could carry was no match for the dozens of cannons carried by the Venetian warships. Three galleasses were destroyed, with the rest being damaged and scattered, leaving the path into the harbour clear. The warships, one by one, sailed into the harbour and began engaging the Ottoman warships, aiming to use their overwhelming power to capture the warships and sink the galleys, which carried only a few cannons. The warships moved to engage, as they could withstand the broadside of the Venetian ones in a one-on-one engagement. However, da Riva was short one warship during the engagement, as the captain of the "Esperienza" had refused to sail into the harbour at all, instead keeping out to sea and only rejoining the fleet on the next day. During the action, the Ottoman fleet was slowly overwhelmed and destroyed, as the crews proved no match for Venetian, English and Dutch ones in terms of gunnery skill and seamanship, with many abandoning their ships as they sunk in the harbour.
Once the battle looked to be clearly in the Venetians favour, da Riva ordered men from his ships to set alight and burn the sinking Ottoman ships, as there was still a risk they could be re-floated, and being impossible to be towed out the harbour. In an unusual occurrence during a naval engagement, the galley slaves of one of the Ottoman galleys managed to overwhelm her crew and row towards a Venetian warship, whereupon the liberated slaves promptly surrendered the galley. Two of the smaller warships, the "San Bartolamio", and the "Francese", were abandoned by their crew due to damage incurred by Ottoman cannonade. The "San Bartolamio" was able to be successfully regained by the crew of the "Tre Re", whereas the "Francese" drifted onto the shore and was burnt and destroyed by Ottoman soldiers while beached. When the action was concluding, da Riva surveyed the scene to see a spectacular success- nine warships burnt, three galleasses burnt, two galleys burnt, and one of each type captured. However, at midnight, the wind changed, and the fires set by the Venetians threatened to burn their own warships to the waterline. Upon seeing this, da Riva gave the order to retreat, and the action concluded.
Aftermath.
In total, the Venetian fleet suffered 105 men killed or wounded, alongside one warship destroyed, burnt by the Ottomans after it drifted onto the shore after being abandoned. The Venetian fleet suffered another loss just ten days later- the "James", which had captured the galleass during the battle and was dismasted during the fighting- sunk in heavy weather due to damage sustained during the battle. The casualties for the Ottoman fleet was devastating, although not absolute- they still had one warship, seven galleasses, and sixty-nine galleys still intact alongside their crews. The reason for so many ships surviving was due to the wind moving the direction of the flames away from the rest of the Ottoman fleet, and causing the Venetian fleet to withdraw. In the days following the action, da Riva made no attempt to follow up on his victory, but after waiting near Focchies ordered his fleet to weigh anchor and sail towards the Gulf of Smyrna, where he hoped to prevent Christian ships from entering in the service of the Ottoman Navy. Failing to sight any ships, da Riva instead ordered his fleet to sail towards Crete, to link up with Captain General Alvise Mocenigo, who da Riva had written a letter to when he saw the Ottoman fleet leaving the Dardanelles Strait.
On May 23rd, da Riva, along with his fleet reached Nixa, waiting there for six days until Mocenigo joined forces with him. Mocenigo brought with him four warships, six galleasses and twenty-one galleys from Crete. Mocenigo dissuaded da Riva from launching patrols in the region to search for Ottoman ships, instead holding their position and stopping any significant Ottoman force from reaching Chania. In early June, the Kapudan Pasha left for Rhodes, merging the ships that had not been destroyed into a larger fleet. This fleet was joined by warships and galleys from Egypt and the Barbary States, and reached a size of eighty-three galleys and seventy-four warships, along with countless smaller vessels such as xebecs and gunboats. By late June his fleet arrived at Tine, and from there he sailed towards Milo in preparation for the final journey to Chania. Around the same time, da Riva was stationed at Santorin, but was able to sail to Milo to intercept the Ottoman fleet. However, neither fleet was willing to risk an all-out engagement, and both sides withdrew, the Ottoman fleet allowed to sail unmolested towards Chania. The fleet was able to assist in the ongoing siege, which eventually fell to the Ottomans in 1669, bringing an end to the war in favour of the Ottomans.


Ballieth

Ballieth was first a suburban estate and then a quarter of Königsberg, Germany, located north of the city center. Its territory is now part of the Leningradsky District of Kaliningrad, Russia.
Ballieth was situated on the road Samitter Allee, which ran north–south. Neighboring quarters were Tragheimer Palve to the south, Hardershof to the southwest, Charlottenburg to the west, Beydritten to the north, Quednau to the east, and Maraunenhof to the southeast. Due east of the estate was Max Aschmann Park. Development of the suburb intensified during the 1920s. Ballieth was incorporated into the city of Königsberg in 1928.


