"Hi, my name is Kali James. I'm 20 years old and was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas with my 4 brothers and sister, Corina. I'm the fashionista of the family; always on top of the latest..everything! My poisons are expensive clothes, high-fashion hairstyles, boots and big earrings. I've always loved the camera, in every way, shape or form. Whenever somebody holds one up, I just itch to jump in front of it. I MUST be included in just about every photo with a family member or friend of mine, or I would get so anxious and literally start to sweat a little, unless, of course, I'm having one of my infamous "ugly days" *chuckles*

 

The first time I decided to pursue a modeling career was when my mom marked my height on our yearly "growth wall" for 2004. My extreme growth that year made me a whole 7 1/2 inches taller, causing me to lose quite a lot of weight; so since then, I was really tall and slender, and people kept making comments about me and modeling.

 

I hope to get quite far in BratzSwedish's modeling competition. And if I won, I would do a back-flip for the first time..honestly! I'm going to give this all I've got!"

15.5.09

 

We're driving towards the orphanage. The highway is lonely, save for a few languid trucks ambling along. It is damp too, and a thick fog covers the countryside: a single light here or there provides the only hint of civilization amidst the interminable verdure. Inside the van, the smoke of cigarettes past wafts in the air, lingering like a lost soul. I inhale, and quickly cough. I subsequently open the window to the enveloping darkness outside, so slightly as to not disturb my companions in the back. The roar of the road echoes in my ears.

 

An unexpected wrench was thrown into our travel plans today. The trip began expediently enough as the bus on which Candy and I rode reached the Shenzhen airport with hours to spare; however, the unscheduled hiccups soon followed. We received an announcement over the public address system notifying us of a flight delay, due to a mysterious military maneuver, we deduced, high in the Shenzhen skies. Several more sonorous reminders came in punctual succession over the next six hours. It seemed as though we would be stuck, stranded really, at the airport forever, or for the day at least. Thankfully, after the police arrested some of the more aggrieved passengers, we finally boarded the plane and took off for central China. We were blessed to be on our way at last, none of us having blown a gasket during the afternoon tedium.

 

One more pitch black road awaited, down a single lonely lane lined with swarthy trees, standing as though sentries, and at length we arrived at the orphanage. The car stopped in a clearing, and we stepped out, onto a cement lot with soft puddles spread silently beneath our feet. We squinted into the twilight, our eyes trying to make sense of the surroundings. Our bags were unloaded, we made our way to the rooms, and soon enough fell asleep. I think we all enjoyed the repose, rendered especially comfortable by the new guest rooms in which we were staying.

 

16.5.09

 

We have only been here for barely 24 hours, yet it feels as though we have been here for much longer, as if time at some point in our journey decided to slow itself to a crawl. Maybe it was because of the litany of activities that we packed into the span of several hours, or perhaps it was the lack of worldly distractions, allowing us to focus solely on our mission, that caused us to suspend the hands of that imaginary clock in our mind. Whatever the case, we've enjoyed every minute at the orphanage; it is time definitely well spent in service!

 

Morning call was at 6:20; and after a prayer meeting we went down to finally visit the kids. They were playing on the vast driveway of the orphanage, savoring their moment of freedom before breakfast. To see so many friendly faces, in spite of their precarious physical and filial circumstance was definitely encouraging. I made a multitude of new friends; and did my best throughout the day to impact those kids with joy, honesty and patience. It is a powerful cocktail which brings love immediately to many.

 

The food at the orphanage is without processing, as natural as victuals can be in these days of impersonal industrial production. Large chunks of mantou, steaming bowls of soupy congee, and salty vegetables with slivers of meat have characterized our meals. It is the kind of humble stuff that lengthens life spans, and disciplines the palate.

 

We presented a wide range of activities - structured and unstructured; whole class and small group - to the kids, in the hope that we would manage them as much as amuse. In the morning, as though breaking the ice once were not enough, we ran through a series of dizzying, if not at times totally incoherent, activities designed to familiarize our dispositions to each other. Later, we established a makeshift fun fair, at which we ushered the children to rooms filled with (board) games, and puzzles, and other, more colorful activities such as face painting and balloon making. The kids couldn't at length contain their enthusiasm, busting into and out of rooms with impunity, soaking in the rapturous atmosphere. In the afternoon, our team attempted to tire them out: running topped the agenda, and by leaps and bounds, the activities, whether straightforward relays or schoolyard classics like duck duck goose and red light, green light, indeed began to tucker our charges out. We, too, were pretty beat by the time night began to creep over the horizon!

 

17.5.09

 

Yesterday evening, we surprised the students with a musical performance, followed by forty minutes of bubble-blowing madness; to be sure, the students could not appreciate our somewhat accurate rendition of Amazing Grace so much as the innocent madness of dipping one's hands in a solution of dish detergent and corn syrup and then whispering a bubble to life; and indeed, the moment the Disney branded bubble-making machines churned the first batch of bubbles into the air, with much rapidity weaving their frenetic pattern of fun, chaos erupted in the room. The students stormed the soap basin, and almost overwhelmed my teammates who valiantly held the Snitch and Pooh high above the heads of the clamoring kids.

 

During the evening's festivities, I grew progressively ill, until at last I dashed out of the room to sneeze. Outside, in the cool of the night, under a cloud of stars beaming so far away in the deep of space, I exploded in a rancor of sneezing. The fit lasted for five minutes, an inexorable depression in my system which sent both my body and my esteem tumbling down. I felt bad, not only for my exceedingly rickety health, but for my teammates and the children who may have been exposed to my sickness as it incubated within me; furthermore, everyone in the classroom was saying goodbye and all I could do was rid myself of a sniffle here and there, in between rounds of bursting from nostrils and sinuses. I was impotent, as though one of my insignificant droplets on the floor!

 

18.5.09

 

We are in a car heading towards a famous historical site in Henan. The driver's drawl slips slowly from his mouth, and what he says resonates intelligibly in our ears. Candy, Tanya and the driver are discussing Chinese mythology, and history, which, for better or for worse seem to be inextricably intertwined. We narrowly just now missed hitting an idle biker in the middle of the road; in dodging our human obstacle, the car swerved into the oncoming traffic, sending us flying inside the cabin. Reciting a verse from a worship song calmed our frazzled nerves.

 

How to describe the children? Many of them smiled freely, and were so polite when greeted that undoubtedly they had been trained well at some point in the tumult of their life education. Precociousness was also a common characteristic shared by the kids, whose stunted bodies belied the mature, perspicacious thoughts hiding just underneath the skin. Of course, in our time together we were more merry than serious, that quality being best left for the adults working silently in their rooms; and to that effect, the kids brought out their funny bones and jangled them in the air to stir up the excitement and to destroy by a jocular clamor any hint of a dull moment – we really laughed a lot. At last, although not all of them seemed interested in our staged activities – rather than feign enthusiasm and eagerness, some skipped our events altogether – those who did participate, most of them in fact, enjoyed themselves with abandon, helping to create that delightful atmosphere where the many sounds of elation reign.

 

Of the students whom I had the opportunity to know personally, several still stick out in my mind, not the least for my having christened a few of them with English names! David was bold, and courageous, willing to soothe crying babes as much as reprimand them when their capricious actions led them astray; he had a caring heart not unlike a shepherd who tends to his young charges. Edward, who at 13 was the same age as David, definitely grew emotionally, not to mention physically attached to me. He was by my side for much of the weekend, grabbing onto my hand and not letting go, to the point where I in my arrogance would detach my fingers within his, ever so slightly, as if to suggest that a second more would lead to a clean break - I know now that with the cruel hands of time motoring away during the mission, I shouldn't have lapsed into such an independent, selfish state; he should have been my son. Another child who became so attached to the team as to intimate annoyance was the boy we deemed John's son, because the boy, it seemed, had handcuffed himself to our teammate, and would only free himself to cause insidious mischief, which would invariably result in an explosion of hysterics, his eyes bursting with tears and his mouth, as wide as canyon, unleashing a sonorous wail when something went wrong. On the other hand, Alice remained in the distance, content to smile and shyly wave her hand at our team while hiding behind her sisters. And last but not least, of our precious goonies, Sunny undoubtedly was the photographer extraordinaire, always in charge of the school's camera, snapping away liberally, never allowing any passing moment to escape his shot.

 

That I learned on this trip so much about my teammates verily surprised me, as I thought the relationships that we had established were already mature, not hiding any new bump, any sharp edge to surprise us from our friendly stupor. So, consider myself delightfully amazed at how a few slight changes in the personality mix can bring out the best, the most creative and the strangest in the group dynamic: admittedly, Candy and Tanya were the ideal foils for John, they eliciting the most humorous observations and reactions from my house church leader, they expertly constructing a depth of character that even last week, in the wake of the Guangdong biking trip, I never knew existed! Most of all, I'm glad to have been a part of such a harmonious fellowship, for the fact that we could prayer together as one, and encourage each other too, and all the more as we saw the day approaching.

The Red Fort was the residence of the Mughal emperor of India for nearly 200 years, until 1857. It is located in the centre of Delhi and houses a number of museums. In addition to accommodating the emperors and their households, it was the ceremonial and political centre of Mughal government and the setting for events critically impacting the region.

 

The Red Fort was built as the fortified palace of Shahjahanabad, capital of the fifth Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, in 1648. Named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone, it is adjacent to the older Salimgarh Fort, built by Islam Shah Suri in 1546. The imperial apartments consist of a row of pavilions, connected by a water channel known as the Stream of Paradise (Nahr-i-Behisht). The Red Fort is considered to represent the zenith of Mughal creativity under Shah Jahan. Although the palace was planned according to Islamic prototypes, each pavilion contains architectural elements typical of Mughal buildings, reflecting a fusion of Timurid, Persian and Hindu traditions. The Red Fort’s innovative architectural style, including its garden design, influenced later buildings and gardens in Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab, Kashmir, Braj, Rohilkhand and elsewhere. With the Salimgarh Fort, it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007 as part of the Red Fort Complex.

