Wir Shetland

Wir Shetland is a pressure group demanding greater autonomy for Shetland, an archipelago of Scotland.
It was launched in October 2015, and campaigns for British Crown Dependency status for Shetland, which would separate it from Scotland. It compares itself to the Shetland Movement active in the 1980s and 1990s.
It backed Tavish Scott, the Liberal Democrat MSP for Shetland, in the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, causing resignations from the group.
In September 2020 the Shetland council voted to explore options to gain additional autonomy from Scotland.


Czech nationalism

Czech nationalism asserts that Czechs are a nation and promotes the cultural unity of Czechs. Modern Czech nationalism arose in the 19th century in the form of the Czech National Revival. In 1848, Czech nationalism became an important political factor in the Austrian Empire due to the activities of the Old Czech Party, led by František Palacký. During World War I, Czech nationalist politicians, such as Karel Kramář in the Czech lands and Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk abroad, endorsed the idea of independence from Austro-Hungarian rule.
After 1918 and the creation of Czechoslovakia, the absolute majority of Czech politicians and society adopted Czechoslovakism, that is, the notion of a unified state including Slovakia.
The transformation of Czechoslovakia into a liberal market economy during the years 1990-1992 saw disputes between Czechs and Slovaks about the character of the Czechoslovak federation. Separatist forces where strengthened by Slovak nationalist aspirations as well as by Czech economic nationalism, the latter based on the perception that the Czech lands were subsidizing less developed Slovakia. Czechoslovakia split up into the Czech Republic and Slovakia, with the Czech Republic becoming independent on 1 January 1993.


Free Sicilians

Free Sicilians (; ; SL) is a Sicilian nationalist and pro-independence political party in Sicily, Italy. The party was founded in 2016 in order to revive the island's right to self-government.
History.
Free Sicilians was founded by Massimo Costa, Antonella Pititto and Enzo Cassata. The party was launched on 3 January 2016 during a meeting in Pergusa. On the same occasion, the economist Massimo Costa, professor at the University of Palermo, became president of the party.
Free Sicilians took part in the local elections for the first time in the spring of 2017, presenting its own mayoral candidate and its own electoral list in Palermo, capital of Sicily. Ciro Lomonte, an architect and scholar of the Salingaros Group, was chosen as mayoral candidate. During his electoral campaign, Lomonte focused on the issues of the urban renewal, the identity revival of Palermo and the violations of the Statute of Sicily by the Italian Government. Lomonte scored 4787 votes (1,76%), while the list scored 4041 votes (1,71%).
Roberto La Rosa, a lawyer and former deputy secretary of the "Sicilian National Front", was chosen as President of Sicily candidate for the 2017 regional election. Free Sicilians was the only pro-independence party competing for the Sicilian Regional Assembly in 2017. "Economic independence" was the key concept of the electoral campaign. According to the party's program, this key concept would be pursued through the adoption of the special economic zone and a complementary currency called "Tarì", like the ancient coin of the Kingdom of Sicily. During the campaign, La Rosa also suggested the creation of the Sicilian national football team as other autonomous regions and unrecognised states did before Sicily. La Rosa scored 14,656 votes (0.70%), while the list scored 12,600 votes (0.66%).
On December 2017 Ciro Lomonte was chosen as provisional secretary until the first Congress of the party.
Ideology.
Free Sicilians believes that Sicily is a European stateless nation with its own political history, language, culture, traditions and national identity. The party describes the current political and economic condition of Sicily as a case of internal colonialism. In particular, Free Sicilians complains the persistent non-implementation of the Autonomous Statute of Sicily and, for this reason, aims to gradually achieve the full independence of the island in order to create a sovereign state. The party describes its ideology as "souverainist", in opposition to the excesses of globalization.
International relations.
The responsible for the international relations of Free Sicilians is Francesco Marsala, president of the cultural association "Sicilia-Catalunya", who attended as international observer during the 2017 Catalan independence referendum. On February and March 2018, Free Sicilians hosted the first delegations of Catalan nationalist parties ("Estat Català", "Esquerra Republicana") at its headquarters in Palermo.
On December 2017 Free Sicilians has congratulated the Corsican nationalist alliance "Pè a Corsica" for the success in the Corsican territorial election.
In 2018 and 2019, the party entered in dialogue and collaboration with many other similar movements, in other territories of the Italian Republic and European Union, namely Comitato Libertà Toscana (Committee Liberty Tuscany), along with Patto per l'Autonomia (Pact for Self-government) and Patrie Furlane (Friulian Home), which are active in Friuli-Venetia Giulia region.


Euphemia Leslie

Euphemia Leslie (1508-1570) was a Scottish prioress. She was the prioress of Elcho Abbey at Perth in 1526-1570.
Life.
She was the illegitimate offspring of the Catholic priest Walter Leslie and was given papal dispensation to become the prioress of Elcho in 1526, despite her birth, age and the fact that Elcho already had a prioress called Elizabeth Swinton. In 1527 Leslie conquered Elcho with an army supported by her brother and hundreds of supporters. In 1560, the Scottish reformation was introduced. In her will, she arranged for the retirement funds for her remaining nuns. This is the earliest preserved will of a Scottish prioress.


Ziamet

Ziamet was a form of land tenure in the Ottoman Empire, consisting in grant of lands or revenues by the Ottoman Sultan to an individual in compensation for their services, especially military services. The ziamet system was introduced by Osman I, who granted land tenure to his troops. Later, this system was expanded by Murad I for his Sipahi.
Background.
The Seljuq state, prior to the rise of the Ottoman State in the 14th century, utilized ziamets in an effort to implement provincial governors, who were also made subordinate chiefs in the military regime. In this pre-Ottoman period, timars were used with other tactics, such as building caravansaries, in an effort to sedentarize nomadic groups. The Ottoman state later took on this "timar system" after conquering Anatolia, and it represented just one of several institutions apparent in the Ottoman Empire derived from the Seljuq state.
History.
The Ottoman Empire came into disarray due to problems asserting "central government control" during the 16th and 17th centuries. They needed a way to reassert their military might. Ziamets of Ottoman cavalry were enlarged and turned over to a smaller number of owners, with a longer tenure. Thus, authority in provincial areas turned to police authority as local administrations dissolved, and ziamets were converted into tax-farms or iqta. This conversion of ziamets into tax-farms proved to be the first step to growing provincial control in the Ottoman Empire, as economic decline in the empire gave these stronger provincial governors the chance to assert power.
The ziamet holder acted as an agent of the central Ottoman government in supervising the possession, transfer, and rental of lands within his territory, and collecting tax revenue, in return for military service. A timar was not necessarily made up of contiguous property but could consist of property scattered among different villages.
A timar holder is a zaim.
Zeamet.
A "Zeamet" was the appellative given to a land in the timar system during the Ottoman Empire between the 14th and 16th centuries, that had a tax revenue with an annual value between 20,000 and 100,000 akçes. The revenues produced from the land acted as compensation for military services.


Elections in Greenland

Greenland elects on national level a legislature. The Greenlandic Parliament ("Inatsisartut in Greenlandic") has 31 members of parliament, elected for a four-year term by proportional representation. Greenland have a multi-party system (disputing on independence and unionism as well as left and right), with numerous parties in which a single party normally does not have a chance of gaining power alone, and therefore the parties must work together in order to form a coalition government.


Sholom Mordechai Schwadron

Sholom Mordechai Schwadron (1835 – 1911) (Hebrew: שלום מרדכי בן משה הכהן שוודרן), known by his acronym Maharsham, was a rabbi and foremost halachic authority. His main works "Shailos Uteshuvos Maharsham" and "Daas Torah" are widely studied sources of practical Jewish law. Among his prominent works are "Mishpat Shalom" on Choshen Mishpat. He was well known as a very lenient rabbi. He also authored "Techeiles Mordechai", a three-volume commentary of the Torah.
Biography.
He was born in 1835 in Złoczów to Moshe Schwadron, a Torah scholar, and studied under Rabbi Yoel Ashkenazy. After his marriage he was bequeathed a wood business and was hesitant to become a rabbi. However, he did so at the age of 31.
It is known that after each "din Torah" (case in a rabbinical court), he would explain to the loser the reason he lost until he understood clearly. If the person was unable to understand, he would tell him: "You must have a good friend or family member that is a Torah scholar. Send him to me and I will explain it to him so you will feel that you were done justice."
He lived in Berezhany, where he acquired the nickname Gaon of Berezhany. He died there on the 16th of Shevat in 1911. His grandson, Rabbi Sholom Schwadron, was known as the "Maggid of Jerusalem".
His son, Isaac, was the rabbi of Khotymyr and wrote a commentary on the Tosefta called מנחת יצחק ("Minhat Yitzhak"). His daughter, Chana Sura, married Rabbi Sholom Shapiro, the Rabbi and Av Beit Din of Lanchyn, Galicia (now Ukraine). Their son, Grand Rebbe Pinchos Shapiro, was the Grand Rebbe of Kechnie, and father-in-law of the current Kaliver Rebbe, Grand Rabbi Menachem Mendel Taub. He had another son rebbe Tzvi Hearsh but not many details are known about him.


Sicily Nation

Sicily Nation (, SN) is a separatist Italian political party active in Sicily.
The party was founded in January 2015 by Gaetano Armao, a former regional minister of Economy under President Raffaele Lombardo, and Rino Piscitello, a long-time politician (Proletarian Unity Party, Proletarian Democracy, The Network, The Democrats, Democracy is Freedom, Democratic Party) who had lately been the secretary of Lombardo's Party of Sicilians. The party aimed at the transformation of Sicily into a nation confederated to Italy or an independent country.
In January 2017 SN was a founding member of the Sicilian National Movement (MNS), along with the Sicilian Independence Movement (re-edition of the separatist party which was active after World War II) and the Sicilian National Front. The MNS supported Armao for President of Sicily in the 2017 regional election.