West Flemish

West Flemish ("West-Vlams" or "West-Vloams" or "Vlaemsch" (in French-Flanders), , ) is a West Germanic language spoken in western Belgium and the neighboring areas of France and Netherlands.
West Flemish is spoken by about a million people in the Belgian province of West Flanders, and a further 50,000 in the neighbouring Dutch coastal district of Zeelandic Flanders (200,000 if including the closely related dialects of Zeelandic) and 10-20,000 in the northern part of the French "département" of Nord. Some of the main cities where West Flemish is widely spoken are Bruges, Dunkirk, Kortrijk, Ostend, Roeselare, Ypres and Newport.
West Flemish is listed as a "vulnerable" language in UNESCO's online Red Book of Endangered Languages. The language has its own dedicated Wikipedia.
Phonology.
West Flemish has a phonology that differs significantly from that of Standard Dutch, being similar to Afrikaans in the case of long E, O and A, and where Standard Dutch has "sch", Flemish, like Afrikaans, has "sk". However, the best known traits are the replacement of Standard Dutch (pre-)velar fricatives "g" and "ch" in Dutch () with glottal "h" . The following differences are listed by their Dutch spelling, as some different letters have merged their sounds in Standard Dutch but remained separate sounds in West Flemish. Pronunciations can also differ slightly from region to region.
The absence of and in West Flemish makes pronouncing them very difficult for native speakers. That often causes hypercorrection of the sounds to a or .
Standard Dutch also has many words with an "-en" () suffix (mostly plural forms of verbs and nouns). While Standard Dutch and most dialects do not pronounce the final "n", West Flemish typically drops the "e" and pronounces the "n" inside the base word. For base words already ending with "n", the final "n" sound is often lengthened to clarify the suffix. That makes many words become similar to those of English: "beaten", "listen" etc.
The short "o" () can also be pronounced as a short "u" (), a phenomenon also occurring in Russian and some other Slavic languages, called akanye. That happens spontaneously to some words, but other words keep their original short "o" sounds. Similarly, the short "a" () can turn into a short "o" () in some words spontaneously.
The diphthong "ui" () does not exist in West Flemish and is replaced by a long "u" () or a long "ie" (). Like for the "ui", the long "o" () can be replaced by an ("eu") for some words but a for others. That often causes similarities to ranchers English.
Here are some examples showing the sound shifts that are part of the vocabulary:
Grammar.
Plural form.
Plural forms in Standard Dutch most often add "-en", but West Flemish usually uses "-s", like the Lower Saxon Germanic dialects and even more prominently in English in which "-en" has become very rare. Under the influence of Standard Dutch, "-s" is being used by fewer people, and younger speakers tend to use "-en".
Verb conjugation.
The verbs "zijn" ("to be") and "hebben" ("to have") are also conjugated differently.
Double subject.
West Flemish often has a double subject.
Articles.
Standard Dutch has an indefinite article that does not depend on gender, unlike in West Flemish. However, a gender-independent article is increasingly used. Like in English, "n" is pronounced only if the next word begins with a vowel sound.
Conjugation of "yes" and "no".
Another feature of West Flemish is the conjugation of "ja" and "nee" ("yes" and "no") to the subject of the sentence. That is somewhat related to the double subject, but even when the rest of the sentence is not pronounced, "ja" and "nee" are generally used with the first part of the double subject. There is also an extra word, "toet" (), negates the previous sentence but gives a positive answer. It's an abbreviation of " 't en doe 't" - it does it.
"Ja", "nee" and "toet" can also all be strengthened by adding "mo-" or "ba-". Both mean "but" and are derived from Dutch "but" or "maar") and can be even used together ("mobatoet").
Vocabulary.
West Flemish inherited many words from Saxon settlers and later on had English loanwords from the wool and cloth trades. Both categories differ from Standard Dutch and show similarities with English and so is difficult to separate both categories.
During the Industrial Revolution, the increasing trade with France caused many industrial loanwords from French.
False friends.
Even when words exist in both Dutch and West Flemish, their meaning can be different. That sometimes causes confusion for native speakers who do not realise that words are used differently.


Cassar

Cassar is a Maltese surname.
According to Maltese linguist Mario Cassar, the surname is of Arabic origin, and derives from the Muslim period of Malta. there are also various other proposed origins of the surname.:
The most important representatives of the family are the Cassar Desain, marchese de Sain in Malta and the Cassar Torregiani, one of the richest family in the 19th century in Malta.