 

The Red Fort is an iconic symbol of India. On Independence Day, the prime minister hoists the national flag at the main gate of the fort and delivers a nationally-broadcast speech from its ramparts.

 

NAME

Its English name, "Red Fort", is a translation of the Hindustani Lal Quila (لال قلعہ, लाल क़िला) deriving from its red-sandstone walls. As the residence of the imperial family, the fort was originally known as the "Blessed Fort" (Quila-i-Mubarak). Agra Fort is also called Lal Quila.

 

HISTORY

Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned construction of the Red Fort in 1638, when he decided to shift his capital from Agra to Delhi. Its design is credited to architect Ustad Ahmad Lahauri. The fort lies along the Yamuna River, which fed the moats surrounding most of the walls. Construction began in the sacred month of Muharram, on 13 May 1638. Supervised by Shah Jahan, it was completed in 1648. Unlike other Mughal forts, the Red Fort's boundary walls are asymmetrical to contain the older Salimgarh Fort. The fortress-palace was a focal point of the medieval city of Shahjahanabad, which is present-day Old Delhi. Its planning and aesthetics represent the zenith of Mughal creativity prevailing during Shah Jahan's reign. His successor Aurangzeb added the Pearl Mosque to the emperor's private quarters, constructing barbicans in front of the two main gates to make the entrance to the palace more circuitous.

 

The administrative and fiscal structure of the Mughals declined after Aurangzeb, and the 18th century saw a degeneration of the palace. When Jahandar Shah took over the Red Fort in 1712, it had been without an emperor for 30 years. Within a year of beginning his rule, Shah was murdered and replaced by Farukhsiyar. To raise money, the silver ceiling of the Rang Mahal was replaced by copper during this period. Muhammad Shah, known as 'Rangila' (the Colourful) for his interest in art, took over the Red Fort in 1719. In 1739, Persian emperor Nadir Shah easily defeated the Mughal army, plundering the Red Fort including the Peacock Throne. Nadir Shah returned to Persia after three months, leaving a destroyed city and a weakened Mughal empire to Muhammad Shah. The internal weakness of the Mughal empire made the Mughals titular heads of Delhi, and a 1752 treaty made the Marathas protectors of the throne at Delhi. The 1758 Maratha conquest of Lahore and Peshawar placed them in conflict with Ahmad Shah Durrani. In 1760, the Marathas removed and melted the silver ceiling of the Diwan-i-Khas to raise funds for the defence of Delhi from the armies of Ahmed Shah Durrani. In 1761, after the Marathas lost the third battle of Panipat, Delhi was raided by Ahmed Shah Durrani. Ten years later, Shah Alam ascended the throne in Delhi with Maratha support. In 1783 the Sikh Misl Karorisinghia, led by Baghel Singh Dhaliwal, conquered Delhi and the Red Fort. The Sikhs agreed to restore Shah Alam as emperor and retreat from the fort if the Mughals would build and protect seven Gurudwaras in Delhi for the Sikh gurus.

 

During the Second Anglo-Maratha War in 1803, forces of British East India Company defeated Maratha forces in the Battle of Delhi; this ended Maratha rule of the city and their control of the Red Fort. After the battle, the British took over the administration of Mughal territories and installed a Resident at the Red Fort. The last Mughal emperor to occupy the fort, Bahadur Shah II, became a symbol of the 1857 rebellion against the British in which the residents of Shahjahanbad participated.

 

Despite its position as the seat of Mughal power and its defensive capabilities, the Red Fort was not defended during the 1857 uprising against the British. After the rebellion failed, Bahadur Shah II left the fort on 17 September and was apprehended by British forces. He returned to Red Fort as a prisoner of the British, was tried in 1858 and exiled to Rangoon on 7 October of that year. With the end of Mughal reign, the British sanctioned the systematic plunder of valuables from the fort's palaces. All furniture was removed or destroyed; the harem apartments, servants' quarters and gardens were destroyed, and a line of stone barracks built. Only the marble buildings on the east side at the imperial enclosure escaped complete destruction, but were looted and damaged. While the defensive walls and towers were relatively unharmed, more than two-thirds of the inner structures were destroyed by the British; steps were later taken by Lord Curzon to repair some damage.

 

1911 saw the visit of the British king and queen for the Delhi Durbar. In preparation of the visit, some buildings were restored. The Red Fort Archaeological Museum was also moved from the drum house to the Mumtaz Mahal.

 

The INA trials, also known as the Red Fort Trials, refer to the courts-martial of a number of officers of the Indian National Army. The first was held between November and December 1945 at the Red Fort.

 

On 15 August 1947, the first Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru raised the Indian national flag above the Lahore Gate. On each subsequent Independence Day, the prime minister has raised the flag and given a speech that is broadcast nationally.

 

After Indian Independence the site experienced few changes, and the Red Fort continued to be used as a military cantonment. A significant part of the fort remained under Indian Army control until 22 December 2003, when it was given to the Archaeological Survey of India for restoration. In 2009 the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP), prepared by the Archaeological Survey of India under Supreme Court directions to revitalise the fort, was announced.

 

As the largest monument in Delhi, is one of its most popular tourist destinations and attracts thousands of visitors every year.

 

THE FORT TODAY

Every year on 15 August (the day India achieved independence from the British), the Prime Minister hoists the national flag at the Red Fort and delivers a nationally-broadcast speech from its ramparts. The Red Fort, the largest monument in Delhi, is one of its most popular tourist destinations and attracts thousands of visitors every year.

 

A sound and light show describing Mughal history is a tourist attraction in the evenings. The major architectural features are in mixed condition; the extensive water features are dry. Some buildings are in fairly-good condition, with their decorative elements undisturbed; in others, the marble inlaid flowers have been removed by looters. The tea house, although not in its historical state, is a working restaurant. The mosque and hamam are closed to the public, although visitors can peer through their glass windows or marble latticework. Walkways are crumbling, and public toilets are available at the entrance and inside the park.

 

The Lahore Gate entrance leads to a mall with jewellery and craft stores. There are a museum of "blood paintings", depicting young 20th-century Indian martyrs and their stories, an archaeological museum and an Indian war-memorial museum. Although, Red Fort is still one of the most beautiful and well designed forts in the world.

 

ARCHITECTURE

The Red Fort has an area of 103.06 ha enclosed by 2.41 kilometres of defensive walls, punctuated by turrets and bastions and varying in height from 18 metres on the river side to 33 metres on the city side. The fort is octagonal, with the north-south axis longer than the east-west axis. The marble, floral decorations and double domes in the fort's buildings exemplify later Mughal architecture.

 

It showcases a high level of ornamentation, and the Kohinoor diamond was reportedly part of the furnishings. The fort's artwork synthesises Persian, European and Indian art, resulting in a unique Shahjahani style rich in form, expression and colour. Red Fort is one of the building complexes of India encapsulating a long period of history and its arts. Even before its 1913 commemoration as a monument of national importance, efforts were made to preserve it for posterity.

 

The Lahori and Delhi Gates were used by the public, and the Khizrabad Gate was for the emperor. The Lahore Gate is the main entrance, leading to a domed shopping area known as the Chatta Chowk (covered bazaar).

 

MAJOR STRUCTURES

The most-important surviving structures are the walls and ramparts, the main gates, the audience halls and the imperial apartments on the eastern riverbank.

 

LAHORI GATE

The Lahori Gate is the main gate to the Red Fort, named for its orientation towards the city of Lahore. During Aurangzeb's reign, the beauty of the gate was spoiled by the addition of bastions (Like a veil drawn across the face of a beautiful woman). Every Indian Independence Day since 1947, the national flag has flown and the Prime Minister has made a speech from its ramparts.

 

DELHI GATE

The Delhi Gate is the southern public gate, in layout and appearance similar to the Lahori Gate. Two life-size stone elephants, on either side of the gate, face each other.

 

WATER GATE

A minor gate, the Water Gate is at the southeastern end of the walls. It was formerly on the riverbank; although the river has changed course since the fort's construction, the name has remained.

 

CHHATTA CHOWK

Adjacent to the Lahori Gate is the Chhatta Chowk, where silk, jewellery and other items for the imperial household were sold during the Mughal period. The bazaar leads to an open outer court, where it crosses the large north-south street which originally divided the fort's military functions (to the west) from the palaces (to the east). The southern end of the street is the Delhi Gate.

 

NAUBAT KHANA

The vaulted arcade of the Chhatta Chowk ends in the centre of the outer court, which measured 160 m × 110 m. The side arcades and central tank were destroyed after the 1857 rebellion.

 

In the east wall of the court stands the now-isolated Naubat Khana (also known as Nakkar Khana), the drum house. Music was played at scheduled times daily next to a large gate, where everyone except royalty was required to dismount.

 

DIWAN-I-AAM

The inner main court to which the Nakkar Khana led was 160 m wide and 130 m deep, surrounded by guarded galleries. On the far side is the Diwan-i-Aam, the Public Audience Hall.

 

The hall's columns and engrailed arches exhibit fine craftsmanship, and the hall was originally decorated with white chunam stucco. In the back in the raised recess the emperor gave his audience in the marble balcony (jharokha).

 

The Diwan-i-Aam was also used for state functions. The courtyard (mardana) behind it leads to the imperial apartments.

 

NAHR-I-BEHISHT

The imperial apartments consist of a row of pavilions on a raised platform along the eastern edge of the fort, overlooking the Yamuna. The pavilions are connected by a canal, known as the Nahr-i-Behisht ("Stream of Paradise"), running through the centre of each pavilion. Water is drawn from the Yamuna via a tower, the Shahi Burj, at the northeast corner of the fort. The palace is designed to emulate paradise as described in the Quran. In the riverbed below the imperial apartments and connected buildings was a space known as zer-jharokha ("beneath the latticework").

 

MUMTAZ MAHAL

The two southernmost pavilions of the palace are zenanas (women's quarters), consisting of the Mumtaz Mahal and the larger Rang Mahal. The Mumtaz Mahal houses the Red Fort Archaeological Museum.