Worshipful Company of Salters

The Worshipful Company of Salters is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London, 9th in order of precedence. The Company originated as the Guild of Corpus Christi, which was granted a Royal Charter of incorporation in 1394. Further Charters granted the Company the authority to set standards and regulations regarding the products of its members.
Originally, the Salters' Company included individuals whose trades involved the usage of salts and the preparation of chemical mixtures for use in food. As with many other livery companies, the Salters' Company has lost its direct connection to its original trade. Currently, however, the company supports the chemical industry and supports education in chemistry, for example by awarding scholarships to chemistry students. Furthermore, it is a charitable organization.
The Company's motto is "Sal Sapit Omnia", Latin for "Salt Savours All".
Salters' Hall.
Salters' Hall, St. Swithin's Lane, was home of the company until it was bombed in 1941. The hall was during the 1700s the meeting place of Presbyterians and in 1719 the site of the "Salters' Hall controversy" a notable turning point in religious tolerance in England. The present Salters' Hall on Fore Street dates from 1976 and was designed by architect Basil Spence, best known for his work on Coventry Cathedral.
Salters' Institute.
This is the educational charity of the Company, originally set up in 1918 as the Salters' Institute of Industrial Chemistry to support chemistry students after the First World War, particularly those whose studies had been interrupted by military service. It now provides prizes for students of chemistry, chemical engineering, biology and physics, (plus science technicians) as well as running various activities to promote the study of science, particularly chemistry.
Coat of arms.
The arms were granted by Thomas Benolt in 1530. The crest and supporters followed in 1591, granted by Robert Cooke. Blazon: Per chevron azure and gules, three covered salts argent, garnished or. Crest: On a wreath of the colours, a cubit arm erect, issuing from clouds all proper, holding a covered salt argent, garnished or. Supporters: Two otters sable, bezanty, ducally gorged and chained or.


Edward Codrington

Sir Edward Codrington, (27 April 177028 April 1851) was a British admiral, who took part in the Battle of Trafalgar and the Battle of Navarino.
Early life and career.
The youngest of three brothers born to Edward Codrington the elder (1732-1775) and Rebecca Lestourgeon (Sturgeon) (1736–1770), Codrington came from a long military tradition. Edward the elder was the youngest son of William, 1st Baronet Codrington. Their aristocratic, landowning family, was descended from John Codrington, reputed to be standard-bearer to Henry V at Agincourt, and related to the Codrington baronets, Codrington was educated by an uncle named Mr Bethell. He was sent for a short time to Harrow, and entered the Royal Navy in July 1783. He served off the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, in the Mediterranean and in home waters, until he was promoted to lieutenant on 28 May 1793, when Lord Howe selected him to be signal lieutenant on the flagship of the Channel fleet at the beginning of the French Revolutionary Wars. In that capacity he served on the 100-gun during the operations which culminated in the battle of the Glorious First of June.
As a reward for his actions at the battle, on 7 October 1794 he was promoted to commander, and on 6 April 1795 attained the rank of Post-Captain and the command of the 22-gun from which he observed the Battle of Groix on 23 June 1795. His next command, from July 1796 to March 1797, was the frigate whom he commanded in the Channel and off the coast of Portugal. On 7 January 1797, "Druid", along with and captured the French frigate "Ville de L'Orient", armed en flûte and carrying 400 hussars to join the rebels in Ireland.
Following this, Codrington spent a period largely on land and on half-pay for some years. In December 1802 he married Jane Hall, an English woman from Kingston, Jamaica (with whom he had 3 sons and 3 daughters), and remained without a ship until the Peace of Amiens came to a close in 1803.
In 1797, Edward Codrington, his brother William John and sister Caroline jointly inherited their uncle Christopher Bethell's residuary estates, including a slave plantation in Antigua.
Service in the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812.
On the renewal of hostilities with France he remained in frigates for some time before being given the ship of the line in the spring of 1805 which was attached to Admiral Nelson's fleet off Cadiz in the blockade of the combined fleet. Codrington and "Orion" were engaged at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805, where "Orion" was stationed to the rear of the northern division and therefore took two hours to reach battle. Once there, Codrington ignored all other ships and focused entirely on closing with a hitherto unengaged French ship, the , forcing her to surrender. He then attacked but failed to capture the Spanish flagship before moving on to the , the only ship of the northern division to return. "Orion", with other ships, dismasted and then sailed round her, firing continually until she surrendered.
For the next several years, Codrington fought alongside the Spanish against the French in the Mediterranean Sea, commanding a squadron that harried French shipping and made numerous coastal raids. During this time also participated in the disastrous Walcheren expedition in 1809.
The two months of May and June in 1811 were to prove his most testing time while stationed on Spain's eastern seaboard. He went to great lengths to help the Spanish besieged at Tarragona by the French Army of Aragon under Louis Gabriel Suchet. Convinced that the Marquis de Campo Verde, the Spanish general in charge of Tarragona, was not up to the task, Codrington, who had a clearer understanding of the situation, helped the British military agent Charles William Doyle to contrive a plan of succour. Through his own personal efforts Codrington brought to Tarragona 6,300 Spanish infantry and 291 artillerymen as reinforcements. He spent many nights in the port area guiding cannon launches against the enemy. When the city fell, he rescued over 600 people from the beach in a Dunkirk-style operation under fire from enemy cannon and personally undertook to reunite mothers and babies who had been separated during the evacuation. Afterwards, he intervened on a political level to stop Captain General de Lacy disarming the local Catalan Somaténs (militias).
Codrington was promoted to the rank of rear admiral (of the Blue) on 4 June 1814, while he was serving off the coast of North America as captain of the fleet to Vice Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane during the operations against Washington, Baltimore and New Orleans during the War of 1812. In recognition of this service, he was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in 1815. He became a rear admiral of the Red on 12 August 1819, and then a vice admiral on 10 July 1821. He was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in February 1822.
Greek War of Independence and the Battle of Navarino.
In December 1826 Codrington was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet and sailed on 1 February 1827. From that date until his recall on 21 June 1828 he was engaged in the arduous duties imposed on him by the Greek War of Independence, which had led to anarchy in occupied Greece and surrounding areas. His orders were to enforce a peaceful solution on the situation in Greece, but Codrington was not known for his diplomacy, and on 20 October 1827 he destroyed the Turkish and Egyptian fleet at the Battle of Navarino while in command of a combined British, French and Russian fleet.
After the battle Codrington went to Malta to refit his ships. He remained there till May 1828, when he sailed to join his French and Russian colleagues on the coast of the Morea. They endeavoured to enforce the evacuation of the peninsula by Ibrahim Pasha peacefully. The Pasha made diplomatic difficulties, which came in the form of continuous genocide against the Greeks of Morea who were to be replaced with Muslims from Africa, and on 25 July the three admirals agreed that Codrington should go to Alexandria to obtain Ibrahim's recall by his father Mehemet Ali. Codrington had heard on 22 June of his own supersession, but, as his successor had not arrived, he carried out the arrangement made on 25 July, and his presence at Alexandria led to the treaty of the 6 August 1828, by which the evacuation of the Morea was settled. His services were recognised by the grant of the Grand Cross of the Bath, but there is no doubt that the British government was embarrassed by his heavy-handed gunboat diplomacy and not too impressed by the further weakening of Russia's main opponent, the Ottomans.
Later years.
After his return home, Codrington spent some time in defending himself, and then in leisure abroad. He commanded a training squadron in the Channel in 1831 and became a full admiral on 10 January 1837. He was elected Member of Parliament for Devonport in 1832, and sat for that constituency until he accepted the Chiltern Hundreds in 1839. From November 1839 to December 1842 he was Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth.
On 5th October 1835, under the terms of the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, Codrington was awarded government compensation of £2588 6s 6d for the 190 slaves he had owned at the Rooms plantation on Antigua, and who had been freed under the terms of the act.
Codrington died in London on 28 April 1851. He left two sons, both of whom achieved distinction in the British armed forces. Sir William Codrington (1804–1884) was a commander in the Crimean War. Sir Henry Codrington (1808–1877), a naval officer, became an Admiral of the Fleet.
A third son, Edward Codrington, was a midshipman aboard when he died sometime in 1821 or 1822 in the Mediterranean. He had been taking a cutter to Hydra when a squall overturned the boat, drowning him, a merchant, and three crewmen.
Codrington was buried in St Peter's Church, Eaton Square, but in 1954 the remains were reburied at Brookwood Cemetery in Surrey, plot number 70. Plaques to his memory can be found in St Paul's Cathedral and All Saints Church, Dodington, close to the family home, and there is a large obelisk dedicated to the memory of him and the other officers at Navarino at Pylos in Greece.
Numerous roads are named after him in Greece and stamps with his figure have been issued.
In June 2020, a plaque in Brighton commemorating Codrington was removed following protest over the commemoration of a slave owner as part of the George Floyd protests.
References.
Attribution:


Edward Cludd

Edward Cludd (1603–1678) was a Justice of the Peace and Knight of the Shire for the County of Nottingham during the Interregnum. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War.
Biography.
Cludd was born at Arnold and lived in the house he built called Norwood Park. As a Justice of the Peace, he married many persons under an oak in Norwood Park, which became known as "Cludd's Oak".
During the First Civil War and was an influential figure in the county of Nottingham. It was by his invitation, and under his protection the Commissioners of Scotland resided, and held their consultations in the archiepiscopal palace at Southwell. It was he through his interest in antiquity and friendship with Oliver Cromwell who prevented the destruction of Southwell Cathedral.
During the Protectorate (1653–1659) he sat in the Barebones Parliament (1653), and the Second Protectorate Parliament (1657–1658), for the County of Nottingham.
William Dickinson wrote that he was "a very moderate, temperate man, by no means an enemy to monarchy, though a strenuous opposer of the government as administered by Charles".