Sudova Vyshnia

Sudóva Výšnja (, ) is a town of Mostyska Raion in Lviv Oblast (region) of Ukraine. Population: .
The town has a number of Catholic cathedrals, a secondary school, is a market centre for surrounding agricultural area. In the past the town contained a horse farm, providing horse stud service for the area, some of the horse studs being very expensive. On outskirts there is a hippodrome.
Location.
Sudova Vyshnia is located about 50 km west of Lviv, on the highway (Shehyni – Lviv) and railroad to Przemyśl in Poland. In the city also terminates a route P40 that stretches all the way to Rava-Ruska.
The Vishnya river flows through the town in a westerly direction, eventually joining San in Poland. The railway line (twin track) leads to Kraków and Silesia in Poland, being a main route carrying coal to the former USSR.
History.
Sudova Vyshnia was first mentioned in Galician–Volhynian Chronicle for 1230 as Vyshnia. In 1340, together with whole Red Ruthenia, it was annexed by the Kingdom of Poland. Until the 1772 Partitions of Poland, Sądowa Wisznia, as it was officially called, was part of Przemyśl Land, Ruthenian Voivodeship.
Sudova Vyshnia received its Magdeburg rights town charter in 1368. Originally, it was called Vyshnia (Wisznia), after the river Wisznia, a tributary of the San. The adjective Sudova (Polish: Sądowa) was added in 1545, when it became the seat of the general sejmiks of the Ruthenian szlachta of Lesser Poland Province of the Polish Crown.
In 1772, the town was annexed by the Habsburg Empire, as part of Habsburg Austrian Galicia, where it remained until late 1918. In the Second Polish Republic, Sądowa Wisznia belonged to Mościska County, Lwów Voivodeship. During the September 1939 Invasion of Poland, the Battle of Jaworów took place in the area of the town.
When captured by the USSR in the Second World War, the town had a large main square, cobbled and with a podium – suitable for public meetings. Under Communism, the square was planted over by trees and bushes – no more public meetings. In 1940–41 and 1944–59 Sudova Vyshnia was a district seat of the "Sudova Vyshnia Raion" that eventually was merged with Mostyska Raion.
When under Nazi Germany administration during the Second World War, being in the area called Galicia since ancient times, it was not considered occupied but a part of the German Reich. The currency at that time was the Reichsmark, whereas in occupied territories German administration was using Ostmark. German armed forces included a number of SS divisions, considered to be elite units. And there was a division SS Galicia. Before the war the town had had a Jewish population; only 3 (two of which are: Frieda Stramer and her brother Dov Stramer) of its Jews survived the war, and none remained there afterwards.
After World War II, the Soviet regime used a Catholic temple (Church of St Mary) that existed since the 14th century as a warehouse until 1989.
Today, Sudova Vyshnia is one of the centers of the Poles in Ukraine, with a local office of the Association of Polish Culture of the Lviv Land.


2004 Guernsey general election

The 2004 Guernsey general election was held on 21 April 2004 to elect 45 members of the States of Guernsey. All 45 elected members were independents.
The Elections Ordinance, 2004
There was a by-election in September 2005 to fill a vacancy in the district of St Peter Port South.


John III, Lord of Polanen

John III of Wassenaer, Lord of Polanen (1340 – 10 August 1394) was Lord of Polanen (a heerlijkheid south of Monster). The Lords of Polanen were a branch of the House of Wassenaer. He held extensive possessions besides the fief of Polanen.
He was the eldest son of John II ( – 1378), from his first marriage to Oda of Horne (1318-1353). In 1353, his father inherited the extensive possessions of Willem van Duvenvoorde and in the same year, he purchased the Barony of Breda from the Duke of Brabant. When John II died in 1378, John III inherited most of these possessions.
John III was married to Countess Oda of Salm-Ravenstein (1370-1428). Their only child was their daughter Johanna van Polanen, who married Engelbert I of Nassau in 1404. Via this marriage, the House of Nassau inherited the Polanen possessions.
In his 1394 will, John III also mentioned three illegitimate children:


St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Cathedral (Pittsburgh)