 

RANG MAHAL

The Rang Mahal housed the emperor's wives and mistresses. Its name means "Palace of Colours", since it was brightly painted and decorated with a mosaic of mirrors. The central marble pool is fed by the Nahr-i-Behisht.

 

KHAS MAHAL

The Khas Mahal was the emperor's apartment. Connected to it is the Muthamman Burj, an octagonal tower where he appeared before the people waiting on the riverbank.

 

DIWAN-I-KHAS

A gate on the north side of the Diwan-i-Aam leads to the innermost court of the palace (Jalau Khana) and the Diwan-i-Khas (Hall of Private Audience). It is constructed of white marble, inlaid with precious stones. The once-silver ceiling has been restored in wood. François Bernier described seeing the jewelled Peacock Throne here during the 17th century. At either end of the hall, over the two outer arches, is an inscription by Persian poet Amir Khusrow:

 

If heaven can be on the face of the earth,

It is this, it is this, it is this.

 

HAMMAM

The hammam were the imperial baths, consisting of three domed rooms floored with white marble.

 

MOTI MASJID

West of the hammam is the Moti Masjid, the Pearl Mosque. A later addition, it was built in 1659 as a private mosque for Aurangzeb. It is a small, three-domed mosque carved in white marble, with a three-arched screen leading down to the courtyard.

 

HIRA MAHAL

The Hira Mahal is a pavilion on the southern edge of the fort, built under Bahadur Shah II and at the end of the Hayat Baksh garden. The Moti Mahal on the northern edge, a twin building, was destroyed during (or after) the 1857 rebellion.

 

SHAHI BURJ

The Shahi Burj was the emperor's main study of the; its name means "Emperor's Tower", and it originally had a chhatri on top. Heavily damaged, the tower is undergoing reconstruction. In front of it is a marble pavilion added by Aurangzeb.

 

HAYAT BAKHSH BAGH

The Hayat Bakhsh Bagh is the "Life-Bestowing Garden" in the northeast part of the complex. It features a reservoir (now dry) and channels, and at each end is a white marble pavilion (Savon and Bhadon). In the centre of the reservoir is the red-sandstone Zafar Mahal, added about 1842 under Bahadur Shah II.

 

Smaller gardens (such as the Mehtab Bagh or Moonlight Garden) existed west of it, but were destroyed when the British barracks were built. There are plans to restore the gardens. Beyond these, the road to the north leads to an arched bridge and the Salimgarh Fort.

 

PRINCES´ QUARTER

North of the Hayat Bakhsh Bagh and the Shahi Burj is the quarter of the imperial princes. This was used by member of the Mughal royal family and was largely destroyed by the British forces after the rebellion. One of the palaces was converted into a tea house for the soldiers.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Olkhon (Ольхон, also transliterated as Olchon) is the third-largest lake-bound island in the world. It is by far the largest island in Lake Baikal in eastern Siberia, with an area of 730 square kilometres (280 sq mi). Structurally, it acts as the southwestern margin of Academician Ridge. The island measures 71.5 kilometres (44.4 mi) in length and 20.8 kilometres (12.9 mi) in width.

 

Olkhon has a dramatic combination of terrain and is rich in archeological landmarks. Steep mountains line its eastern shore, and at 1,276 metres (4,186 ft) above sea level, Mount Zhima is the highest point on the island, peaking at 818 metres (2,684 ft) above the water level of Lake Baikal. The island is large enough to have its own lakes, and features a combination of taiga, steppe and even a small desert. A deep strait separates the island from the land.

The island's appearance is a result of millions of years of tectonic movement resulting in the hollowing of the channel between the land (Small Sea Strait) and the block of stone forming the island. The steep slopes of the mountains show the vertical heave of the earth.

 

The population of the island is less than 1,500 and consists mostly of Buryats, the island's aboriginal people.

 

There are several settlements and five villages on the island: Yalga, Malomorets, Khuzhir, Kharantsi, and Ulan-Khushin. The village of Khuzhir is the administrative capital of Olkhon, designated as such in April 1987, when the Soviet government issued a comprehensive decree protecting Lake Baikal. Khuzhir is home to about 1,200 residents and boasts a museum of local nature and history.

 

Most residents are fishermen, farmers, or cattle-ranchers. Due to an increasing number of tourists from all over the world, many residents work in this sector as well, and tourism has become an important part of the economy in Olkhon.

 

The indigenous Buryats, adherents of shamanism, believe the island to be a spiritual place; one of the groups of deities adhered to in Buryati yellow shamanism is called the oikony noyod, the "thirteen lords of Olkhon. On the western coast, close to Khuzhir, is Baikal's most famous landmark, the Shamanka, or Shaman's Rock. Natives believe that Burkhan, a modern religious cult figure of the Altai peoples, lives in the cave in this rock. The rock is one of nine Asian Most Sacred Places. Olkhon is considered a centre of Kurumchinskay culture of 6th-10th centuries.

The museum at Olkhon, named after Revyakin, exposits on the nature and ethnography of the island, including pipe-smoking and a samovar collection.

 

The island has a long history of human habitation. The original indigenous people were the Kurykans, forefathers of two ethnic groups: the Buryats and Yakuts.

Russian explorers first visited during the 17th century.

 

One of the most important ecological problems of Olkhon Island is the disposal of household waste. At present, the waste is disposed of in large piles in forestry near the village of Khuzhir. The dump is unenclosed, and the tipping process is uncontrolled. Moreover, with recent increases in tourism on the island, new sources of hard rubbish have begun to appear.

 

Another ecological concern affecting the island is the illegal felling of timber by local inhabitants. A complicated net of forestry roads in the areas adjacent to Khuzhir lead to woodland areas on the mountain slopes. Timber is brought out of the forest at night time, and the deforestation is taking its toll on the area.

   

Il Lago Bajkal (in russo: О́зеро Байка́л, Ozero Bajkal, ['ozʲɪrə bʌj'kɑl],in mongolo ed in buriato Dalai-Nor, Mare sacro) è un lago della Siberia meridionale, diviso fra i territori dell'oblast' di Irkutsk e della repubblica di Buriazia. È stato posto sotto la tutela dell'UNESCO come patrimonio dell'umanità nel 1996. Fa parte della lista delle Sette meraviglie della Russia.

 

Il lago Bajkal si estende su una superficie di 31.722 km², che ne fa uno dei maggiori laghi al mondo per superficie; si allunga per 636 km da nord a sud (è il secondo del mondo per lunghezza dopo il lago Tanganica), con una larghezza media di 48 km (massima 79,4 km). La profondità media del lago è di 744 m, con una massima di 1.642 m nella parte centrale. Questi valori ne fanno contemporaneamente il lago d'acqua dolce più profondo del mondo e quello con il volume maggiore (23.615 km3). Contiene un volume d'acqua pressoché equivalente a quello dei cinque grandi laghi americani messi assieme. Si stima che contenga circa il 20% delle riserve d'acqua dolce del pianeta (esclusi i ghiacciai e le calotte polari).

Il lago Bajkal si estende in una zona geologicamente molto tormentata; occupa una zona di sprofondamento (fossa tettonica) molto profonda (la criptodepressione arriva a quasi 1.200 m sotto il livello del mare, dato che il pelo dell'acqua del lago è a circa 450 m s.l.m.), ed è circondato da piccole catene montuose che si allungano tutto intorno alle sue coste: monti del Bajkal, monti del Barguzin, monti Primorskij, monti Chamar-Daban, monti Ulan-Burgasy e, all'estremità settentrionale, l'Altopiano Stanovoj.

 

Il Bajkal riceve le acque di 336 immissari, i maggiori dei quali sono il Selenga (che nasce in Mongolia), il Barguzin, la Verchnjaja Angara (Angara Superiore), la Turka e la Snežnaja; possiede per contro un solo emissario, l'Angara, tramite il quale il lago tributa allo Enisej. Il bacino imbrifero del Bajkal si estende su una superficie di circa 557.000 km².

 

Il Bajkal si trova in una regione dal clima molto duro, con fortissime escursioni termiche fra le stagioni estreme; il lago, con la sua enorme massa d'acqua, esercita una forte azione di mitigazione delle temperature, con il risultato di avere inverni meno freddi ed estati più fresche e umide delle zone circostanti. D'inverno il lago è interessato da un esteso congelamento delle acque superficiali; questi ghiacci, per via della inerzia termica data dalla gran massa d'acqua, tendono a formarsi piuttosto tardi (dicembre) e a fondere completamente solo verso maggio.

Il lago è frequentemente battuto da un forte vento che viene chiamato "sarma" dalle popolazioni locali, che può toccare i 150 km/h.

 

Il lago Bajkal è caratterizzato da un ambiente atipico per un lago: le sue acque sono molto ricche d'ossigeno (soluzione satura al 75%) e anche il punto più profondo è popolato da forme di vita, mentre in altri laghi profondi in varie parti del mondo le forme di vita macroscopica scompaiono oltre i 300 m a causa dell'anossia.

Il lago Bajkal è sede di svariati endemismi.

Nel 1962 erano state censite nel lago e nelle sue vicinanze 1.220 diverse specie animali e vegetali, nel 1978 il numero era cresciuto a 1.400 e da allora ogni anno nuove forme di vita continuano ad essere scoperte. Ad oggi le nuove specie scoperte in loco sono oltre 2.500, di cui il 60% di tipo animale ed il 15% di tipo vegetale. Nel lago vi sono 250 specie di crostacei e ben 52 di pesci, di cui 27 endemiche del Bajkal.

Una delle specie più caratteristiche è la nerpa, la foca del Bajkal (Pusa sibirica), specie endemica di taglia piccola, dal manto grigio scuro, si nutre di pesci, ed è all'apice della catena alimentare del lago Bajkal. Alla fine del secolo scorso la caccia ne aveva drasticamente ridotto il numero, oggi risalito, grazie ad una politica di tutela, ad oltre 75.000 individui.