Infanta Pilar, Duchess of Badajoz

Infanta Pilar of Spain, Duchess of Badajoz and Viscountess consort of La Torre (Spanish: "María del Pilar Alfonsa Juana Victoria Luisa Ignacia y Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón"; 30 July 1936 – 8 January 2020), sometimes known more simply as Pilar de Borbón, was the elder daughter of Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona and Princess María Mercedes of the Two Sicilies, and older sister of King Juan Carlos I.
Early life.
Infanta Pilar was the firstborn daughter of Juan de Borbón y Battenberg and María de las Mercedes de Borbón y Orleans, Counts of Barcelona, she was born in Ville Saint Blaise, home of the counts of Barcelona in Cannes (Alpes-Maritimes, France), on 30 July 1936. She was baptized in Cannes, in the church of Rins, with the name of "María del Pilar Alfonsa Juana Victoria Luisa Ignacia de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón". Her godparents were her paternal grandfather, King Alfonso XIII and her maternal grandmother the Princess Louise of Orléans, although Alfonso XIII acted by delegation as he didn't want to meet his wife Queen Victoria Eugenia. From her birth, as the daughter of the heir to the Crown of Spain she was given the title of Infanta of Spain with treatment of Royal Highness. However, the official recognition of that title came when her brother was already King of Spain.
When she was an infant, the family moved to Rome where the Spanish Royal Family settled in exile. In 1941, after the resignation of Alfonso XIII, her father became the holder of the dynastic rights of the Spanish Crown in exile. During World War II she lived at Lausanne in Switzerland, where her grandmother, Queen Victoria Eugenia, lived. In 1946 the family resettled at Estoril in Portugal.
Her family attempted to marry her to Baudouin of Belgium, who ended up marrying Fabiola de Mora instead.
At the wedding of her brother Juan Carlos I of Spain with Princess Sofía of Greece, in 1962, she was one of eight bridesmaids.
Marriage and family.
Pilar needed to renounce her rights of succession to the Spanish throne to marry a commoner as stipulated by the Pragmatic Sanction of Charles III on marriages of members of the royal family.
She married Don Luis Gómez-Acebo y Duque de Estrada, 2nd Viscount of La Torre, Grandee of Spain (23 December 1934 – 9 March 1991) on 5 May 1967 in Lisbon, Portugal at Jerónimos Monastery. They had five children:
Her husband died of lymphatic cancer in 1991.
Equestrian sport.
Pilar de Borbón had been supporting international equestrian sport. She was President of the International Equestrian Federation from 1994 to 2006, succeeded by HRH Princess Haya bint al Hussein. She wrote the foreword of the official Spanish translation of the national instruction handbook of the German National Equestrian Federation, Técnicas Avanzadas de Equitación - Manual Oficial de Instrucción de la Federación Ecuestre Alemana.
From 1996 to 2006 she was a member of the International Olympic Committee for Spain, when she became an honorary member, and Member of the Executive Board of the Spanish Olympic Committee.
Philanthropic and other activities.
Pilar de Borbón was one of the founders of "Asociación Nuevo Futuro" ("New Future Association") in 1968, an international child support organization, and was its president and then president of honor. Until her death, she was one of the leaders and supporters of the Rastrillo Nuevo Futuro event, which provided part of the income that financed Asociación. The event even received the visit of the Queens of Spain, Letzia and Sofia. "Rastrillo has always been a place of meeting, solidarity and enjoyment for her", wrote "¡Hola! magazine" in January 2019. Her last public appearance was in "Rastrillo" on 23 November 2019.
Pilar de Borbón was also a member of the board of directors of the Queen Sofía Spanish Institute in New York City, president of the World Monuments Fund España and, from 2007 to 2009, president of Europa Nostra, the European Federation for the Defense of Cultural Heritage.
She was also a music fan and accompanied her brother, King Juan Carlos of Spain, and nephews to bullfighting matches.
Financial holdings.
Mossack Fonseca files document that in August 1974, Pilar de Borbón became president and director of the Panama-registered company Delantera Financiera SA (registered May 1969) with her husband as secretary-treasurer and director. In 1993, London-based Timothy Lloyd who had represented the undisclosed owner of the company said that Pilar de Borbón owned it. After March 1993, the intermediary representing the company was Madrid-based Abogados, a law firm founded by Pilar de Borbón's brother-in-law . From July 2006 until its dissolution in June 2014, five days before the installation of her nephew Felipe VI, Pilar de Borbón's son Bruno Alejandro Gómez-Acebo Borbón was director and treasurer of the company. On 7 April 2016 she admitted the accusations concerning the company were valid but made it clear that she never personally evaded taxes.
Illness and death.
Pilar was operated for an intestinal obstruction on 2 February 2019 in Madrid was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2019, being made public in May of the same year. On 5 January 2020, she was admitted to the hospital as her condition worsened. She died on 8 January 2020 at the Ruber International Hospital in Madrid, with her family at her side.
She was cremated on 9 January 2020 and her ashes were buried alongside her husband in Saint Isidore Cemetery, Madrid, in a private ceremony. On 28 January 2020, a funeral was held in her honor in El Escorial basilica, with the presence of her nephew, King Felipe VI of Spain, of former Queen of the Netherlands, Princess Beatrix, her brother Juan Carlos I and Sofía of Spain, the Duke of Braganza Duarte Pio and with Spanish political authorities represented by Deputy Prime Minister Carmen Calvo, Mayor of Madrid José Luis Martínez-Almeida and President of the Congress of Deputies Meritxell Batet.


Anthony Aucher

Sir Anthony Aucher, 1st Baronet (1614 – 31 May 1692) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1660. He supported the Royalist cause during the English Civil War.
Aucher was the son of Sir Anthony Aucher (c. 1586–1637) and his wife Hester Collett, daughter of Peter Collett. His father was the son of Edward Aucher (d. 14 February 1568), and grandson of Anthony Aucher (d. 9 January 1558), an agent of Henry VIII, who in 1547, received the Manor of Plumford in the parish of Ospringe from Edward VI of England.
Aucher was knighted at Whitehall on 4 July 1641, however was imprisoned two years later for his involvement in the anti-parliamentarian Petition of Kent. He had to stay in Winchester House for nine months and was then released. In 1660 he was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Canterbury in the Convention Parliament. On 4 July 1666, he was made a baronet, of Bishopsbourne, in the County of Kent.
By 1635, he married firstly Elizabeth Hatton, daughter of Sir Robert Hatton. She died in 1648, and Aucher married secondly Elizabeth Hewytt, daughter of Robert Hewytt at St Bride's Church in London on 13 October 1681. He had six sons and one daughter by his first wife, who died all in his lifetime, and two sons and two daughters by his second wife. Archer was buried in Bourne, Kent and was succeeded in the baronetcy by his oldest surviving son Anthony. His other son, John, was a prebend at Canterbury.


Thomas Lucas

Thomas Lucas (c.1720–1784) MP, was a West India merchant, treasurer of Guy's Hospital 1764–1774 and then president of its board of governors until his death.
Business interests.
His directorships included the Union Society in 1759, the South Sea Company in 1763, and the Union Fire Office in 1764. He held them all until he died.
Thomas Lucas's West Indies interests were in St Kitts, Leeward Islands and, in partnership with William Coleman, as a London agent for other Leeward Islands planters. The Legacies of British Slave-ownership database lists Lucas as a sugar-factor and slave owner.
He was very probably a close relative of Eliza Lucas, born in Antigua Leeward Islands in 1723.
Charities.
His continuing public involvement in aiding other charities besides Guy's included:
Private life.
Lucas's origins were considered a mystery soon after his death. His easy association with the nobility and other ties suggest he could have been, if not illegitimate, heir to the barony of Lucas of Shenfield and so a part of the family of Henry Grey (c1664-1740) Duke of Kent.
Lucas married three times: Ann Jones, Mary Page and Elizabeth Payne; within his circle of business associates but left no surviving issue. His widow, Elizabeth daughter of Rev. Joseph Payne and a niece of Lewis Way a previous president of Guy's Hospital, married John Julius Angerstein.
Their portrait by Sir Thomas Lawrence is in the Louvre. It is believed that after her mother's early death Eliza and her sister were raised by their childless great-uncle and aunt, Mr & Mrs George Payne
His London residence was in Albemarle Street. He also maintained a country residence at Lee Place, Kent, the property of the Boone family. About 1770 he employed the East India Company architect Richard Jupp to build him a new house on an old site on land which he had purchased from the Lethieullier family. The new house, where he died on 29 September 1784, was later known as Lee Manor. It is now used as a public library and its gardens have become a public park: Manor House Gardens.
Parliament.
His newly achieved parliamentary seat in 1780 for the Grampound constituency was lost in the General Election in May 1784 His seat was taken by Francis Baring, who also purchased the new house from Lucas's widow in 1796.
Sources.
Newspapers of his day.
Edward Hasted: The History and Topographical Survey of the county of Kent. 1797