St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Cathedral is the mother church of Byzantine Catholic Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh, the American branch of the Ruthenian Catholic Church. It is located at 210 Greentree Road in Munhall, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh in the Monongahela River valley.
History.
Beginning in the 1880s, tens of thousands of Rusyns from the Carpathian Mountains flocked to Pittsburgh to work in its steel industry, especially Andrew Carnegie's large steel mill at Homestead, Pennsylvania. In 1894—two years after the infamous and bloody Homestead Strike—the large Rusyn community of Homestead met to discuss the formation of a church. In January 1897 the new church was officially chartered and dedicated as St. John the Baptist Greek Catholic Church.
The first cathedral, 1903.
In need of a larger church, in the summer of 1902 two lots were acquired on the corner of Tenth and Dicksons Streets in the newly created (from Homestead) borough of Munhall. It was designed by the Hungarian-born architect, Titus de Bobula, and patterned after the in Uzhhorod, Austria-Hungary. The church's twin towers, which rise , are composed of white brick in a Greek cruciform pattern set into sandstone. They rise . The church was dedicated on December 27, 1903 under Co-Adjutor Bishop Regis Canevin of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, which then had jurisdiction over Greek Catholics in its region.
The congregation grew to more than 700 families in the 1920s. In 1929 it was chosen as the cathedral for the newly created Ruthenian Greek Catholic Exarchate in America. The historic structure was the first cathedral in America exclusively for Carpatho-Rusyns.
In the 1950s the parish began the task of renovating and modernizing the Cathedral. While the renovation progressed, Divine Liturgy was held in the school auditorium. Msgr. John Gernat, who served as rector from 1959 to 1963, completed the renovation.
The second cathedral, 1993.
Msgr. Judson Procyk became the rector of the Cathedral parish on July 18, 1973. As rector, Msgr. Procyk led a plan to relocate the parish and build a brand new Cathedral. In 1978, the parish acquired of property off Greentree Road in Munhall and built the current Cathedral, which was completed in 1993.
In 2004, the 1903 Cathedral was sold to the Carpatho-Rusyn Society, which uses it for its headquarters and as a cultural center.


Mormaer of Atholl (Earl of Atholl)

The Mormaer or Earl of Atholl was the title of the holder of a medieval comital lordship straddling the highland province of Atholl ("Ath Fodhla"), now in northern Perthshire. Atholl is a special Mormaerdom, because a King of Atholl is reported from the Pictish period. The only other two Pictish kingdoms to be known from contemporary sources are Fortriu and Circinn. Indeed, the early 13th century document known to modern scholars as the "de Situ Albanie" repeats the claim that Atholl was an ancient Pictish kingdom. In the 11th century, the famous Crínán of Dunkeld may have performed the role of Mormaer.
Royal connections continued with Máel Muire, who was the son of King Donnchad I, and the younger brother of Máel Coluim III mac Donnchada. Matad was perhaps the most famous of the Mormaers, fathering Harald Maddadsson, a notorious rebel of the Scottish King and perhaps the first Gael to rule Orkney as Earl of Orkney. The line of Máel Muire and Crínán came to an end when Forbhlaith, the daughter of Mormaer Henry married David de Hastings.
The latter marriage produced a daughter, Ada, who married into the Strathbogie family, a semi-Normanized Gaelic family with Fife origins. The Strathbogies ruled until the Wars of Independence, when the Campells took over. It finally passed to the Stewarts.
Early Mormaers/Earls of Atholl.
After David II, two of others of his name claimed the lordship, though neither exercised it:


Friggieri

Friggieri is a Maltese surname. Notable people with the surname include:


List of monarchs of Malta

The Mediterranean islands of Malta and Gozo have been ruled by Phoenician, Byzantine and Roman aristocrats, before passing to various European monarchies. Foreign monarchical rule over Malta lasted a total of 874 years. The Crown of Malta was "patriated" for the first time in 1964, with the achievement of Independence.
The history, languages and culture of Malta and Sicily share many key events, including occupation by the Fatimids and an invasion by Roger I of Sicily in 1091. The islands parted ways in a decisive and permanent manner in 1799, when Malta became a British Crown colony. British rule over Malta lasted 165 years and for a further 10 years, Malta retained the British monarch as its own independent head of state. Malta adopted a Republican constitution in 1974 and joined the European Union on 1 May 2004.
Kingdom of Sicily and County of Malta.
From the years 1090 and 1530, the Maltese Islands were a non-autonomous part of the Kingdom of Sicily and thus had the same sovereign. At this time the Nobility of Malta resided in or around Mdina. A strong cultural (and, to a lesser extent, political) connection to Sicily survived from 1530 to 1798 throughout the 268-year rule over Malta by the Knights Hospitaller.
In terms of the regional divisions of the islands, Malta Island was part the "Valle di Mazzara" province, Gozo was part of the "Valle di Demona" province and Comino was part of the "Valle di Noto" province.
Knights Hospitaller (1530–1798).
Although the Knights Hospitaller ruled Malta as sovereign princes, they held that privilege as a fiefdom, paying a tribute of the Maltese Falcon annually to the Viceroys of Sicily, payable on the feast of All Souls' Day.
British Crown (1799–1964).
House of Windsor.
"The house name Windsor was adopted in 1917, during the First World War. It was changed from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha because of wartime anti-German sentiment. The heirs of Elizabeth II, by royal proclamation, will remain part of the House of Windsor (even though their legal surname is Mountbatten-Windsor)."
Crown of Malta (1964–1974).
Malta acquired independence from the United Kingdom on 21 September 1964, but the Queen of the United Kingdom, Elizabeth II, remained Queen of Malta. On 13 December 1974, Malta became a republic, and since that date, its head of state has been the President of Malta.