All'altra estremità della catena alimentare c'è un piccolo crostaceo filtratore del genere Epischura, che costituisce il 97% del plancton e raggiunge una biomassa pari a circa 4 milioni di tonnellate. Questo gamberetto non sopporta una temperatura più elevata di 12 °C, e quindi necessita di una elevata concentrazione di ossigeno, né sopporta una concentrazione salina anche solo leggermente superiore a quella (molto bassa) del lago Bajkal, ossia 100 mg di sali per litro d'acqua.

Alcuni ricercatori ritengono che soprattutto le specie endemiche più piccole si siano evolute dall'antica fauna di un immenso lago salmastro che sembra ricoprisse quasi l'intera Asia centrale agli inizi del Terziario (65 milioni di anni fa). Più tardi, 30 milioni di anni fa, il predetto lago si era frammentato in tanti piccoli laghi salmastri circondati da foreste di tipo tropicale. Una serie di importanti sconvolgimenti tettonici (ancor oggi in loco si verificano oltre 2.000 scosse ogni anno) dovuti alla collisione tra il continente euroasiatico con il sub-continente indiano, formarono una profonda frattura nella crosta terrestre la quale venne progressivamente riempita dalle acque convogliate dalla vasta pianura circostante, il volume d'acqua raccolto equivale alla massa d'acqua trasportabile da tutti i fiumi del pianeta nell'arco di un intero anno.

La fossa di frattura del Bajkal è una delle tipiche strutture geologiche estensionali, particolarmente vistosa perché superficiale, che si formano perpendicolarmente alle catene orogeniche (la catena orogenica in questo caso è quella himalayana).

Alcuni pesci, come la golomjanka (Comephorus baikalensis), e la suddetta foca del Bajkal sembrano essere arrivati in queste acque in epoche più recenti, forse dall'Artico attraverso gli immensi fiumi siberiani.

Nei pressi del lago esiste una riserva naturale nella quale vivono gli zibellini, specie a rischio di estinzione che oggi viene protetta, ed il cui allevamento è monopolio dello Stato russo.

 

Le acque del lago, mai più calde di 14 °C, lasciano filtrare lo sguardo fino a più di 40 m di profondità. Tale purezza è stata a più riprese posta a rischio da svariati eventi:

negli anni settanta, con il progetto per la costruzione della Ferrovia Bajkal-Amur, voluta da Leonid Brežnev per aprire la Siberia allo sfruttamento delle sue materie prime;

attraverso la nascita della città di Severobajkal'sk, 600 km a nord del lago;

riversando nel Bajkal gli scarichi delle industrie di Ulan-Ude (capitale della Buriazia, 350 000 abitanti), attraverso il fiume Selenga;

costruendo, proprio a Bajkal'sk, ad un centinaio di metri dalla riva, un grande impianto di trasformazione del legno e di lavorazione della cellulosa, peraltro contestato dalle popolazioni locali.

Fin dagli anni settanta, a protestare contro l'inquinamento del lago vi fu il biologo Grigorij Galazyj, membro dell' Accademia delle Scienze, ed allora direttore dell' Istituto di limnologia di Irkutsk, successivamente direttore del Museo del Bajkal. Secondo Galazyj "Nessuno dei molti decreti e progetti varati per proteggere il Bajkal è stato messo in atto, ed ogni giorno l'impianto per la lavorazione del legno riversa nel lago 250.000 l di acque di scarico, oltre a consumare 500.000 m³ di legno l'anno".

 

Sulle sponde del lago si sono insediate comunità di credo differente; le religioni principali sono tre: lo "sciamanesimo tibetano", il "buddhismo" ed il cristianesimo ortodosso che fu portata dai russi dopo che Kurbat Ivanov scoprì le acque del lago Bajkal nel 1643.

Il territorio della Buriazia, che è bagnata dal Bajkal per il 60% della linea costiera e la sua gente, i Buriati, furono annessi allo stato russo dai trattati del 1689 e del 1728, quando le terre intorno al Bajkal furono separate dalla Mongolia. Dalla metà del XVII secolo all'inizio del XX il numero di Buriati aumentò da 27.700 a 300.000.

Dopo l'annessione della Buriazia alla Russia la cultura buriata subì le influenze del buddhismo tibetano e della Chiesa Cristiana Ortodossa. I Buriati furono per lo più sottoposti ad un processo di integrazione ad usi e costumi tipicamente russi che li portò ad abbandonare progressivamente il nomadismo unitamente all'agricoltura itinerante, mentre i Buriati dell'est (Transbajkal) subirono l'influenza mongola (ancora oggi diversi gruppi vivono in yurta e sono in gran parte buddhisti). Nel Settecento fu costruito il primo monastero buddhista buriato.

 

Il nome "Buriati" è menzionato per la prima volta in un'opera mongola: infatti costoro sono i discendenti diretti dell'antico popolo nomade dei mongoli ed ancora oggi vivono lungo le sponde del lago; una leggenda locale asserisce che la madre di Gengis Khan fosse nata nel villaggio di Barguzin, sulla riva orientale del lago. I buriati d'inverno sono soliti attraversare il lago ghiacciato (quando la crosta è spessa 1 metro) con i camion poiché in tal modo la distanza fra le città di Irkutsk ed Ulan Ude si accorciano di molto, anche se questa pratica è molto pericolosa.

I Buriati sono soliti pescare l'"omul", specie endemica piuttosto pregiata, unitamente ad altre 52 specie presenti nel lago e svariati tipi di crostacei.

Un'antica credenza popolare afferma che esistono due demoni maligni abitanti delle acque profonde intorno all'isola di Olkhon: "Burkhan" e "Doshkin Nojon", pronti a prendersi le anime dei pescatori durante le tempeste.

Una piccola consuetudine è quella di collocare dei nastrini colorati portafortuna detti "semelga" sopra gli arbusti.

 

La Roccia dello Sciamano.

Trattasi di un masso enorme che spunta appena dalle acque proprio laddove l'Angara lascia il Bajkal.

La Roccia dello Sciamano è protagonista di una leggenda che i buriati imparano a conoscere già in tenera età. Secondo tale leggenda il Grande Uomo Bajkal giunse in questa regione con le sue 337 figlie e decise di fermarsi; mentre dormiva una delle figlie, alla quale i gabbiani avevano raccontato le prodezze di Jenisej, decise di fuggire per correre verso l'uomo-fiume di cui si era innamorata; svegliatosi, il Bajkal scagliò verso la fuggitiva una pietra, la Roccia dello Sciamano appunto.

Chi era sospettato di un crimine veniva posto la sera al di sopra della roccia. Se al mattino era ancora lì e la corrente non l'aveva portato via, costui era innocente e veniva liberato. Tuttavia pare che ciò accadesse di rado, in quanto il fiume Angara possiede delle acque tanto rapide ed irruente che è l'unico fiume della regione a non gelare d'inverno.

 

(from wikipedia.org)

The Toraja are an ethnic group indigenous to a mountainous region of South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Their population is approximately 1,100,000, of whom 450,000 live in the regency of Tana Toraja ("Land of Toraja"). Most of the population is Christian, and others are Muslim or have local animist beliefs known as aluk ("the way"). The Indonesian government has recognized this animist belief as Aluk To Dolo ("Way of the Ancestors").

 

The word toraja comes from the Bugis Buginese language term to riaja, meaning "people of the uplands". The Dutch colonial government named the people Toraja in 1909. Torajans are renowned for their elaborate funeral rites, burial sites carved into rocky cliffs, massive peaked-roof traditional houses known as tongkonan, and colorful wood carvings. Toraja funeral rites are important social events, usually attended by hundreds of people and lasting for several days.

 

Before the 20th century, Torajans lived in autonomous villages, where they practised animism and were relatively untouched by the outside world. In the early 1900s, Dutch missionaries first worked to convert Torajan highlanders to Christianity. When the Tana Toraja regency was further opened to the outside world in the 1970s, it became an icon of tourism in Indonesia: it was exploited by tourism developers and studied by anthropologists. By the 1990s, when tourism peaked, Toraja society had changed significantly, from an agrarian model - in which social life and customs were outgrowths of the Aluk To Dolo - to a largely Christian society. Today, tourism and remittances from migrant Torajans have made for major changes in the Toraja highland, giving the Toraja a celebrity status within Indonesia and enhancing Toraja ethnic group pride.

 

ETHNIC IDENTITY

The Torajan people had little notion of themselves as a distinct ethnic group before the 20th century. Before Dutch colonization and Christianization, Torajans, who lived in highland areas, identified with their villages and did not share a broad sense of identity. Although complexes of rituals created linkages between highland villages, there were variations in dialects, differences in social hierarchies, and an array of ritual practices in the Sulawesi highland region. "Toraja" (from the coastal languages' to, meaning people; and riaja, uplands) was first used as a lowlander expression for highlanders. As a result, "Toraja" initially had more currency with outsiders - such as the Bugis and Makassarese, who constitute a majority of the lowland of Sulawesi - than with insiders. The Dutch missionaries' presence in the highlands gave rise to the Toraja ethnic consciousness in the Sa'dan Toraja region, and this shared identity grew with the rise of tourism in the Tana Toraja Regency. Since then, South Sulawesi has four main ethnic groups - the Bugis (the majority, including shipbuilders and seafarers), the Makassarese (lowland traders and seafarers), the Mandarese (traders and fishermen), and the Toraja (highland rice cultivators).

 

HISTORY

From the 17th century, the Dutch established trade and political control on Sulawesi through the Dutch East Indies Company. Over two centuries, they ignored the mountainous area in the central Sulawesi, where Torajans lived, because access was difficult and it had little productive agricultural land. In the late 19th century, the Dutch became increasingly concerned about the spread of Islam in the south of Sulawesi, especially among the Makassarese and Bugis peoples. The Dutch saw the animist highlanders as potential Christians. In the 1920s, the Reformed Missionary Alliance of the Dutch Reformed Church began missionary work aided by the Dutch colonial government. In addition to introducing Christianity, the Dutch abolished slavery and imposed local taxes. A line was drawn around the Sa'dan area and called Tana Toraja ("the land of Toraja"). Tana Toraja was first a subdivision of the Luwu kingdom that had claimed the area. In 1946, the Dutch granted Tana Toraja a regentschap, and it was recognized in 1957 as one of the regencies of Indonesia.