Monmouth Rebellion

The Monmouth Rebellion, also known as the Pitchfork Rebellion, the Revolt of the West or the West Country rebellion, was an attempt to overthrow James II. Prince James, Duke of York, had become King of England, Scotland, and Ireland upon the death of his elder brother Charles II on 6 February 1685. James II was a Roman Catholic and some Protestants under his rule opposed his kingship. James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, the eldest illegitimate son of Charles II, claimed to be rightful heir to the throne and attempted to displace his uncle.
Plans were discussed to overthrow the monarch, following the failure of the Rye House Plot to assassinate Charles II and James in 1683, while Monmouth was in self-imposed exile in the Dutch Republic. The Monmouth rebellion was coordinated with Argyll's Rising, a rebellion in Scotland, where Archibald Campbell, the Earl of Argyll, landed with a small force. The Duke of Monmouth had been popular in the South West of England, so he planned to recruit troops locally and take control of the area before marching on London.
Monmouth landed at Lyme Regis on 11 June 1685. In the following few weeks, his growing army of nonconformists, artisans and farm workers fought a series of skirmishes with local militias and regular soldiers commanded by Louis de Duras, 2nd Earl of Feversham and John Churchill, who later became the Duke of Marlborough. Monmouth's forces were unable to compete with the regular army and failed to capture the city of Bristol. The rebellion ended with the defeat of Monmouth's army at the Battle of Sedgemoor on 6 July 1685 by forces led by Feversham and Churchill.
Monmouth was executed for treason on 15 July 1685. Many of his supporters were tried during the Bloody Assizes, led by Judge Jeffreys and were condemned to death or transportation. James II was able to consolidate his power and reigned until 1688, when he was deposed by William of Orange in the Glorious Revolution.
Duke of Monmouth.
Monmouth was an illegitimate son of Charles II. There had been rumours that Charles had married Monmouth's mother, Lucy Walter, but no evidence was forthcoming, and Charles always said that he only had one wife, Catherine of Braganza.
Monmouth had been appointed Commander-in-Chief of the English Army by his father in 1672 and Captain general in 1678, enjoying some successes in the Netherlands in the Third Anglo-Dutch War, as commander of a British brigade in the French army.
Context.
The English Civil War had left resentment among some of the population about the monarchy and the penalties which had been imposed on the supporters of the Commonwealth. The South West of England contained several towns where opposition remained strong. Fears of a potential Catholic monarch persisted, intensified by the failure of Charles II and his wife to produce any children. A defrocked Anglican clergyman, Titus Oates, spoke of a "Popish Plot" to kill Charles and to put the Duke of York on the throne. The Earl of Shaftesbury, a former government minister and a leading opponent of Catholicism, attempted to have James excluded from the line of succession. Some members of Parliament even proposed that the crown go to Charles's illegitimate son, James Scott, who became the Duke of Monmouth. In 1679, with the Exclusion Bill - which would exclude the King's brother and heir presumptive, James, Duke of York, from the line of succession - in danger of passing, Charles II dissolved Parliament. Two further Parliaments were elected in 1680 and 1681, but were dissolved for the same reason.
After the Rye House Plot of 1683, an attempt to assassinate both Charles and James, Monmouth went into self-imposed exile in the Netherlands, and gathered supporters in The Hague. Monmouth was a Protestant and had toured the South West of England in 1680, where he had been greeted amicably by crowds in towns such as Chard and Taunton. So long as Charles II remained on the throne, Monmouth was content to live a life of pleasure in Holland, while still hoping to accede peaceably to the throne. The accession of James II and coronation at Westminster Abbey on 23 April 1685 put an end to these hopes.
Plan.
The Monmouth rebellion was planned in Holland and coordinated with another rebellion in Scotland led by Archibald Campbell, the Earl of Argyll. Several areas of England were considered as potential locations for rebellion, including Cheshire and Lancashire along with the South West, as these were seen as having the highest number of opponents of the monarchy. Argyll and Monmouth both began their expeditions from Holland, where James's nephew and son-in-law, stadtholder William III of Orange, had not detained them or put a stop to their recruitment efforts. Argyll sailed to Scotland and, on arriving there, raised recruits mainly from his own clan, the Campbells, as part of the Scottish revolt. He had previously been involved in the Rye House Plot of 1683.
Another important member of the rebellion was Robert Ferguson, a fanatical Scottish Presbyterian minister. He was also known as "the plotter". It was Ferguson who drew up Monmouth's proclamation, and he who was most in favour of Monmouth being crowned King. Thomas Hayward Dare was a goldsmith from Taunton and a Whig politician, a man of considerable wealth and influence who had been jailed during a political campaign calling for a new parliament. He was also fined the huge sum of £5,000 for uttering "seditious" words. After his release from jail, he fled to Holland and became the paymaster general to the Rebellion.
To raise the funds for ships and weaponry, Monmouth pawned many of his belongings. His wife Anne Scott, 1st Duchess of Buccleuch, and her mother also pawned their jewellery to hire the Dutch warship "Helderenberg". Ann Smith gave him £1,000.
From Lyme Regis to Sedgemoor.
On 30 May 1685 Monmouth set sail for South West England, a strongly Protestant region, with three small ships, four light field guns, and 1500 muskets. He landed on 11 June with 82 supporters, including Lord Grey of Warke, Nathaniel Wade, and Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun. They gathered about 300 men on the first day at Lyme Regis in Dorset, where a long statement prepared by Ferguson denounced the king.
King James had previously received intelligence about the impending plot, and the ships leaving Holland, ten days before. He was warned of Monmouth's arrival soon after the first landing. The mayor of the town, Gregory Alford, informed the local militias while Samuel Damsell and another customs officer rode from Lyme to London, arriving on 13 June, having ridden . To face Monmouth's rebels, John Churchill was given command of the regular foot in the King's army, and the honour of leading the campaign passed to the Earl of Feversham. It would take a few days to assemble the army and travel from London to the west country, therefore initial defence was left to local militias.
Over the next couple of days volunteers arrived in Lyme offering to serve under Monmouth. By 15 June he had a force in excess of 1,000 men. On 13 June he lost two of his leading supporters when Dare and Fletcher disputed who should ride one of the best horses provided by local supporters. Fletcher shot and killed Dare and was then put under arrest and sent back to the frigate "Helderenberg". The next day, 40 cavalry and 400 foot soldiers, under the command of Lord Grey and Wade, moved on to the nearby town of Bridport, where they encountered 1,200 men from the local royalist Dorset militia. The skirmish ended with the retreat of Grey and the cavalry followed by Wade with the foot soldiers. Many of the militiamen deserted and joined Monmouth's army. Following this confrontation, Lord Albermarle led a royalist force from Exeter towards the forces of the Duke of Somerset, who were approaching Lyme Regis from the opposite direction.
Monmouth learned of the approach of royalist reinforcements and departed, but instead of marching to London, he headed north with his force towards the county of Somerset. On 15 June he fought with the militia at Axminster, taking the town before the militias could join up. More recruits joined his disorganised force, which was now around 6,000, consisting mostly of nonconformists, artisans, and farm workers armed with farm tools (such as pitchforks). One famous supporter was the young Daniel Defoe.
Monmouth again denounced the king in Chard and was the subject of a coronation in Taunton on 20 June 1685, against the wishes of some of his republican supporters such as Wade. The Taunton Corporation was forced to witness the event at sword point outside the White Hart Inn, to encourage the support of the country gentry. In Taunton, Monmouth was joined by many new supporters and formed a new regiment of 800 men. The king's force of Dragoons under Churchill continued to close on Monmouth, arriving in Chard on 19 June. With the assistance of the local militias they attempted to stop new recruits arriving in Taunton to join Monmouth. Feversham meanwhile moved with his forces into Bristol, on the assumption that this would be Monmouth's next target, and took overall charge of the campaign.
Monmouth and his growing force then continued north to Bridgwater, where he took up residence at Bridgwater Castle on 21 June, Glastonbury (22 June) and on to Shepton Mallet, arriving on 23 June in worsening weather. Meanwhile, the Royal Navy captured Monmouth's ships, cutting off any hope of an escape back to the continent. The Royalist forces of Churchill, who was now in Chard, and of Feversham, in Bristol, also received reinforcements who had marched from London.
On 24 June, Monmouth's army encamped at Pensford, and a small force skirmished with the Gloucester Militia to take control of Keynsham, a vital crossing point over the River Avon. He made Keynsham Abbey his headquarters there. Monmouth intended to attack the city of Bristol, after London the largest and most important city in England at that time, However, he heard the city had been occupied by Henry Somerset, 1st Duke of Beaufort. There were inconclusive skirmishes with a force of Life Guards commanded by Feversham. These attacks gave the impression that there was a much larger royalist force in the vicinity than there actually was. Several historians have speculated that if Monmouth had marched as quickly as possible for Bristol at this point, when it was only protected by the Gloucestershire militia, he would probably have been able to take the city and the final outcome of the rebellion might have been very different. Once Bristol had been taken, more recruits would have been attracted to the Rebellion and a later march on London would have been possible.
On 26 June, Monmouth moved towards Bath, and arriving on the south side of it found it had also been occupied by royalist troops. He camped for the night in Philips Norton (now Norton St Philip), where his forces were attacked on the morning of 27 June by the leading elements of Feversham's forces, which had now combined into a larger force, but were still awaiting their artillery. Monmouth’s half-brother Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton, led some cavalry, dragoons, and 500 musketeers into the village, where they were surrounded by the rebels and had to hack through hedges to escape. They were rescued by Churchill and withdrew with approximately twenty casualties on each side; however, each side believed that the other had taken greater losses.
Monmouth then marched overnight to Frome, arriving on 28 June. The morale of Monmouth's forces started to collapse as news of the failure of the rebellion in Scotland arrived that day, while the makeshift army was camped in Frome. Argyll's small force had been involved in minor skirmishes at Greenock and Ellangreig. He took Ardkinglass castle, but after disagreements with key supporters about when and where to fight the royalists commanded by Rosse and William Cleland, his supporters dwindled away and the Scottish rebellion failed.
The rebels planned to go next to Warminster, where there were many nonconformist wool workers, but on 27 June the Wiltshire Militia had marched from Bath to Trowbridge, and on 29 June entered Westbury. Hearing that an army supporting him had gathered near Bridgwater, Monmouth turned back through Shepton Mallet and arrived in Wells on 1 July. His men damaged the Bishop's Palace and the west front of Wells Cathedral, tearing lead from the roof to make bullets, breaking the windows, smashing the organ and the furnishings, and for a time stabling their horses in the nave.
Feversham aimed to contain the rebels in the South West until the rest of his forces, including three battalions of British mercenaries sent by William III of Orange from Holland arrived. In the light of propaganda suggesting the rebels had an army of 40,000 and that 500 royalist troops had been lost at Norton St Philip, Feversham was ordered to engage Monmouth's forces. On 30 June the final parts of Feversham's army, including his artillery, arrived and eventually Monmouth was pushed back via Shepton Mallet to the Somerset Levels, where Alfred the Great had found refuge in his conflicts with the Vikings. Becoming hemmed in at Bridgwater on 3 July, he ordered his troops to fortify the town.
Battle of Sedgemoor.
Monmouth was finally defeated by Feversham with John Churchill, his second in command, on 6 July at the Battle of Sedgemoor.
Once Monmouth's force had entered and started to fortify Bridgwater, he sent some of his cavalry to collect six cannon from Minehead. He planned to stay in Bridgwater until they returned and then break out and head for Bristol. Feversham and his army of 500 horse and 1,500 militiamen camped on the edge of Sedgemoor at the village of Westonzoyland. Monmouth could view them from the tower of Church of St Mary and may have inspected them more closely from the Church of St Mary in Chedzoy, before deciding to attack them.
The Duke eventually led his untrained and ill-equipped troops out of Bridgwater at around 10:00 pm to undertake a night-time attack on the King's army. They were guided by Richard Godfrey, the servant of a local farmer, along the old Bristol road towards Bawdrip. With their limited cavalry in the vanguard, they turned south along Bradney Lane and Marsh Lane and came to the open moor with its deep and dangerous rhynes (drainage ditches).
There was a delay while the rhyne was crossed and the first men across startled a royalist patrol. A shot was fired and a horseman from the patrol galloped off to report to Feversham. Lord Grey of Warke led the rebel cavalry forward and they were engaged by the King's Regiment of Horse which alerted the rest of the royalist forces. The superior training of the regular army and their horses routed the rebel forces by outflanking them. His untrained supporters were quickly defeated by the professionals, and hundreds were cut down by cannon- and musket-fire.
The death count on the rebel side has variously been given as between 727 and 2,700, with royalist losses of 27 who were buried in the churchyard of the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Westonzoyland, which was used as a prison for rebel soldiers.
After Sedgemoor.
Monmouth fled from the field of battle, but was captured in a ditch on 8 July (either at Ringwood in the New Forest, or at Horton in Dorset). Parliament had passed an Act of Attainder, on 13 June sentencing Monmouth to death as a traitor, therefore no trial was needed before his execution. Despite begging for mercy and claims of conversion to Roman Catholicism, he was beheaded at Tower Hill by Jack Ketch on 15 July 1685. It is said that it took multiple blows of the axe to sever his head. Though some sources say it took eight blows, the official Tower of London website says it took five blows, while Charles Spencer, in his book "Blenheim", claims it was seven. The Hangman in 'Punch and Judy' is named after this notorious character, Jack Ketch. The dukedoms of Monmouth and Buccleuch were forfeited, but the subsidiary titles of the dukedom of Monmouth were restored to the Duke of Buccleuch.
The subsequent Bloody Assizes of Judge Jeffreys were a series of trials of Monmouth's supporters in which 320 people were condemned to death and around 800 sentenced to be transported to the West Indies, for ten years' hard labour.
James II took advantage of the suppression of the rebellion to consolidate his power. He asked Parliament to repeal the Test Act and the Habeas Corpus Act, used his dispensing power to appoint Roman Catholics to senior posts, and raised the strength of the standing army. Parliament opposed many of these moves, and on 20 November 1685 James dismissed it. In 1688, when the birth of James Francis Edward Stuart heralded a Catholic succession, James II was deposed by William of Orange in the Glorious Revolution at the invitation of the disaffected Protestant Establishment.
Literary references.
The Monmouth Rebellion and the events surrounding it have formed the basis for several works of fiction. John Dryden's work "Absalom and Achitophel" is a satire partially concerned with equating biblical events with the Monmouth Rebellion. The Monmouth Rebellion plays a key role in Peter S. Beagle's novel "Tamsin", about a 300-year-old ghost who is befriended by the protagonist. It also plays an important role in R. D. Blackmore's novel "Lorna Doone". Arthur Conan Doyle's historical novel "Micah Clarke" deals directly with Monmouth's landing in England, the raising of his army, its defeat at Sedgemoor, and the reprisals which followed. Several characters in Neal Stephenson's trilogy "The Baroque Cycle", particularly "Quicksilver" and "The Confusion", play a role in the Monmouth Rebellion and its aftermath.
Dr. Peter Blood, main hero of Rafael Sabatini's novel "Captain Blood", was sentenced by Judge Jeffreys for aiding wounded Monmouth rebels. Transported to the Caribbean, he started his career as a pirate there. Another of Sabatini's novels, Mistress Wilding, also takes place during this time, as the hero, Anthony Wilding, is a supporter of Monmouth. John Masefield's 1910 novel "" tells the story of a boy who plays a central part in the Monmouth Rebellion, from the meeting with Argyll in Holland to the failed rebellion itself. "The Royal Changeling", (1998), by John Whitbourn, describes the rebellion with some fantasy elements added, from the viewpoint of Sir Theophilus Oglethorpe.
In "Lorna Doone", Richard Doddridge Blackmore's romantic novel of 1869, Farmer John Ridd rescues his brother-in-law Tom Faggus from the battlefield of Sedgwick, but is captured as a rebel, and is brought before Judge Jefferies. Another novel covering the events of the Rebellion was Sir Walter Besant's "For Faith and Freedom".
The events immediately before and after the Battle of Sedgemoor, and leading up to James II's exile following The Glorious Revolution provide the setting for Robert Neill's historical novel "Lilliburlero". The aftermath of the Rebellion is the setting for A.E.W. Mason's 1896 novel The Courtship of Morrice Buckler.