Mogontiacum


Mannheim Observatory

The Mannheim Observatory was a tower observatory built between 1772 and 1774 in Mannheim, Germany, which remained in operation until 1880. The observatory was transferred to Karlsruhe and finally in 1898, was established on the Königstuhl near Heidelberg where today's successor institution the State Observatory Heidelberg-Königstuhl is located.
The observatory tower is now owned by the city and was restored in 1905–1906, and after the Second World War. Since 1958, the tower houses studio flats.
History.
Schwetzingen.
The Palatinate Elector Karl Theodor was a prince of the Age of Enlightenment. The French thinker Voltaire was a frequent visitor to his Court, the Elector made numerous reforms during his reign and founded scientific institutions. The Physics Institute, established in 1751 in Heidelberg, had as its Professor of Experimental Physics and Mathematics the Jesuit Father Christian Mayer.
In 1756 Mayer was sent to Paris to study the local water supply, he also studied at one of the centres of contemporary astronomy. He was given an Astronomical Quadrant, by the instrument maker, Canivet. In 1759, he observed the return of the comet predicted by Edmond Halley.
Transit of Venus 1761/1769.
Mayer observed the Transit of Venus across the Sun on 6 June 1761 from a temporary Observatory built of wood by Karl Theodor in the Orangery in the park of Schwetzingen Castle. The observations convinced the elector as early as July to begin work on an observatory building on the palace roof, which was inaugurated in 1764.
A few years later, Mayer travelled for a year to St. Petersburg and observed there, another Transit of Venus on 3 June 1769. The Schwetzinger observatory was not unused, however. Carl Theodor and a visitor, Prince Franz Xavier of Saxony, wished to observe the phenomenon, but were unsuccessful due to bad weather.
Mayer published his results from the two Venus Transits in St. Petersburg and calculated, with the help of his observations of the two transits, that the average Earth-Sun distance was 146.2 million kilometers, which is only three million kilometers less than the actual value, however, with a significant measurement uncertainty.
The Palatinate Period.
The Founding of the Mannheim Observatory.
On New Year's Day 1771 Mayer finally presented a memorandum on the construction of an observatory to the Mannheim Court. In 1772 the Elector charged the Court Chamberlain with the construction of the observatory. In the same year the foundation stone of the tower next to Schloss Mannheim, in the vicinity of the Jesuit College was laid. In the following years, Mayer acquired numerous instruments, and with the help of books delivered from the Electoral Library made the Mannheim Observatory into an internationally known research facility.
In the visitors' book of the Mannheim observatory not only are there entries by many well-known colleagues, but also illustrious guests such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Benjamin Franklin, Envoy of the young United States, and even Arabic and other writings.
Mayer's astronomical work found its peak in the discovery of binary stars. The majority of the binary stars published in Bode's star chart of 1782 were observed by Mayer.
Elector Karl Theodor left the Palatinate in 1778, to govern Bavaria. Not least because of the absence of a personal patron prince, the history of the observatory after the death of Christian Mayer in 1783 was less happy.
Christian Mayer’s Successors.
The new Court Astronomer, the Jesuit Karl König, was transferred to Munich by the Elector Karl Theodor soon after he arrived in Mannheim, the next, the ex-Jesuit John Fischer, made so many enemies that in 1788 after only a year and a half he resigned. The Vincentian priest Peter Ungeschick was probably a better choice, but in 1790 he died on the return journey from studying in Paris. He was followed by Roger Barry, also a member of the Order of Vincentians.
Barry's initial successes were undone by the wars of the Napoleonic Era during which severe damage was inflicted on the Observatory. The tower was repeatedly shelled, instruments were destroyed and others damaged. Some disappeared in unexplained ways. Barry was imprisoned for a time by the French, although he was given the opportunity to observe a Transit of Mercury, but little else.
The Baden Period.
From the Napoleonic Wars to the German Revolution.
After the 1806 war over the Grand Duchy of Baden's claims to areas of the Palatinate and thus the observatory, the Court Astronomer, Roger Barry, recommenced his observations, but fell ill in 1810 and the observatory remained unused until his death in 1813. His numerous observations with the Mural Quadrant made after 1800 remained unpublished by his successors, as they were not classified.
The running of the Mannheim Observatory by Catholic Orders was now over. In the years up to the Baden Revolution in 1848 the observatory declined. Famous astronomers were not retained, such as Heinrich Christian Schumacher (Director 1813–1815), founder of the oldest existing journal of astronomy, "Astronomische Nachrichten", and of the Altona Observatory. Friedrich Wilhelm Struve, founder and first director of Pulkovo Observatory at St. Petersburg, despite being interested was deterred by clumsy personnel policy. From 1816 until his death in 1846 Bernhard Nicolai was Court Astronomer, being mainly dedicated to the orbits of comets. In his time, amongst other things, a three-stage refracting telescope was purchased from Fraunhofer, which was later used by the German expeditions of 1874 and 1882 to observe the Transit of Venus.