 

Early Dutch missionaries faced strong opposition among Torajans, especially among the elite, because the abolition of their profitable slave trade had angered them. Some Torajans were forcibly relocated to the lowlands by the Dutch, where they could be more easily controlled. Taxes were kept high, undermining the wealth of the elites. Ultimately, the Dutch influence did not subdue Torajan culture, and only a few Torajans were converted. In 1950, only 10% of the population had converted to Christianity.

 

In the 1930s, Muslim lowlanders attacked the Torajans, resulting in widespread Christian conversion among those who sought to align themselves with the Dutch for political protection and to form a movement against the Bugis and Makassarese Muslims. Between 1951 and 1965 (following Indonesian independence), southern Sulawesi faced a turbulent period as the Darul Islam separatist movement fought for an Islamic state in Sulawesi. The 15 years of guerrilla warfare led to massive conversions to

 

CHRISTIANITY

Alignment with the Indonesian government, however, did not guarantee safety for the Torajans. In 1965, a presidential decree required every Indonesian citizen to belong to one of five officially recognized religions: Islam, Christianity (Protestantism and Catholicism), Hinduism, or Buddhism. The Torajan religious belief (aluk) was not legally recognized, and the Torajans raised their voices against the law. To make aluk accord with the law, it had to be accepted as part of one of the official religions. In 1969, Aluk To Dolo ("the way of ancestors") was legalized as a sect of Agama Hindu Dharma, the official name of Hinduism in Indonesia.

 

SOCIETY

There are three main types of affiliation in Toraja society: family, class and religion.

 

FAMILY AFFILIATION

Family is the primary social and political grouping in Torajan society. Each village is one extended family, the seat of which is the tongkonan, a traditional Torajan house. Each tongkonan has a name, which becomes the name of the village. The familial dons maintain village unity. Marriage between distant cousins (fourth cousins and beyond) is a common practice that strengthens kinship. Toraja society prohibits marriage between close cousins (up to and including the third cousin) - except for nobles, to prevent the dispersal of property. Kinship is actively reciprocal, meaning that the extended family helps each other farm, share buffalo rituals, and pay off debts.

 

Each person belongs to both the mother's and the father's families, the only bilateral family line in Indonesia. Children, therefore, inherit household affiliation from both mother and father, including land and even family debts. Children's names are given on the basis of kinship, and are usually chosen after dead relatives. Names of aunts, uncles and cousins are commonly referred to in the names of mothers, fathers and siblings.

 

Before the start of the formal administration of Toraja villages by the Tana Toraja Regency, each Toraja village was autonomous. In a more complex situation, in which one Toraja family could not handle their problems alone, several villages formed a group; sometimes, villages would unite against other villages. Relationship between families was expressed through blood, marriage, and shared ancestral houses (tongkonan), practically signed by the exchange of water buffalo and pigs on ritual occasions. Such exchanges not only built political and cultural ties between families but defined each person's place in a social hierarchy: who poured palm wine, who wrapped a corpse and prepared offerings, where each person could or could not sit, what dishes should be used or avoided, and even what piece of meat constituted one's share.

 

CLASS AFFILIATION

In early Toraja society, family relationships were tied closely to social class. There were three strata: nobles, commoners, and slaves (slavery was abolished in 1909 by the Dutch East Indies government). Class was inherited through the mother. It was taboo, therefore, to marry "down" with a woman of lower class. On the other hand, marrying a woman of higher class could improve the status of the next generation. The nobility's condescending attitude toward the commoners is still maintained today for reasons of family prestige.

 

Nobles, who were believed to be direct descendants of the descended person from heaven, lived in tongkonans, while commoners lived in less lavish houses (bamboo shacks called banua). Slaves lived in small huts, which had to be built around their owner's tongkonan. Commoners might marry anyone, but nobles preferred to marry in-family to maintain their status. Sometimes nobles married Bugis or Makassarese nobles. Commoners and slaves were prohibited from having death feasts. Despite close kinship and status inheritance, there was some social mobility, as marriage or change in wealth could affect an individuals status. Wealth was counted by the ownership of water buffaloes.

 

Slaves in Toraja society were family property. Sometimes Torajans decided to become slaves when they incurred a debt, pledging to work as payment. Slaves could be taken during wars, and slave trading was common. Slaves could buy their freedom, but their children still inherited slave status. Slaves were prohibited from wearing bronze or gold, carving their houses, eating from the same dishes as their owners, or having sex with free women - a crime punishable by death.

 

RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION

Toraja's indigenous belief system is polytheistic animism, called aluk, or "the way" (sometimes translated as "the law"). In the Toraja myth, the ancestors of Torajan people came down from heaven using stairs, which were then used by the Torajans as a communication medium with Puang Matua, the Creator. The cosmos, according to aluk, is divided into the upper world (heaven), the world of man (earth), and the underworld. At first, heaven and earth were married, then there was a darkness, a separation, and finally the light. Animals live in the underworld, which is represented by rectangular space enclosed by pillars, the earth is for mankind, and the heaven world is located above, covered with a saddle-shaped roof. Other Toraja gods include Pong Banggai di Rante (god of Earth), Indo' Ongon-Ongon (a goddess who can cause earthquakes), Pong Lalondong (god of death), and Indo' Belo Tumbang (goddess of medicine); there are many more.

 

The earthly authority, whose words and actions should be cleaved to both in life (agriculture) and death (funerals), is called to minaa (an aluk priest). Aluk is not just a belief system; it is a combination of law, religion, and habit. Aluk governs social life, agricultural practices, and ancestral rituals. The details of aluk may vary from one village to another. One common law is the requirement that death and life rituals be separated. Torajans believe that performing death rituals might ruin their corpses if combined with life rituals. The two rituals are equally important. During the time of the Dutch missionaries, Christian Torajans were prohibited from attending or performing life rituals, but were allowed to perform death rituals. Consequently, Toraja's death rituals are still practised today, while life rituals have diminished.

 

CULTURE

TONGKONAN

Tongkonan are the traditional Torajan ancestral houses. They stand high on wooden piles, topped with a layered split-bamboo roof shaped in a sweeping curved arc, and they are incised with red, black, and yellow detailed wood carvings on the exterior walls. The word "tongkonan" comes from the Torajan tongkon ("to sit").

 

Tongkonan are the center of Torajan social life. The rituals associated with the tongkonan are important expressions of Torajan spiritual life, and therefore all family members are impelled to participate, because symbolically the tongkonan represents links to their ancestors and to living and future kin. According to Torajan myth, the first tongkonan was built in heaven on four poles, with a roof made of Indian cloth. When the first Torajan ancestor descended to earth, he imitated the house and held a large ceremony.

 

The construction of a tongkonan is laborious work and is usually done with the help of the extended family. There are three types of tongkonan. The tongkonan layuk is the house of the highest authority, used as the "center of government". The tongkonan pekamberan belongs to the family members who have some authority in local traditions. Ordinary family members reside in the tongkonan batu. The exclusivity to the nobility of the tongkonan is diminishing as many Torajan commoners find lucrative employment in other parts of Indonesia. As they send back money to their families, they enable the construction of larger tongkonan.

 

WOOD CARVINGS

To express social and religious concepts, Torajans carve wood, calling it Pa'ssura (or "the writing"). Wood carvings are therefore Toraja's cultural manifestation.

 

Each carving receives a special name, and common motifs are animals and plants that symbolize some virtue. For example, water plants and animals, such as crabs, tadpoles and water weeds, are commonly found to symbolize fertility. In some areas noble elders claim these symbols refer to strength of noble family, but not everyone agrees. The overall meaning of groups of carved motifs on houses remains debated and tourism has further complicated these debates because some feel a uniform explanation must be presented to tourists. The image to the left shows an example of Torajan wood carving, consisting of 15 square panels. The center bottom panel represents buffalo or wealth, a wish for many buffaloes for the family. The center panel represents a knot and a box, a hope that all of the family's offspring will be happy and live in harmony, like goods kept safe in a box. The top left and top right squares represent an aquatic animal, indicating the need for fast and hard work, just like moving on the surface of water. It also represents the need for a certain skill to produce good results.

 

Regularity and order are common features in Toraja wood carving (see table below), as well as abstracts and geometrical designs. Nature is frequently used as the basis of Toraja's ornaments, because nature is full of abstractions and geometries with regularities and ordering. Toraja's ornaments have been studied in ethnomathematics to reveal their mathematical structure, but Torajans base this art only on approximations. To create an ornament, bamboo sticks are used as a geometrical tool.

 

FUNERAL RITES

In Toraja society, the funeral ritual is the most elaborate and expensive event. The richer and more powerful the individual, the more expensive is the funeral. In the aluk religion, only nobles have the right to have an extensive death feast. The death feast of a nobleman is usually attended by thousands and lasts for several days. A ceremonial site, called rante, is usually prepared in a large, grassy field where shelters for audiences, rice barns, and other ceremonial funeral structures are specially made by the deceased family. Flute music, funeral chants, songs and poems, and crying and wailing are traditional Toraja expressions of grief with the exceptions of funerals for young children, and poor, low-status adults.

 

The ceremony is often held weeks, months, or years after the death so that the deceased's family can raise the significant funds needed to cover funeral expenses. Torajans traditionally believe that death is not a sudden, abrupt event, but a gradual process toward Puya (the land of souls, or afterlife). During the waiting period, the body of the deceased is wrapped in several layers of cloth and kept under the tongkonan. The soul of the deceased is thought to linger around the village until the funeral ceremony is completed, after which it begins its journey to Puya.