New Right (Netherlands)

New Right (Dutch: "Nieuw Rechts", abbr. NR) was a nationalist Dutch political party, founded by Michiel Smit in February 2003 and dissolved in December 2007.
History.
Michiel Smit was secretary of Pim Fortuyn's local Leefbaar Rotterdam party. He was elected into the Rotterdam city council in March 2002. After the assassination of Fortuyn, May 6, 2002, the Leefbaar Rotterdam leadership was handed over to Ronald Sørensen. Michiel Smit was forced out of the Leefbaar Rotterdam party though in February 2003, after it became public that Smit participated on various rightwing radical internet fora, one of which was the American-based "Stormfront".
However, Smit held on to his seat in the Rotterdam city council, forming a one-person party called Nieuw Rechts. From this position Smit started to build up the Nieuw Rechts party. New Right worked with the nationalist NNP party (whose chairman Florens van der Kooi worked for a time at the New Right party office) to form the "Actiecomité Stop MARTIJN" in 2003, which campaigned against the pedophiles of the Vereniging MARTIJN.
In the first electoral campaign, in 2004 European Elections the party attracted 0.3% of the votes, and no seats. In the Dutch municipal elections of 2006 New Right fielded candidates in Rotterdam, Ridderkerk, Almelo and Eindhoven, obtaining 0.06% of the total vote and one seat in the council of Ridderkerk.
Ideology.
The most important issue for the New Right was immigration and integration of Muslims. Smit held then controversial views like forced repatriation of criminal foreigners and mandatory Dutch services in mosques. These views have since become mainstream in Dutch politics.