The instruments and the Observatory Tower itself were aging. Already mature plans for construction of a new observatory drawn up in the revolutionary period were no longer to be, and on 10 June 1850 it was decided to end the Institute by appointing no new Court Astronomer. In 1852 the Heidelberg professor Nell took over the unpaid supervision of the institute. In 1859 this modest institute planned renewal with the purchase of a six-stage telescope.
Move to Karlsruhe.
In 1859 Eduard Schönfeld was appointed Director with a salary. The observatory equipment at his disposal was somewhat antiquated, his largest telescope being a small refractor of 73 lines aperture, but he selected a line of work to suit the instruments at his disposal, observing Nebulae, for which he soon made a name for himself, and variable stars and keeping a watch on comets and new planets.
The results of his observations of nebulae are contained in two catalogues published in the "Astronomische Beobachtungen der Grossherzoglichen Sternwarte zu Mannheim", 1st and 2nd parts (1862 and 1875), and those of his variable star observations appeared in the "Jahresberichte des Mannheimer Vereins für Naturkunde", Nos. 32 and 39 (1866 and 1875). His work contributed significantly to the "Bonn Survey", a star catalogue still in use today. Moreover, he organized several astronomical meetings. At one such a meeting, 28 August 1863 in Heidelberg, the Astronomische Gesellschaft, the second oldest astronomical society after the Royal Astronomical Society. was founded. Schönfeld was on the founding board. Among many other activities, he was a member of the 1871 Advisory Commission in preparation for the 1874/82 Transits of Venus.
Schönfeld left for Bonn in 1875 and Karl Wilhelm Valentiner took over the Mannheim Directorship. The location of the Observatory in the middle of the town was no longer suitable. The Observatory was moved to a makeshift building in Karlsruhe in 1880 but no significant observations were made. Plans to build a permanent observatory in Karlsruhe did not become a reality, very much to Valentine's annoyance, even though the first telescopes and instruments were purchased.
During that time the desire for an observatory arose at the University of Heidelberg. The young Heidelberg astronomer Max Wolf had already built a private observatory in his parents' house in 1880. He believed firmly in the use of photography for observation and as a result he quickly made a name for himself in astronomy.
The Mountain Observatory at Heidelberg.
In 1892 a deputation of Heidelberg professors, amongst them Max Wolf, petitioned the Grand Duke of Karlsruhe for a University research and teaching observatory. This was not financially feasible at that time for Baden which could do little more than construct the buildings, and could not afford the instruments for Wolf's specialisation of astrophotography. Wolf sought supporters for the purchase of new telescopes. The search proved to be very successful: Catherine Wolfe Bruce, the noted American philanthropist and patroness of science, donated $10,000 for a telescope, and this donation was followed by others. Finally, on the construction of an observatory it was granted that the Karlsruhe instruments should be transferred to Heidelberg.
On 20 June 1898, the "Großherzogliche Bergsternwarte" at Königstuhl (the present day Heidelberg Observatory) was ceremonially inaugurated by Frederick I, Grand Duke of Baden. The astronomical institute comprised two competing departments, the Astrophysics Department under Max Wolf, containing the instruments from his private observatory and the new foundation's instruments, and the Astrometry Department under Karl Wilhelm Valentiner, containing the Karlsruhe instruments. Valentiner was director of the Mannheim Observatory and had initiated the move to Karlsruhe. After Valentiner's retirement in 1909, both departments were amalgamated under the administration of Max Wolf.
Wolf worked on many areas of astrophysics, he investigated the structure of the Milky Way, star spectroscopy and gas nebula, and searched intensively for Asteroids, of which he discovered more than 800. As an honorary citizen of Heidelberg, he was buried in the cemetery on the mountain in 1932.
After the Second World War, there was a new beginning for the Institute, now named the Königstuhl State Observatory (LSW). In 1983 the Mannheim instruments were donated to the State Museum of Technology and Industry in Mannheim, where some of them now form part of the permanent exhibition. The 1859 six-stage telescope was given to the city of Karlsruhe in 1957 for the establishment of the Public Astronomical Observatory of Karlsruhe, another instrument was given to the National Astronomical Observatory Heppenheim. The valuable book collection of the old library, the oldest of which dates back to 1476, was transferred to the Manuscript Department of the University Library.