 

Another component of the ritual is the slaughter of water buffalo. The more powerful the person who died, the more buffalo are slaughtered at the death feast. Buffalo carcasses, including their heads, are usually lined up on a field waiting for their owner, who is in the "sleeping stage". Torajans believe that the deceased will need the buffalo to make the journey and that they will be quicker to arrive at Puya if they have many buffalo. Slaughtering tens of water buffalo and hundreds of pigs using a machete is the climax of the elaborate death feast, with dancing and music and young boys who catch spurting blood in long bamboo tubes. Some of the slaughtered animals are given by guests as "gifts", which are carefully noted because they will be considered debts of the deceased's family. However, a cockfight, known as bulangan londong, is an integral part of the ceremony. As with the sacrifice of the buffalo and the pigs, the cockfight is considered sacred because it involves the spilling of blood on the earth. In particular, the tradition requires the sacrifice of at least three chickens. However, it is common for at least 25 pairs of chickens to be set against each other in the context of the ceremony.

 

There are three methods of burial: the coffin may be laid in a cave or in a carved stone grave, or hung on a cliff. It contains any possessions that the deceased will need in the afterlife. The wealthy are often buried in a stone grave carved out of a rocky cliff. The grave is usually expensive and takes a few months to complete. In some areas, a stone cave may be found that is large enough to accommodate a whole family. A wood-carved effigy, called Tau tau, is usually placed in the cave looking out over the land. The coffin of a baby or child may be hung from ropes on a cliff face or from a tree. This hanging grave usually lasts for years, until the ropes rot and the coffin falls to the ground.

 

In the ritual called Ma'Nene, that takes place each year in August, the bodies of the deceased are exhumed to be washed, groomed and dressed in new clothes. The mummies are then walked around the village.

 

DANCE AND MUSIC

Torajans perform dances on several occasions, most often during their elaborate funeral ceremonies. They dance to express their grief, and to honour and even cheer the deceased person because he is going to have a long journey in the afterlife. First, a group of men form a circle and sing a monotonous chant throughout the night to honour the deceased (a ritual called Ma'badong). This is considered by many Torajans to be the most important component of the funeral ceremony. On the second funeral day, the Ma'randing warrior dance is performed to praise the courage of the deceased during life. Several men perform the dance with a sword, a large shield made from buffalo skin, a helmet with a buffalo horn, and other ornamentation. The Ma'randing dance precedes a procession in which the deceased is carried from a rice barn to the rante, the site of the funeral ceremony. During the funeral, elder women perform the Ma'katia dance while singing a poetic song and wearing a long feathered costume. The Ma'akatia dance is performed to remind the audience of the generosity and loyalty of the deceased person. After the bloody ceremony of buffalo and pig slaughter, a group of boys and girls clap their hands while performing a cheerful dance called Ma'dondan.

 

As in other agricultural societies, Torajans dance and sing during harvest time. The Ma'bugi dance celebrates the thanksgiving event, and the Ma'gandangi dance is performed while Torajans are pounding rice. There are several war dances, such as the Manimbong dance performed by men, followed by the Ma'dandan dance performed by women. The aluk religion governs when and how Torajans dance. A dance called Ma'bua can be performed only once every 12 years. Ma'bua is a major Toraja ceremony in which priests wear a buffalo head and dance around a sacred tree.

 

A traditional musical instrument of the Toraja is a bamboo flute called a Pa'suling (suling is an Indonesian word for flute). This six-holed flute (not unique to the Toraja) is played at many dances, such as the thanksgiving dance Ma'bondensan, where the flute accompanies a group of shirtless, dancing men with long fingernails. The Toraja have indigenous musical instruments, such as the Pa'pelle (made from palm leaves) and the Pa'karombi (the Torajan version of a jaw harp). The Pa'pelle is played during harvest time and at house inauguration ceremonies.

 

LANGUAGE

The ethnic Toraja language is dominant in Tana Toraja with the main language as the Sa'dan Toraja. Although the national Indonesian language is the official language and is spoken in the community, all elementary schools in Tana Toraja teach Toraja language.Language varieties of Toraja, including Kalumpang, Mamasa, Tae' , Talondo' , Toala' , and Toraja-Sa'dan, belong to the Malayo-Polynesian language from the Austronesian family. At the outset, the isolated geographical nature of Tana Toraja formed many dialects between the Toraja languages themselves. After the formal administration of Tana Toraja, some Toraja dialects have been influenced by other languages through the transmigration program, introduced since the colonialism period, and it has been a major factor in the linguistic variety of Toraja languages. A prominent attribute of Toraja language is the notion of grief. The importance of death ceremony in Toraja culture has characterized their languages to express intricate degrees of grief and mourning. The Toraja language contains many terms referring to sadness, longing, depression, and mental pain. Giving a clear expression of the psychological and physical effect of loss is a catharsis and sometimes lessens the pain of grief itself.

 

ECONOMY

Prior to Suharto's "New Order" administration, the Torajan economy was based on agriculture, with cultivated wet rice in terraced fields on mountain slopes, and supplemental cassava and maize crops. Much time and energy were devoted to raising water buffalo, pigs, and chickens, primarily for ceremonial sacrifices and consumption. Coffee was the first significant cash crop produced in Toraja, and was introduced in the mid 19th century, changing the local economy towards commodity production for external markets and gaining an excellent reputation for quality in the international market .

 

With the commencement of the New Order in 1965, Indonesia's economy developed and opened to foreign investment. In Toraja, a coffee plantation and factory was established by Key Coffee of Japan, and Torajan coffee regained a reputation for quality within the growing international specialty coffee sector Multinational oil and mining companies opened new operations in Indonesia during the 1970s and 1980s. Torajans, particularly younger ones, relocated to work for the foreign companies - to Kalimantan for timber and oil, to Papua for mining, to the cities of Sulawesi and Java, and many went to Malaysia. The out-migration of Torajans was steady until 1985. and has continued since, with remittances sent back by emigre Torajans performing an important role within the contemporary economy.

 

Tourism commenced in Toraja in the 1970s, and accelerated in the 1980s and 1990s. Between 1984 and 1997, a significant number of Torajans obtained their incomes from tourism, working in and owning hotels, as tour guides, drivers, or selling souvenirs. With the rise of political and economic instability in Indonesia in the late 1990s - including religious conflicts elsewhere on Sulawesi - tourism in Tana Toraja has declined dramatically. Toraja continues to be a well known origin for Indonesian coffee, grown by both smallholders and plantation estates, although migration, remittances and off-farm income is considered far more important to most households, even those in rural areas.

 

TOURISM AND CULTURAL CHANGE

Before the 1970s, Toraja was almost unknown to Western tourism. In 1971, about 50 Europeans visited Tana Toraja. In 1972, at least 400 visitors attended the funeral ritual of Puang of Sangalla, the highest-ranking nobleman in Tana Toraja and the so-called "last pure-blooded Toraja noble." The event was documented by National Geographic and broadcast in several European countries. In 1976, about 12,000 tourists visited the regency and in 1981, Torajan sculpture was exhibited in major North American museums. "The land of the heavenly kings of Tana Toraja", as written in the exhibition brochure, embraced the outside world.

 

In 1984, the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism declared Tana Toraja Regency the prima donna of South Sulawesi. Tana Toraja was heralded as "the second stop after Bali". Tourism was increasing dramatically: by 1985, a total number of 150,000 foreigners had visited the Regency (in addition to 80,000 domestic tourists), and the annual number of foreign visitors was recorded at 40,000 in 1989. Souvenir stands appeared in Rantepao, the cultural center of Toraja, roads were sealed at the most-visited tourist sites, new hotels and tourist-oriented restaurants were opened, and an airstrip was opened in the Regency in 1981.

 

Tourism developers have marketed Tana Toraja as an exotic adventure - an area rich in culture and off the beaten track. Western tourists expected to see stone-age villages and pagan funerals. Toraja is for tourists who have gone as far as Bali and are willing to see more of the wild, "untouched" islands. However, they were more likely to see a Torajan wearing a hat and denim, living in a Christian society. Tourists felt that the tongkonan and other Torajan rituals had been preconceived to make profits, and complained that the destination was too commercialized. This has resulted in several clashes between Torajans and tourism developers, whom Torajans see as outsiders.

 

A clash between local Torajan leaders and the South Sulawesi provincial government (as a tourist developer) broke out in 1985. The government designated 18 Toraja villages and burial sites as traditional tourist attractions. Consequently, zoning restrictions were applied to these areas, such that Torajans themselves were barred from changing their tongkonans and burial sites. The plan was opposed by some Torajan leaders, as they felt that their rituals and traditions were being determined by outsiders. As a result, in 1987, the Torajan village of Kété Kesú and several other designated tourist attractions closed their doors to tourists. This closure lasted only a few days, as the villagers found it too difficult to survive without the income from selling souvenirs.

 

Tourism has also transformed Toraja society. Originally, there was a ritual which allowed commoners to marry nobles (puang) and thereby gain nobility for their children. However, the image of Torajan society created for the tourists, often by "lower-ranking" guides, has eroded its traditional strict hierarchy. High status is not as esteemed in Tana Toraja as it once was. Many low-ranking men can declare themselves and their children nobles by gaining enough wealth through work outside the region and then marrying a noble woman.

 

WIKIPEDIA

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

After the division of Czechoslovakia by Germany in 1939, Slovakia was left with a small air force composed primarily of Czechoslovak combat aircraft. This force defended Slovakia against Hungary in March 1939, in the Slovak–Hungarian War in March 1939 in which Hungary reoccupied Carpathian Ruthenia and parts of southern Slovakia. In this the SVZ suffered some losses against Royal Hungarian Air Force. Later, the SVZ also took part in the German Invasion of Poland. The SVZ took part in Axis offensives in the Ukraine and Russian Central front sectors of the Eastern Front under the lead of Luftwaffe in the Stalingrad and Caucasus operations. This engagement resulted in great losses of aircraft and personnel, though.