Madiun Affair

The Madiun Affair (), known locally as the Communist Party of Indonesia rebellion of 1948 (), was an armed conflict between the government of the Self-proclaimed Republic of Indonesia and the left-wing opposition group, "Front Demokrasi Rakyat" (FDR, People's Democratic Front) during the Indonesian National Revolution. The conflict began on 18 September 1948 in Madiun, East Java, and ended three months later when most FDR leaders and members were detained and executed by TNI forces.
Events prior to the revolt.
The downfall of Sjarifuddin Cabinet and the formation of Hatta Cabinet.
Opinions regarding the trigger of the conflict vary. According to Kreutzer, the downfall of Amir Sjarifuddin government in January 1948 was the origin of the Madiun Affair. Before then, during the second half of the 1947, Partai Sosialis was split into two factions; one faction was led by Sjarifuddin and the smaller faction led by Sutan Sjahrir. Sjahrir group's opposition grew bigger as Sjarifudin put strong emphasis on their alignment with Russia and class welfare. Sjahrir believed that Marxist doctrine of class welfare could not be applied in Indonesian community as there were no such Indonesian bourgeoisie, and that Indonesia should maintain a "positive neutrality," so that Indonesia could contribute to world peace. They completely split soon after the establishment of Hatta's presidential cabinet.
Sjarifuddin premiership ended on 28 January 1948. Prior to this, Sjahrir, Dr. Leimena, and several political activists approached Hatta and requested him to become the next prime minister. Hatta agreed on the condition that he got PNI and Masjumi's support. Driven by the need to form a cabinet with national support (both right-wing and left-wing), Hatta offered Sjarifuddin's faction some posts in the cabinet. They declined Hatta's offer and demanded key positions, including Sjarifuddin position as Minister of Defense (In the previous cabinet, Sjarifuddin was both Prime Minister and Minister of Defense) in return of their support for Hatta's government. Negotiation failed, and on January 31, 1948, Hatta finally formed a cabinet without the "Sajap Kiri" (left-wing) parties. Two members of Partai Sosialis, however, were included in the cabinet based on a strong request by Sjahrir. Sjahrir and the two cabinet members were expelled from the Partai Sosialis and formed their own party called Partai Sosialis Indonesia (PSI, the Socialist Party of Indonesia). "This new party immediately gave its support to Hatta's government." Hatta's program of government was based on two priorities; the implementation of the Renville Agreement, and the rationalization of the Indonesian army.
The formation of FDR.
The "Sajap Kiri" (without Sjahrir's faction) gradually went into opposition. In the beginning they tried to get a place in the government by showing willingness to co-operate. However, their attempt failed when they faced bitter reality that there were no faction members included in the cabinet. At a mass meeting at Surakarta on February 26 the "Sajap Kiri" underwent reorganization and emerged as the "Front Demokrasi Rakjat" (FDR; People's Democratic Front) led by Amir Sjarifuddin which comprised Partai Sosialis, PKI, PBI, Pesindo, and trade union federation SOBSI. Some weeks later after the meeting, FDR' program was radically changed. The new program ordered, among others, (1) opposition of the Renville Agreement; (2) discontinuation of the negotiations with the Dutch; and (3) nationalization of all foreign enterprises. Their strong opposition against Hatta's cabinet was obviously seen from the first objective of the program. While Hatta's cabinet main goal was to implement the Renville agreement, the FDR's was to reject it.
The FDR had two principal bases of strength: within the army and among labor. In his capacity of Minister of Defense from July 3, 1947 to January 28, 1948, Sjarifuddin had "managed to build up a strong personal opposition within the army". He was able to secure officers' loyalty in the army, the TNI ("Tentara National Indonesia"; Indonesian National Army). Those loyal military officers were often the ones who knew the location of numerous arms and munitions kept in the mountainous areas in anticipation of further Dutch military action. Even more important was the strong position Sjarifuddin had built himself within the army's supplementary organization, the TNI "Masjarakat" (People's TNI). Established in early August 1947 (when Sjarifuddin was the Prime Minister), this organization was aimed at organizing popular defense on a local basis to support the army. While the TNI was a national organization, the TNI "Masjarakat", led by Colonel Djoko Sujono, was a local-based military organization. It was obvious that during his premiership, Sjarifuddin managed to build strong both national and local military organizations prepared to confront the Dutch.
In addition, the FDR had a clearly dominant position within SOBSI (Sentral Organisasi Buruh Seluruh Indonesia), by far the largest labor organization in Indonesia. The member of this organization was mainly urban and plantation labor with the Republic, and its member was estimated to be between 200,000 and 300,000.
Hatta's rationalization program and its impact on FDR's military strength.
From the Indonesian government's perspective, rationalization was the solution to economic problem by reducing the number of military forces. A month after the establishment of his cabinet, Hatta began the rationalization program based on Presidential Decree No.9 27 February 1948. The main objective of the rationalization was to reorganize the military organizations and to mobilize productive labor force from defense to production sectors. According to Hatta, there were three ways to achieving those objectives; 1) demobilize military officers who wanted to return to their previous jobs (teachers, private employees), 2) send the military officers back to the ministry of development and youth, and 3) demobilize hundreds of military officers to return to village communities.
In 1948, the Indonesian Republic faced a critical situation in which there was an excessive labor supply due to the enormous refugees fled to the Republic from the areas overrun by Dutch such as Surabaya (located adjacent to Madiun, Surabaya was then still under the Dutch colonials). In addition, there were at least 200,000 excess troops in the Republic while there was an inadequate number of arms and munitions for them. To anticipate the critical problems—economic, military, and political—emerging from this situation, Hatta and his cabinet immediately decided to embark upon a rationalization program. At the initial stage of reorganization, there were 160,000 troops left. This program was expected to leave only 57,000 regular troops at the end.
On May 15, 1948, the TNI "Masjarakat" or "laskar", one of the principal bases of FDR's strength, was demobilized. Western-oriented and pro-government military officers wanted a smaller, more disciplined, and more trustworthy army under their leadership. They viewed TNI masjarakat as less well-trained and uneducated military organization which was strongly associated with communist organizations. The government wanted the Army to be led by professional officers who had undergone serious military training. Two pro-government military organizations, West Java Siliwangi Division and the "Corps Polisi Militer" (CPM, Military Police Corp), were officially acknowledged and given legal status. The demobilization of TNI "masjarakat" means the influence of FDR in the government was getting weaker and this deepened the FDR's resentment against the government. From the FDR's perspective, rationalization was an attempt to destroy FDR's power.
FDR was not the only group that opposed Hatta's rationalization. Among the military unit which began to oppose the Hatta government was Division IV, better known as Divisi Senopati, which was stationed in Solo and placed under the command of Colonel Sutarto. Like FDR, Division IV was also disappointed with Hatta's rationalization and protested against the program on May 20, 1948. Hatta's decision to incorporate Division IV into Division I would place Colonel Sutarto in 'reserve officer' position. Sutarto and his soldiers ignored the instruction and began to reorganize their own division. They transformed Division IV into a "battle-ready military unit" which gained support from the majority of Solo's population and FDR followers. They named this unit "Divisi Pertempuran Panembahan Senopati" ("Battle-Division Duke Senopati"). Sutarto was mysteriously murdered on July 2, 1948. For those who were pro-FDR, this murder was perceived as part of the Hatta's rationalization program.
Delanggu strike.
Disappointed by Hatta's rationalization, the FDR/PKI began to seek support from farmers and labors by advocating land reform and organizing labor strikes. One of FDR/PKI's principal bases of strength was SOBSI. Heavily dominated by communists, SOBSI organized a number of strikes to protest against the government. The most important strike took place in Solo. Plantation workers protested against the government in response to deteriorating condition of the economy following economic blockade by the Dutch and government's failure to eliminate feudalism and to stop the "speculative operation of black market." The strike at Delanggu cutton-growing area was organized by SABUPRI (the union of communist-oriented plantation workers), and around 20,000 workers went on strike for around 35 days. The government accused the FDR and SABUPRI leaders of endangering the Republic by organizing the strike. They responded to this accusation by saying that it was the government that endangered the Republic with its ineffective and incorrect economic policies. What the FDR and SOBSI leaders wanted from the government was better implementation of the existing regulations and agrarian reforms. The strike came to an end on 18 July 1948, with the government willing to accept workers' demand for two-meter long textile and rice that would be given every month in addition to their salary.
The foreign relations of the Republic of Indonesia.
The Madiun Affair should be placed in an international context in which two superpower countries played a role in the Indonesian government's decision making. Suripno was a young communist who became the representative of the Republic of Indonesia at the Congress of World Federation of Democratic Youth in Prague in 1947. He was also given a mandate to contact the Soviet Union. On January 1948, he met a Russian ambassador and discussed future consular relationship between Russia and Indonesia. The Soviet government finally took the initiative by informing Suripno that the Consular Treaty had been rectified. Instead of accepting the treaty, Hatta's government decided to suspend the bilateral relationship. Suripno was then asked to return to Indonesia. On August 11, 1948 Suripno arrived at Jogjakarta with his 'secretary' who turned out to be Musso, a senior Indonesian communist leader. When asked to give official report to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Haji Agus Salim, Suripno praised Russia for its political stance that had always acknowledged Indonesia as a sovereign state.
Hatta repeatedly refused the Consular Treaty because he was inclined to seek assistance to the United States' power. On July 21, Sukarno, Hatta, Minister for the Interior, Minister for Information, and the US representative had a meeting at a hotel in Sarangan, Madiun. The Dutch and the US had a common goal which was to control the natural resources. On September 17, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affair stated that communist expansion in Indonesia was the main obstacle to the western power to acquire the resources. The Dutch wanted the US to believe that Indonesia was the bulwark of communists. The US, however, decided to "include Hatta and his association in one international anti-communist front to be established in East and Southeast Asia" to challenge the Soviet Union. The Dutch's attempt to restore its control over Indonesia, by bringing Indonesian leaders and the US representatives into conflict, failed.
The return of Musso and the reorganization of FDR/PKI.
The return of Musso was the catalyst of the Madiun Affair. Sukarno officially invited Musso in his presidential palace in Jogjakarta. According to a journalist report, the meeting was very emotional. They embraced each other and eyes were filled in tears. Musso was, in fact, Sukarno's political senior and they were good friend when they resided in Surabaya.
Musso's return was a turning point of FDR's political journey. During the party conference on August 26 and 27, 1948, they adopted a new political line. They established a new body that consisted of left-wing parties. Members of this new political bureau were FDR leaders (Maruto Darusman, Tan Ling Djie, Harjono, Setiadjit, Djoko Sujono, Aidit, Wikana, Suripno, Amir Sjarifuddin, and Alimin) with Musso serving as the chairman. These re-appointments were made legitimate grounds by FDR/PKI's enemies to launch "anti-PKI campaign". The government prepared some strategies to "eliminate the Communists". One of the government's biggest accusations was that Musso promoted "the Republic's involvement in a Soviet-American conflict". The unification of these political forces was a fatal mistake.
Towards the revolt.
The FDR leaders made propaganda tour through Central and East Java. Their main purpose was to promote Musso's political ideas. Other PKI leaders remained in Jogjakarta trying to negotiate with PNI and Masjumi leaders to form a new cabinet that would include FDR's representatives. The situation inside FDR was still chaotic even after the unification of several political forces. For instance, some members of PKI and Partai Sosialis in Bojonegoro opposed the decision made during the meeting on August 26 and 27, 1948. As a new structure, FDR was technically not strong enough to confront any challenges from the outside.
During this period, there were small clashes involving pro-Hatta military groups on the one side and pro-FDR armed groups on the other. After the murder of Colonel Sutarto, political development in Solo became more intense. The coming of Siliwangi Division, which was "loyal to government and anti-leftist", was also one of the causes of political instability in Solo which was the base of Senopati Division. The FDR's power started to diminish after several cases of murdering and kidnapping of the "leftist officers". Kreutzer provides examples of kidnapping and murdering cases on weeks prior to the Madiun Affair. "On September 1, two members of Solo's PKI were kidnapped and later interrogated about the activities and organization of PKI in Solo. On the same day, however, members of Pesindo kidnapped some pro-government leaders. They were accused of kidnapping PKI members. Six days later, on September 7, almost all officers and a number of lower-ranking soldiers of Commander Yadau's "Tentara Laut Republik Indonesia" (TLRI, Republican Navy) were kidnapped and brought to a base of Siliwangi Division, a pro-government military unit. On September 9, Suadi, Sutarto's successor as Commander of Senopati Division, obtained the official approval by Indonesian Army Commander Sudirman to investigate the murder and kidnapping of people in Jogja and Solo. But shortly after the investigation had started, a number of officers, who were given orders to interrogate the suspects, were kidnapped, too. On September 13 in Blitar, south of Malang, government units arrested a number of Pesindo members." On September 16, Pesindo's headquarter was attacked. Solo, the second city of the Republic after Jogjakarta, became the scene of a complex conflict between the government and leftist groups during the first two weeks of September.
Solo was now dominated by the pro-government rightist. This made Madiun he FDR last important stronghold after Jogja and Solo controlled by the Indonesian Republic, and Surabaya was under Dutch control. Unfortunately, anti-communist groups and pro-Hatta's government had already infiltrated Madiun since the beginning of September.
The revolt.
Alarmed by what happened in Solo, local FDR leaders in Madiun began to feel uneasy and they reported this to FDR leaders in Kediri more than thirty-five miles east of Madiun. Then he received an order to disarm the agitators in Madiun to avoid possible bloodshed in the area. At 3 a.m on September 18, 1948, the FDR began to seize the local government officers, telephone exchange, and army headquarters with Sumarsono and Djoko Sujono as the leaders of the operation. It was a brief fighting ending up with two loyal officers being killed and four wounded. Within hours, Madiun was under the FDR's control. Two FDR members, Setiadjit and Wikana, took over the civil administration and established the "Pemerintah Front National Daerah Madiun" (Government of the National Front of the Region of Madiun). Sumarsono then announced over the local radio, "From Madiun victory begins".
After hearing about what happened on September 18, Musso and Sjarifuddin returned to Madiun. They immediately discussed the situation with Sumarsono, Setiadjit, and Wikana upon their arrival. At ten o'clock on the night of September 19, 1948, President Sukarno declared that the Madiun revolt was an attempt to overthrow the Government of the Republic of Indonesia and that Musso had formed a Soviet government. He also stated that Indonesians had to choose between him and Hatta and Musso and his communist party. Sukarno was followed by Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX who had very strong influence among Javanese society. In his speech, he asked people to help Sukarno and Hatta and give them full mandate to crush the communist movement. At 11.30 p.m. the same day, Musso replied to Sukarno. He declared a war against the Indonesian government. He tried to convince Indonesian people that Sukarno and Hatta were the slaves of American Imperialism, "traitors", and "Romusha dealers". There was mounting tension between the Sukarno-Hatta and FDR leaders.
Some FDR leaders decided to go in different directions from Musso. On September 20, 1948, they declared their willingness to reconcile with the Indonesian government. In the evening, Colonel Djoko Sujono, Military Commandant in the Madiun, broadcast over the radion that what happened in Madiun was not a coup, but it was an attempt to correct the government's policy which "led the revolution into different direction". He was followed by Sumarsono, the original leader of the revolt. Sumarsono made a similar public announcement that the Madiun event was not a coup, but an attempt to correct the political aims of Hatta's government. On his attempt to convince the government, on 23 September Amir Sjarifuddin stated that FDR's constitution was that of the Republic of Indonesia; their flag remained red and white; and their national anthem was still "Indonesia Raya".
The aftermath: the fall of FDR leaders.
The Indonesian government seemed to ignore some FDR leaders' attempt to end the conflict. They used this small revolt to "crack down the Indonesian left". The military operation was led by Colonel Gatot Soebroto and Nasution, and they promised to settle the mess within two weeks' time. Hatta insisted to curb the rebellion and seize Madiun as soon as possible before the Dutch started to intervene. The government started anti-Communist purge from Jogjakarta and Solo. On September 30, the government sent Lt. Col. Sadikin, the Siliwangi Division brigade, to mobilize his troops and control Madiun. In order to avoid conflicts with the Indonesian Armed Forces, FDR/PKI leaders began to retreat to mountainous areas. Under the command of Sjarifuddin, they fled Madiun and headed to a small village Kandangan where they could find munitions and arms (a store built up when Sjarifuddin was the Prime Minister and Minister of Defense). To their surprise, the village was already occupied by the batalion of the Sungkono Division led by Major Sabarudin.
On October 28, the government arrested 1,500 men of the last rebel military unit. Musso was shot dead three days later on October 31 when he hid in a restroom and refused to surrender. His body was brought to Ponorogo, set on display for public view before being set ablaze. A month later, on November 29, Djoko Sujono and Maruto Darusman were arrested. Sjarifuddin faced the same fate when he was captured on 4 December. Three days later, on December 7, 1948, "TNI headquarters announced the final extermination of the rebellion and stated that approximately 35,000 people, mostly troops, had been arrested. On December 19, Sjarifuddin, Maruto Darusman, Djoko Sujono, Suripno and other FDR leaders were executed.
Estimated casualties were 24,000 in total (8,000 in Mandiun, 4,000 in Cepu and 12,000 in Ponorogo, as the affair affected neighbouring areas)
While most of FDR/PKI leaders were detained and executed, Sumarsono managed to escape. He fled Madiun and headed north into the Dutch territory. He was finally arrested by Dutch troops because of the illegal possession of gold and treasury. Although initially the Dutch authorities were suspicious of his involvement in the Madiun Affair, he managed to deceive them by showing false identity. He was released on July 30, 1949, but was arrested again on October 29, 1949, for his identity fraud case. The Dutch kept investigating his background, and on November 11, 1949, they revealed Sumarsono's identity and his political actions in the Madiun Affair. The Dutch authorities decided to execute him in New Guinea. But before that happened, Sumarsono ran away from prison on December 13, 1949, and managed to escape the execution. He then fled to North Sumatera and lived there as a teacher. He was arrested again during anti-Communist campaign launched by the Indonesian government under Suharto in 1965.