Bearer of the sword (Hungary)

The bearer of the sword or sword-bearer (, ) was one of the minor officials of the royal household in the Kingdom of Hungary.


Taifa of Majorca

The Taifa of Majorca was a medieval Moorish taifa kingdom which existed from 1018 to 1203 in Majorca.
The first taifa lasted for about 50 years (1076-1116), first succumbing to a Christian crusade and later being occupied by the Almoravids. After a period in which the Balearic Islands were integrated into the Almoravid Empire, it ended up disintegrating, suffering the same fate as the Caliphate of Córdoba.
A new, independent kingdom arose, the second taifa (1147-1203), under the Banu Ghaniya dynasty, which would become the last Almoravid stronghold in Al-Andalus against the Almohads advance.


Remagen

Remagen is a town in Germany in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, in the district of Ahrweiler. It is about a one-hour drive from Cologne, just south of Bonn, the former West German capital. It is situated on the left (western) bank of the river Rhine. There is a ferry across the Rhine from Remagen every 10–15 minutes in the summer. Remagen has many notable and well-maintained buildings, churches, castles and monuments. It also has a sizeable pedestrian zone with plenty of shops.
Overlooking the west bank of the Rhine just north of the city centre is the Apollinariskirche. It has an observation deck that is only open to parishioners on Sundays. Pedestrians reach the church via a dirt trail that passes a series of roadside monuments representing each of the fourteen Stations of the Cross. The church grounds contain an outdoor crypt and an abbey. Further down the river is one of the many castles along the Rhine, perched even higher than the Apollinariskirche.
History.
The Roman Empire built a border fort at Rigomagus (or Ricomagus), west of the Rhine. This was about 12 miles north of the site of the first bridge ever built across the Rhine (at Neuwied). This bridge fought the river current by being built on timbers which were driven into the bed at a slant. Caesar's troops spent nearly three weeks on the east side of the river, then crossed back over, destroying the bridge to prevent its use by German raiders. A second bridge was likewise destroyed by the builders once they were through with it.
The fort was one of a series built by Drusus, commander of the Roman army along the Rhine. Other Roman construction survived the centuries, including a gateway and Remagen became a tourist destination, popular with history buffs. Remagen appears on the 4th century Peutinger Map.
Local legend says that a ship carrying various relics from Milan to Cologne was stopped in the river in 1164, unable to move despite the strong current, until it mysteriously edged in toward the shore. The remains of Saint Apollinaris were put ashore, and the ship was then able to sail onward. These remains were interred in a chapel which had been part of the Roman fort, which became the basis for a church which bore his name, and was rebuilt several times over the years.
Bridge at Remagen.
The Ludendorff Bridge was originally built during World War I as a means of moving troops and logistics west over the Rhine to reinforce the Western Front. The bridge was designed by Karl Wiener, an architect from Mannheim. It was long, had a clearance of above the normal water level of the Rhine, and its highest point measured . The bridge was designed to be defended by troops with towers on each bank with machine gun slits in the towers. The bridge carried two railway tracks and a pedestrian walkway. During World War II, one track was planked over to allow vehicular traffic.
Capture of the bridge.
During Operation Lumberjack, on 7 March 1945, troops of the U.S. Army's 9th Armored Division reached the Ludendorff Bridge during the closing weeks of World War II and were very surprised to see that the railroad bridge was still standing. German defenders had failed to demolish it, leaving it the only one of the 22 road and railroad bridges over the Rhine still standing. U.S. forces were able to capture the bridge. The unexpected availability of the first major crossing of the Rhine, Germany's last major natural barrier and line of defense, caused Allied high commander Dwight Eisenhower to alter his plans to end the war and may have shortened the war in Europe.
The ability to quickly establish a bridgehead on the eastern side of the Rhine and to get forces into the bulk of Germany allowed the U.S. forces to envelop the German industrial area of the Ruhr more quickly than planned. The Allies were able to get six divisions across the bridge before it collapsed on 17 March 1945, ten days after it was captured. The collapse killed 18 U.S. Army Engineers. According to another source, a total of 28 U.S. engineers were killed and 93 were injured.
However, a pontoon bridge had by then been built across the river and the main bridge was out of use for repairs at the time of its collapse.