 

During the World War II, the Slovak Air force was charged with the defense of Slovak airspace, and, after the invasion of Russia, provided air cover for Slovak forces fighting against the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front. For the rest of the war the SVZ fought US Army Air Forces and Royal Air Force raids against Slovakia.

 

Among the many more or less outdated German aircraft types inherited from the Luftwaffe during the early stages of WWII was a small number of Hs 123 A-1 dive bombers. The Henschel Hs 123 was a small single-seat biplane dive bomber and close-support attack aircraft. The aircraft was designed to meet the 1933 dive bomber requirements for the reborn Luftwaffe. Both Henschel and rival Fieseler (with the Fi 98) competed for the production contract requirement, which specified a single-seat biplane dive bomber. The first prototype, the Hs 123 V1, was cleared for its maiden flight on 1 April 1935; General Ernst Udet, a World War I ace, flew it on its first public demonstration flight on 8 May 1935. The first three Henschel prototypes, with the first and third powered by 485 kW (650 hp) BMW 132A-3 engines and the second by a 574 kW (770 hp) Wright Cyclone, were tested at Rechlin in August 1936. Only the first prototype had "smooth" cowlings; from that point on, all aircraft had a tightly fitting, characteristic cowling that included 18 fairings covering the engine valves. The Henschel prototypes did away with bracing wires and although they looked slightly outdated with their single faired interplane struts and cantilever main landing gear legs attached to smaller (stub) lower wings, the Hs 123 featured an all-metal construction, clean lines and superior maneuverability. Its biplane wings were of a "sesquiplane" configuration, whereby the lower wings were significantly smaller than the top wings.

 

The overall performance of the Hs 123 V1 prototype prematurely eliminated any chance for the more conventional Fi 98, which was cancelled after a sole prototype had been constructed. During testing, the Hs 123 proved capable of pulling out of "near-vertical" dives; however, two prototypes subsequently crashed due to structural failures in the wings that occurred when the aircraft were tested in high-speed dives. The fourth prototype incorporated improvements to cure these problems; principally, stronger center-section struts were fitted. After it had been successfully tested, the Hs 123 was ordered into production with a 656 kW (880 hp) BMW 132Dc engine.

 

The Hs 123 was intended to replace the Heinkel He 50 biplane reconnaissance and dive bomber as well as acting as a "stop-gap" measure until the more modern and capable Junkers Ju 87 became available. As such, production was limited and no upgrades were considered, although an improved version, the Hs 123B, was developed by Henschel in 1938. A proposal to fit the aircraft with a more powerful 716 kW (960 hp) "K"-variant of its BMW 132 engine did not proceed beyond the prototype stage, the Hs 123 V5. The V6 prototype fitted with a similar powerplant and featuring a sliding cockpit hood was intended to serve as the Hs 123C prototype.

 

About 265 aircraft were produced and production of the Hs 123A ended in Autumn 1938. It was flown by the German Luftwaffe during the Spanish Civil War and the early to midpoint of World War II. At the outbreak of hostilities, Hs 123s were committed to action in the Polish Campaign. Screaming over the heads of enemy troops, the Hs 123s delivered their bombs with devastating accuracy. A frightening aspect of an Hs 123 attack was the staccato noise of its engine that a pilot could manipulate by changing rpm to create "gunfire-like" bursts. The Hs 123 proved rugged and able to take a lot of damage and still keep on flying. Operating from primitive bases close to the front lines, the type was considered by ground crews to be easy to maintain, quick to re-equip and reliable even under dire field conditions.

 

The Polish campaign was a success for an aircraft considered obsolete by the Luftwaffe high command. Within a year, the Hs 123 was again in action in the Blitzkrieg attacks through the Netherlands, Belgium and France. Often positioned as the Luftwaffe's most-forward based combat unit, the Hs 123s flew more missions per day than other units, and again proved their worth in the close-support role. With Ju 87s still being used as tactical bombers rather than true ground support aircraft and with no other aircraft capable of this mission in the Luftwaffe arsenal the Hs 123 was destined to continue in service for some time, although numbers were constantly being reduced by attrition.

 

The Hs 123 was not employed in the subsequent Battle of Britain as the English Channel proved an insuperable obstacle for the short-ranged aircraft, and the sole leftover operator, II.(Schl)/LG 2, went back to Germany to re-equip with the Messerschmitt Bf 109E fighter bomber (Jabo) variant. The Bf 109E fighter bomber was not capable of carrying any more bombs than the Hs 123. It did, however, have a greater range and was far more capable of defending itself. On the downside were the notoriously tricky taxiing, ground handling, and takeoff/landing characteristics of the Bf 109, which were exacerbated with a bomb load.

 

At the beginning of the Balkans Campaign, the 32 examples of the Hs 123 that had been retired after the fall of France were taken back into service and handed over to the Slovak Air Force to replace the heavy losses on the Eastern Front after combat fatigue and desertion had reduced the pilots' effectiveness. Most of Slovakia's obsolete biplanes were replaced with modern German combat aircraft, including the Messerschmitt Bf 109, so that the Hs 123s were initially regarded with distrust – but the machines proved their worth in the ensuing battles. The Slovak Hs 123s took part in the Battle of Kursk and supported ground troops, some were outfitted with locally designed ski landing gears which proved to be a very effective alternative to the Hs 123’s spatted standard landing gear which was prone to collect snow and mud and even block. After this deployment at the Russian front, the Slovak Air Force was sent back to defend Slovak home air space, primarily executed with Messerschmitt Bf 109 E and G types, Avia B-534, and some other interceptor types, also helped by Luftwaffe units active in the area.

Being confined to national borders, the Slovak Hs 123s were put in reserve and relegated to training purposes, even though they were occasionally activated to support German ground troops. From late August 1944 the remaining Hs 123s also actively took part in the suppression of the Slovak National Uprising against Germany.

 

Since Hs 123 production had already stopped in 1940 and all tools had been destroyed, the permanent attritions could not be replaced - due to a lack of serviceable airframes and spare parts the type’s numbers dwindled. When Romania and the Soviet Union entered Slovakia, they organized with some captured aircraft and defectors a local Insurgent Air Force to continue the fight against Axis forces in country, including the last operational Slovak Hs 123s. No aircraft survived the war.

  

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 8.33 m (27 ft 4 in)

Wingspan: 10.5 m (34 ft 5 in)

Height: 3.2 m (10 ft 6 in)

Wing area: 24.85 m² (267.5 sq ft)

Empty weight: 1,500 kg (3,307 lb)

Gross weight: 2,215 kg (4,883 lb)

 

Powerplant:

1× BMW 132Dc 9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine with 660 kW (880 hp),

driving a 2-bladed metal variable-pitch propeller

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: 341 km/h (212 mph, 184 kn) at 1,200 m (3,937 ft)

Range: 860 km (530 mi, 460 nmi) with a 100 l drop tank

Combat range: 480 km (300 mi, 260 nmi) with 200 kg (440.9 lb) of bombs

Service ceiling: 9,000 m (30,000 ft)

Rate of climb: 15 m/s (3,000 ft/min)

 

Armament:

2× 7.92 mm MG 17 machine guns, 400 rpg

Up to 450 kg (992.1 lb) of bombs under fuselage and wings

  

The kit and its assembly:

A relatively simple what-if project, and it took a while to figure out something to do with a surplus Airfix Hs 123 A kit in The Stash™ without a proper plan yet. The Hs 123 is an overlooked aircraft, and the fact that all airframes were used during WWII until none was left makes a story in Continental Europe a bit difficult. I also did not want to create a German aircraft – Finland was an early favorite, because I wanted to add a ski landing gear (see below), but since I won’t build anything with a swastika on it this option was a dead end. Then I considered an operator from the Balkans, e. g. Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia or Slovakia – and eventually settled for the latter because of the national markings.

 

The kit was built almost OOB, and the Airfix Hs 123 is a nice offering. Yes, it’s a simple kit, but its is IMHO a very good representation, despite the many rivets on the hull, a rather bleak interior and some sinkholes (e. g. on the massive outer wings struts). It goes together well, just a little PSR here and there. I just added a dashboard (scratched from styrene sheet) and modified the OOB 50 kg bombs with extended impact fuzes with a flat, round plate at the tip, so that the bomb itself explodes above soft ground or snow for a bigger blast radius.

The only major modification is a transplanted ski landing gear from a PM Model (Finnish) Fokker D.XXI, which had to be reduced in length to fit under the compact Hs 123. A small tail ski/skid was scratched from styrene sheet material.

 

Thankfully, the Hs 123 only calls for little rigging – just between the central upper wing supports and there is a characteristic “triangle” wiring in the cowling. All these, together with the wire antenna, were created with heated sprue material.

  

Painting and markings:

Finland had been a favorite because I would have been able to apply a more interesting paint scheme than the standard Luftwaffe RLM 70/71/65 splinter scheme with a low waterline that was typical for the Hs 123 during WWII. However, as a former Luftwaffe aircraft I retained this livery but decided to add a winter camouflage as a suitable thematic supplement to the skis.

The basic colors became Humbrol 65 underneath and 30 and 75 from above – the latter for a stronger contrast to the Dunkelgrün than Humbrol 91 (Schwarzgrün). Thanks to the additional whitewash mottles, which were inspired by a similar livery seen on a contemporary Bulgarian Avia B.534, I did not have to be too exact with the splinter camouflage.

 

The cockpit and cowling interior were painted with RLM 02 (Humbrol 240), the propeller blades became Schwarzgrün (Humbrol 91, further darkened with some black) and the bombs were painted in a dark grey (Revell 77) while the small 100 l drop tank became bare aluminum (Revell 99).

 

However, before the white mottles could be added, the kit received its decals so that they could be painted around the markings, just as in real life. The Slovak national markings had to be scratched, and I used standard white simplified German Balkenkreuze over a cross made from blue decal stripes. Later a separate red decal circle was placed on top of that. The only other markings are the red “7” codes, edged in white for better contrast (from a Heller Bf 109 K) and the fuel information triangles on the fuselage from the Hs 123’s OOB sheet. As an ID marking for an Eastern Front Axis aircraft, I retained the wide yellow fuselage stripe from the OOB, sheet, too, and added yellow tips on the upper wings’ undersides.