Thomas Cooper (Parliamentarian)

Thomas Cooper (died 1659) was a colonel in the Parliamentary Army who fought in the English Civil War and aided in the Cromwellian occupation of Ireland. He was appointed to the Cromwell's Upper House, and died in 1659.
Cooper was of an ancient and respectable family in Oxfordshire, which had possessed the manor of South Weston, with other estates in that county for several centuries; he was an alderman of Oxford, which place he represented in the Short Parliament called by King Charles I in 1640, with Lord Howard; but that assembly, having been most imprudently dissolved, he was again returned to the Long Parliament. He rose in the Parliament army to the rank of Colonel of foot, and accompanied Oliver Cromwell into Scotland in 1651. He afterwards was sent into Ireland. In 1656, he was one of the representatives of the counties of Down, Antrim, and Armagh, in the latter kingdom. Some time after the initial nominations, he accepted the nomination as a lord in Cromwell's Upper House. His name is under the order for proclaiming Richard Cromwell Protector. What he may have gained during the usurpation was not known to Mark Nobel, who was writing at the end of the eighteenth century, but Nobel speculated that perhaps it was considerable; for though Cooper was a great sufferer by the restoration of the monarchy, his descendant and heir, Thomas Cooper, Esq. inhered the manor at South Weston, with other properties, in Oxfordshire, of the value of £1000 per annum.


Thomas Bladen Capel

Admiral Sir Thomas Bladen Capel (25 August 1776 – 4 March 1853) was an officer in the British Royal Navy whose distinguished service in the French Revolutionary War, the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812 earned him rapid promotion and great acclaim both in and out of the Navy. He was also a great friend of Admiral Nelson and can be considered a full member of Nelson's "band of brothers".
Naval career.
Early Years.
Born in August 1776 and raised in London, Thomas Capel was the fourth son of William Anne Capel, 4th Earl of Essex and first child of his second wife, Harriet. His mother also had influence as the daughter of Colonel Thomas Bladen, and Capel received preferential treatment due to his status from a very young age. Entered onto the books of on 22 March 1782 as servant to Captain Waldegrave. He was just five years and 7 months old and this customary practice enabled him to rise rapidly through the ranks when he finally did go to sea.
Capel first served on on the Newfoundland station in April 1792, then on 1 March 1793, as a midshipman aboard , where he was highly praised for his seamanship and discipline. Following his captain, John Manley, he transferred to the 38-gun frigate before serving under Lord Hugh Seymour in the 3rd rate vessels (74 guns) and (80 guns), where he saw action at the battle of Groix in 1795. After the battle, "San Pareil" and her crew returned to the channel and blockade duty. Capel was promoted to acting lieutenant in the May 1796 and on 5 April 1797 he joined the newly built frigate as a lieutenant under Captain, the Honourable Arthur Kaye Legge.
Battle of the Nile.
 In April 1798 he joined the flagship of Rear-Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson, the newly refitted 74 gun , under Captain Edward Berry. On 8 May the "Vanguard", as part of a small squadron, left Gibraltar to re-establish a presence in the Mediterranean and to search for the French fleet. On 20 May, they were struck by a sudden gale in which the "Vanguard" lost her entire foremast assembly and both her main and mizzen topmasts. Despite the arrival of reinforcements, including ten ships of the line, on 6 June; Nelson remained aboard the jury masted, "Vanguard". Therefore, Capel was serving as Nelson's signal lieutenant on 1 August 1798 when Nelson's fleet destroyed the French at the battle of the Nile. He impressed the admiral to such a degree, he was mentioned in dispatches as "a most excellent officer" and presented with the sword of the senior, surviving French admiral.
First Commands.
Capel was made acting commander of the 16-gun brig , and was given the honour of carrying the second set of dispatches to London despite the claims of a large number of superior officers. The first dispatches, carried by Berry in were captured shortly after leaving, which meant that when Capel arrived in London after passage in the brig and overland travel, he was the first to bring news of the victory. His promotion to commander was confirmed when he was given command of the elderly fireship on the home station, and was subsequently made post captain on 27 December 1798.
Following this promotion, he was then transferred on 5 January from "Alecto" into the 22-gun post-ship , a sixth-rate frigate which sailed under his command for Jamaica on 23 April 1799. On 19 July 1800 he transferred to command of a 32-gun fifth-rate frigate which was wrecked on the Triangle Rocks in the Gulf of Mexico on 9 June 1801.
Renewed Hostilities.
In the May 1802 shortly after the Peace of Amiens, Capel was appointed to the 38 gun, fifth rate frigate which took him from Spithead to the Mediterranean where he joined as her captain. When war with France was renewed in April 1803 Capel, still in HMS "Phoebe" was re-attached to Nelson and began the task of observing French naval movements. In April 1805 "Phoebe" spotted Vice-Admiral Villeneuve's squadron leaving Toulon and while Nelson pursued them to the West Indies and back, Capel was ordered to use a squadron of 5 frigates and 2 bomb vessels to block French passage to Sicily, Sardinia and Egypt.
The Franco-Spanish fleet entered Cadiz on 20 August "Phoebe" joined the blockading fleet. In October 1805, Capel's squadron was based at Gibraltar acting as the eyes of the British fleet and when the Combined Fleet put to sea, "Phoebe" was one of the chain of ships who relayed signals to Nelson's fleet, 48 miles away.
Trafalgar.
On 21 October, Capel was summoned to to receive his final orders for the upcoming battle. "Phoebe" and the three other frigates were to stay to windward and repeat signals to the ships in the rear; any escaping enemy ships were to be pursued and forced to strike their colours; and any dismasted British, or captured enemy ships were to be taken in tow. Capel was present throughout the ensuing battle of Trafalgar, relaying Nelson's signals to the rest of fleet, and remaining close to the action although not actually engaged with the enemy. In the storm which followed the battle, "Phoebe" was essential in saving the captured "Swiftsure" and the Spanish ship "Bahama", bringing them all safely to Gibraltar. On 4 November, Admiral Collingwood wrote "The extraordinary exertion of Captain Capel saved the French "Swiftsure"; and his ship the "Phoebe", together with the "Dougal" afterwards brought out the "Bahama"". When the disabled "Fougueux" drifted away, Capel made repeated efforts to retrieve her but she broke up when she was blown ashore the next day.
Turkish Straits.
After Trafalgar, Capel returned to England, where he sat on the court martial of Vice-Admiral Sir Robert Calder, before being appointed to the 4th rate 40 gun . Capel's ship carried the British ambassador, Sir Charles Arbuthnot, to Constantinople and then in 1807, on hearing of a plot to kidnap Sir Charles and some leading British Merchants, Capel foiled the attempt by inviting them to dine aboard the "Endymion" before setting sail. On 16 September 1807 "Endymion" captured the "Santa Rosalinda". Capel's share of the prize money was 838 pounds, 17 shillings and 2½ pence. Capel returned to Constantinople later that year when he took part in further the forcing of the Dardanelles under Sir John Duckworth. On the way back to the Aegean, "Endymion" was hit by two 800 lb stone shot which killed three and injured ten of her crew. Capel was once again mentioned in dispatches for his part in the battle and received the ship of the line as a command, which he took to the North American station at the outbreak of the War of 1812.
1812.
Capel remained on the North American station for the duration of the war where he commanded a small squadron along the Eastern seaboard. During this conflict, Capel maintained a careful watch on the passage of American shipping, especially their frigate base at New London, which he effectively nullified. Along with other American vessels, in April 1813 Capel captured the American merchantman "Caroline". The prize money distributed to Capel amounted to 82 pounds and 10¾ pence. On 27 June 1813, off Nova Scotia, Capel trapped the Young Teazer in a harbour, which was blown up rather than captured. In another capture, that of the American merchantman "Montezuma" on 14 October 1814 Capel received 777 pounds, 11 shillings and 3¾ pence. He returned home in 1814 and was awarded the CB in June 1815.
Latter Years.
Capel commanded the Royal Yachts "Royal George" and "Apollo" between 15 December 1821 and 27 May 1827, earning greater promotion and favours from his new patrons. Despite the slower promotion rate in peacetime, he became a rear-admiral of the blue squadron on 27 May 1825 and rear-admiral of the red squadron on 22 July 1830 and was knighted soon afterwards and awarded the KCB in February 1832. In May 1834, Sir Thomas Capel served as commander in chief of the Far East squadron until July 1837 aboard the fourth-rate frigate . He was promoted to vice-admiral on 10 January 1837.
In 1847, a full admiral, an aged Capel sat on the board that decided to issue the Naval General Service Medal for Naval service between 1793 and 1840, and which contained a Trafalgar clasp that Capel himself wore. He became Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth in 1848 and made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in April 1852.
Thomas Bladen Capel died at his home in Rutland Gate, London on 4 March 1853. He was buried in Kensal Green cemetery in a family plot, later joined by his wife Dame Harriet Capel. Their gravestone can still be seen and is largely still legible.
Family.
In 1816 he married Harriet Catherine Smyth; they had no children, but Capel became a slaveowner as a result of this marriage. In her diary, Lady Adela Caroline Harriett Capel, Admiral Bladen Capel's great niece, and refers to times spent with Bladen Capel and his wife at Little Cassiobury. She lived at Cassiobury House and they lived in Little Cassiobury. Designed by Lady Elizabeth Wilbraham in the late 17th century it was built as the Cassiobury Estate's dower house, which still exists in Hempstead Road, Watford.