A large number of books and articles in newspapers and magazines on the battle for the bridge have been published. The best-known work on the battle is 1957's "The Bridge at Remagen" by the American author Ken Hechler. In 1968 David L. Wolper produced an American motion picture, "The Bridge at Remagen". The film depicts historical events, but is fictional in all other aspects.
Memorial.
Hans Peter Kürten, at that time Mayor of Remagen, had long considered the idea of constructing a memorial. The negotiations with the German Federal Railways alone lasted seven years before the city could finally acquire the former railway property. Announcements sent to government officials concerning the intended preservation of the bridge towers and the construction of a Memorial to Peace stirred no interest.
In the summer of 1976, it was necessary to remove the still intact bridge support pilings in the river. The mayor had the stones deposited on the Remagen river bank, with the idea in mind of selling small pieces of the bridge stones enclosed in synthetic resin and containing a certificate of authenticity.
On 7 March 1978, he went public with his idea and achieved such an unexpected degree of success, that he had realised more than 100,000 DM (around 50,000 EUR) in sales profits.
There has not been another bridge built across the Rhine here, mainly due to opposition from the people of Remagen (and surrounding areas), contending that a bridge located at this point along the Rhine would spoil the view.
Prisoner enclosures.
In 1945, the U.S. built one of the many enclosures on the west bank of the Rhine—the so-called Rheinwiesenlager—close to Remagen. The camps were used by the Allies to house captured German soldiers. Several thousand prisoners are estimated to have died in the various camps, including 1,212 who are now buried in the Bad Bodendorf Cemetery.
Sights.
Apollinariskirche.
The Apollinaris Church was built 1839-1842 on the site of the medieval Church of St. Martin. The frescos on the inside of the neo-Gothic church were painted by members of the artists group called the "Nazarenes". Three cycles show the life of Jesus, the life of Mary, and the history of Saint Apollinaris, legendary Bishop of Ravenna. In the crypt is a silver bust of the saint, which is raised from the sarcophagus every year at the pilgrimage time at the end of July. From the statue of Saint Francis of Assisi on top of the church, there is a lovely view of Remagen and the romantic Lower Rhine Valley.
Peace Museum "Remagen Bridge".
The museum is housed in the towers of the famous bridge built between 1916 and 1918. It opened in 1980 and tells the story of the bridge and the US prisoner of war camp known as the Golden Mile, on the eponymous plain.
Arp Museum housed in the Bahnhof Rolandseck.
The historic railway station at Rolandseck about 5 km north of Remagen, now houses a museum devoted to the work of Hans Arp. The 19th century railway station - itself a classic example of early German railway architecture - was transformed into a cultural venue for all the arts in the 19th century. Johannes Brahms, Clara Schumann and Franz Liszt gave concerts there. George Bernard Shaw staged his plays there. The young poet Guillaume Apollinaire even fell in love there. Neglected, the building was listed for demolition after World War II, but in 1964 the Bonn art dealer Johannes Wasmuth brought it back to life. Musicians such as Martha Argerich, Stefan Askenase, and Yehudi Menuhin, artists such as Hans Arp, Oskar Kokoschka and Günther Uecker, and performers such as Marcel Marceau have all appeared there.
Infrastructure.
Remagen station is on the Left Rhine line and the Ahr Valley Railway. It is served by InterCity, Regional-Express (the "Rhein-Express", at hourly intervals) and Regionalbahn services ("MittelrheinBahn", at hourly intervals) operating between Cologne and Koblenz. It is also served by "Rhein-Ahr-Bahn" services on the Ahr Valley Railway to Ahrbrück at hourly intervals.


Treaty of Templin

The Treaty of Templin was concluded on 24/25 November 1317, ending a war between the Margraviate of Brandenburg and Denmark, the latter leading a North German alliance. During this war, Brandenburgian margrave Waldemar (also Woldemar) and his troops were decisively defeated in the 1316 Battle of Gransee, fought at Schulzendorf between Rheinsberg and Gransee. After the battle, Brandenburg was forced to negotiate a truce. The treaty of Templin was signed a year later by Danish king Erich VI Menved, his ally duke Henry II of Mecklenburg ("the Lion"), and Waldemar.
Brandenburg had to transfer the terra Burg Stargard, that she had won from the Duchy of Pomerania in 1236 (Treaty of Kremmen), to Mecklenburg. This area would stay with Mecklenburg ever since, from 1701 held by the Dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Brandenburg also had to level Arnsberg (also "Ahrensberg") castle, and surrender the territories of Schlawe-Stolp (gained from the Principality of Rugia in 1277 and the Teutonic Knights in 1309, after the Treaty of Soldin) to Pomerania-Wolgast.


Timeline of Portuguese history (Second Dynasty)

This is a historical timeline of Portugal.