Vichy Holocaust collaboration timeline

Led first by Philippe Pétain, the Vichy regime that replaced the French Third Republic in 1940 chose the path of collaboration with the Nazi occupiers. This policy included the Bousquet-Oberg accords of July 1942 that formalized the collaboration of the French police with the German police. This collaboration was manifested in particular by anti-Semitic measures taken by the Vichy government, and by its active participation in the genocide.
The terms "Zone libre" (Free Zone), Vichy France, Vichy regime, southern zone, French State, and "État français" are all synonyms and refer to the state in the south of France governed from Vichy during World War II and headed by French World War I hero Marshal Philippe Pétain. The terms "Zone occupée" (Occupied Zone), Occupied France, and northern zone refer to the northern portion of France governed by the German military administration in Paris, taking orders from Berlin.


Johan Hendrik Weidner

Johan Hendrik Weidner (October 22, 1912, Brussels, Belgium - May 21, 1994, Monterey Park, California, United States) was a highly decorated Dutch hero of World War II.
Early life.
Johan Hendrik Weidner Jr. was born in Brussels to Dutch parents. Although his birth name was Johan Hendrik, he used to call himself "Jean" and later in the U.S., "John". He was the eldest of four children, and grew up in Switzerland, near the French border at Collonges-sous-Salève - a village in the French department of Haute-Savoie, where his father taught Latin and Greek at the Seventh-day Adventist Church seminary.
Following his education at French public schools, he attended basic courses at the Seventh-day Adventist Seminary in Collonges-sous-Salève. His father Johan Hendrik Weidner Sr. who studied at the University of Geneva, and had been a minister for the Seventh-day Adventists in Brussels and Switzerland, hoped Jean would follow in his footsteps. To his father's regret, he decided to go into business, and in 1935 he established a textile import/export business in Paris, France.
Around this time he went to Geneva to attend sessions of the League of Nations, and saw firsthand how ineffective that body was in preventing the outbreak of war in 1939.
Activities during World War II.
At the outbreak of World War II Jean was living in Paris. With the subsequent German occupation of France he fled with several others from Paris to Lyon in the unoccupied part of France. Because he had to abandon his Parisian business, he began a new business in Lyon. In 1941, Jean founded "Dutch-Paris", an underground network of which the location of his Lyonnaise textile business soon became its headquarters. In order to get passes to go in and out of the Swiss frontier zone, he set up a second textile shop in Annecy at the end of 1942.
Dutch-Paris became one of the largest and most successful underground networks for people persecuted for faith or race, Allied pilots, and persons of great Dutch importance to help them escape via Switzerland and Spain. This escape route was also used for smuggling documents. In the Netherlands this message line was also known as "The Swiss Way".
In its heyday, 300 people were part of this underground network, of which about 150 people were arrested. 40 people were slain or died from the effects of captivity, including his sister who helped to coordinate escapes from Paris. The escape route has greatly contributed to the French Resistance, and is responsible for the rescue of more than 1,080 people, including 800 Dutch Jews and more than 112 downed Allied pilots. Jean was one of the most sought after underground leaders of France, for whom the Gestapo at one time offered a reward of five million francs for his arrest.
Arrests.
In February 1944, a young female courier was arrested by the French police and extradited to the Gestapo. Against all rules, she had a notebook with her containing names and addresses of Dutch-Paris members. She was brutally interrogated by a guard that held her head under cold water until she nearly drowned. Under torture she revealed many names of key members of the underground network. As a result, a large number of Dutch-Paris members were arrested (See more details in ).
The name of Jean's sister Gabrielle Weidner was among the names listed in the notepad. She was arrested by the Gestapo and imprisoned at the Fresnes prison in Paris, because it was hoped for that her comrades would try to free her. In Fresnes she was treated well, but when this ploy did not work, she was shipped to Ravensbrück concentration camp in Germany. She later died of the effects of malnutrition, only a few days after liberation by the Russians.
During the occupation, Jean was arrested by both French gendarmerie and French Milice, including the Swiss border police. The French gendarmerie beat him up brutally, but they had to release him later due to lack of evidence. In another arrest by the Milice in Toulouse he was tortured, but he managed to escape before they could transfer him to the Gestapo. The Gestapo were never able to get a hold of him.
After the war.
In November 1944, after the Liberation of France Weidner was invited to London by Queen Wilhelmina, to come to tell her about the "Dutch-Paris" escape route, and the situation of Dutch civilians in France and Belgium. In the same year he was made a Captain in the Dutch Armed Forces, after which he could be in charge of the Dutch Security Service based in Paris. His service was in charge of vetting all the Dutch citizens in France and Belgium to look for any that collaborated with the Germans.
The Bureau of National Security, the Department of Justice, and the Dutch Embassy in Paris all claimed authority for Netherlands Security Service. Therefore, it has never become entirely clear under whose direction he fell.
In mid 1946, Jean was suddenly dismissed by the Dutch government, arguing that they needed a professional policeman on the post. After his work with the security he picked up the threads of normal life again, and returned to his import/export textile business. In 1955 he emigrated to the United States, eventually settling in California where from 1958 he and his wife Naomi operated a chain of health food stores.
Recognition.
For his War efforts, Weidner was awarded the United States Medal of Freedom with Gold Palm, made an Honorary Officer of the Order of the British Empire, an Officer in the Dutch Order of Orange-Nassau. The French Government honored him with the Croix de Guerre and Médaille de la Résistance and the Légion d'honneur. The Belgian Government made him an Officer of the Order of Leopold.
At the 1993 opening of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. he was one of seven persons chosen to light candles recognizing the rescuers. The Israeli government honored Weidner as one of the gentiles designated as Righteous Among the Nations at Israel's national Holocaust Memorial, Yad Vashem where a grove of trees was planted in his name on the Hill of Remembrance along the Avenue of the Righteous.


Treasure of Pouan

The "Treasure of Pouan" consists of a number of gold and garnet cloisonné jewels and ornaments, buried with a skeleton uncovered in 1842 at Pouan-les-Vallées and identified as the burial of a 5th-century Germanic warrior. Although the warrior had in the past been identified as that of Theodoric I, modern historians generally believe that this is unlikely. The find is now housed in the Musée Saint-Loup (Musée d'Art d'Archéologie et de Sciences Naturelles), Troyes.
Discovery and contents.
The grave was accidentally uncovered in 1842 by a labourer at Pouan-les-Vallées (Aube), a French village in the canton of Arcis-sur-Aube on the south bank of the Aube River. It consisted of a skeleton buried with a number of gold and garnet cloisonné jewels and ornaments, including a gold ring inscribed , and accompanied by two swords with hilts encased in gold.
The nature of the grave goods identified the burial as that of a Germanic warrior who lived in the 5th century.
Linked to Theodoric I.
The antiquarian who first described this find, Achille Peigné-Delacourt (1797–1881), optimistically claimed that the elite burial could be that of Theodoric I, the Visigoth king, who had undisputedly been slain in the nearby Battle of Châlons.
According to Peigné-Delacourt's theory, the corpse had been hastily interred by his followers, who meant to recover it, and that the body recovered and buried with ceremony at Tolosa (present-day Toulouse), the body described by Jordanes as found beneath a mound of corpses and borne away with heroic songs in sight of the enemy, was not actually that of Theodoric. Aëtius convinced Theodoric's son Thorismund to return home swiftly and secure the throne for himself before his brothers could begin a civil war. Thorismund quickly returned to Tolosa, buried the anonymously-recovered corpse with honours and became king without resistance.
John Man describes the motivation imagined by Peigné-Delacourt,
Modern view.
In the last century, professional historians Thomas Hodgkin and later J.B. Bury have generally expressed their scepticism over this identification. Other chance finds scattered over the area of Pouan and its neighboring village Villette— including two small bronze vases, a cup, a gilt-bronze ewer, blades and horse-trappings— support the local perception that these fields are the Catalaunian fields of the decisive battle in 451, usually identified with Châlons-en-Champagne.


Mislav of Croatia

Mislav () was a duke () in Croatia from around 835 until his death around 845.
Mislav came to power at some point after Vladislav as the Duke of Dalmatian Croatia. He ruled from Klis in central Dalmatia, when he made Klis Fortress seat to his throne. Mislav was a pious ruler. He built the Church of Saint George in Putalj (on the slopes of hill Kozjak). Today's Kaštel Sućurac got its name after the village of Sv. Jure (Saint George), named after that church.
Very little is known about the rule of Mislav. He is chiefly known for signing a treaty with Pietro Tradonico, Doge of the Venetian Republic in 839, which led to the growth of Croatian sea power. Duke Mislav maintained good relations with the neighbouring coastal Cities of Byzantine Dalmatia unlike his predecessor, which also led to the growth of Croatian sea power as Mislav modelled Croatian ships in the likehood of the Neretvians and Venetians.
Mislav was succeeded by Trpimir I after his death around 845. It is not known whether Trpimir was related to him.