The whitewash camouflage was then created with white acrylic paint (Revell 05), applied with a soft brush with a rounded tip. Once this had dried, I treated the surfaces with fine wet sandpaper for a weathered/worn look.

 

Finally, after some soot stains behind the exhausts and around the machine gun nozzles, the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish and the rigging (see above) was done.

  

The Hs 123 might not be the sexiest aircraft of WWII, but I like this rugged pug which could not be replaced by its successor, the Ju 87, and served in its close support role until literally no aircraft was left. Putting one on skis worked quite well, and the exotic Slovak markings add a special touch – even though the national markings almost disappear among the disruptive whitewash camouflage! The result looks quite plausible, though, and the old Airfix kit is IMHO really underestimated.

Brockdish is one of three parish churches within about a mile that can be seen from the A143, but only the top of the tower is visible when heading north, and only fleetingly. THe only other clue is the truncated Church Lane which cuts across the main road, the name of which indicates the nearby church.

 

I came here at about eleven in the morning, having visited Oulton in Suffolk earlier, and wasn't expecting to find it open to be honest. But I heard the bells being rung, or at least pealing in intermittent intervals, the reason being some people were being given lessons.

 

Three cars were parked in the lane beside the church, which you reach by traveling up a green lane north out of the village before taking the track to the church.

 

The door to the tower, where the bellringers were being taught was ajar, and I could have gone up, but instead I go to the porch to try the door, and finding it open, I go inside lest someone comes and closes it.

 

Soon I am joined inside by the warden who is surprised, but pleased, to find a visitor: she is there to make teas for the ringers, and would I like one?

 

My breath had already been taken away by the tiles in the chancel, which are of exceptional quality. Tiles are something easily overlooked, and indeed many were clearly bought from catalogues, and so many are similar, but when more attention to detail was given, when extra quality was installed, it shines through.

 

-----------------------------------------

 

When I first visited this church in 2005, it was with something of a sinking heart to arrive at the third church in a row that was locked without a keyholder notice. Today, nothing could be further from the truth. In the south porch there is a large notice now which reads Come in and enjoy your church! Fabulous stuff.

The trim graveyard includes some substantial memorials to the Kay family, including one massive structure with an angel under a spire which would not look out of place opposite the Royal Albert Hall. No expense was spared by the Victorians here at Brockdish. The rebuilding was paid for by the Rector, George France, who also advised architect Frederick Marable on exactly what form this vision of the medieval should take. The tower above is curiously un-East Anglian, looking rather unusual surrounded by Norfolk fields. All around the building headstops are splendid, and fine details like faux-consecration crosses on the porch show that France was generally a man who knew what a medieval church should look like.

 

It will not surprise you to learn that St Peter and St Paul is similarly grand on the inside, if a touch severe. France actually devised a church much more Anglo-catholic than we find it today; it was toned down by the militantly low church Kay family later in the century. They took down the rood and replaced it with a simple cross, painting out the figures on the rood screen as well. When I first visited, the very helpful churchwarden who'd opened up for me observed that Brockdish is the only church in Norfolk that has stained glass in every window, which isn't strictly true (Harleston, three miles away, has as well) but we can be thankful that, thanks to the Reverend France's fortunes, it is of a very good quality. The glass seems to have been an ongoing project, because some of it dates from the 1920s. In keeping with low church tradition, the glass depicts mainly Biblical scenes and sayings of Christ rather than Saints, apart from the church's two patron Saints in the east window of the chancel. There are also some roundels in the east window of the south aisle, which appear to be of continental glass. They depict the Adoration of the Magi, the deposition of Christ, what appears to be Paharoah's daughter with the infant Moses, and the heads of St Matthias, St John the Evangelist, and Christ with a Crown of Thorns. However, I suspect that at least some of them are the work of the King workshop of Norwich, and that only the Deposition and the Old Testament scene are genuinely old.

 

If this is rather a gloomy church on a dark day, it is because of the glass in the south clerestory, a surprisingly un-medieval detail - the whole point of a clerestory was to let light reach the rood. The glass here is partly heraldic, partly symbolic. The stalls in the chancel are another faux-medieval detail - there was never a college of Priests here - but they looked suspiciously as if they might contain old bench ends within the woodwork. Not all is false, because the chancel also contains an unusual survival from the earlier church, a tombchest which may have been intended as an Easter Sepulchre.

 

Above all, the atmosphere is at once homely and devotional, not least because of the exceptional quality of the tiled sanctuary, an increasingly rare beast because they were so often removed in the 1960s and 1970s, when Victorian interiors were unfashionable. Brockdish's is spectacular, a splendid example that has caught the attention of 19th century tile enthusiasts and experts nationally.

 

Also tiled is the area beneath the tower, which France had reordered as a baptistery. The font has recently been moved back into the body of the church; presumably, whoever supplies the church's liability insurance had doubts about godparents standing with their backs to the steps down into the nave.

I liked Brockdish church a lot; I don't suppose it gets a lot of visitors, but it is a fine example of what the Victorians did right.

 

Simon Knott, June 2005, revisited and updated July 2010

 

www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/brockdish/brockdish.htm

 

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Is the next adjoining town eastward, through which the great road passes to Yarmouth; on the left hand of which, stands the church, on a hill by itself, there being no house near it but the parsonage, which joins to the east side of the churchyard. The advowson always belonged to the Earl's manor here, with which it now continues.

 

In Norwich Domesday we read, that the rector had a house and 30 acres of land, that it was then valued at 15 marks, and paid as it now doth for synodals 1s. 9d. procurations 6s. 8d. and 12d. Peter-pence. It stands in the King's Books thus:

 

10l. Brokedish rectory. 1l. yearly tenths.

 

And consequently pays first-fruits, and is incapable of augmentation. The church stands included in the glebe, which is much the same in quantity as it was when the aforesaid survey was taken. It is in Norfolk archdeaconry, Redenhall deanery, and Duke of Norfolk's liberty, though he hath no lete, warren, paramountship, or superiour jurisdiction at all in this town, the whole being sold by the family along with the manors of the town.

 

In 1603, there were 103 communicants here, and now there are 50 families, and about 300 inhabitants; it was laid to the ancient tenths at 4l. but had a constant deduction of 14s. on account of lands belonging to the religious, so that the certain payment to each tenth, was 3l. 6s.

 

The Prior of St. Faith at Horsham owned lands here, which were taxed at 2s. 6d. in 1428.

 

The Prior of Thetford monks had lands here of the gift of Richard de Cadomo or Caam, (fn. 1) who gave them his land in Brokedis, and a wood sufficient to maintain 20 swine, in the time of King Henry I. when William Bigot, sewer to that King, gave to this priory all the land of Sileham, which from those monks is now called Monks-hall manor, and the water-mill there; all which Herbert Bishop of Norwich conveyed to his father, in exchange for other lands, he being to hold it in as ample a manner as ever Herbert the chaplain did; and in Ric. the Second's time, the monks bought a piece of marsh ground in Brokedis, to make a way to their mill, which being not contained in the grant of Monks-hall manor from Hen. VIII. to the Duke of Norfolk, William Grice, Esq. and Charles Newcomen, who had a grant of such lands as they could find concealed from the Crown, seized on this as such; and upon their so doing, the owner of the mill was obliged to purchase it of them, by the name of Thetford-Mill-Way, and it hath ever since belonged to, and is constantly repaired by the owner thereof.

 

Rectors of Brockidish.

 

12 - - Robert

 

12 - - Sir Ralf de Creping, rector.

 

1313, Sir Stephen Bygod. The King, for this turn.

 

1324, Nic. le Mareschal. Tho. Earl of Norfolk and Marshal.

 

1326, Mathew Paumer, or Palmer. Ditto. He changed for Canefield-Parva in London diocese with

 

Master Robert de Hales. Ditto.

 

1333, John de Melburn. Ditto.

 

1355, Roger de Wombwell. Lady Eleanor and Thomas de Wingfield, attorneys to Sir John Wingfield, Knt.

 

1356, John Knyght of Exeter. Mary Countess-Marshal, widow of Tho. de Brotherton, who recovered the advowson by the King's writ, against Sir J. Wingfield, Knt. and Thomas his brother, William de Lampet and Alice his wife, and Catherine her sister, and so Wombwell was ejected.

 

1357, John de Esterford. Mary Countess-Marshal. He resigned in

 

1367, to John son of Catherine de Frenge, and he in

 

1368, to John Syward. Sir Walter Lord Manney.

 

1382, John de Balsham, who changed for Stowe St. Michael in Exeter diocese, with

 

Bartholomew Porter. Margaret Marshal, Countess of Norfolk.

 

1405, Sir John Dalyngho of Redcnhall. Eliz. Dutchess of Norf. in right of her dower.

 

1417, he exchanged with Thomes Barry, priest, for the vicarage of Berkyng church in London. John Lancaster, Ric. Sterisacre, and Rob. Southwell, attorneys to John Duke of Norfolk, EarlMarshal and Notyngham, who was beyond the seas. Barry resigned in

 

1422, to Sir Thomas Briggs, priest, who died rector. Ditto.

 

1454, Sir Hen. White, priest. John Duke of Norf. Earl-Marshal and Notingham, Marshal of England, Lord Mowbray, Segrave, and Gower. He resigned in

 

1455, to Sir Thomas Holm, priest. Ditto. And he in

 

1478, to John Nun. The King, as guardian to Richard Duke of York and Norfolk, and Lady Ann his wife, daughter and heir of John late Duke of Norfolk.

 

1491, John Mene; he had a union to hold another benefice.

 

1497, John Rogers, A. M. Eliz. Dutchess of Norfolk. He resigned in

 

1498, to Sir John Fisk, priest, chaplain to the Dutchess. Ditto. At whose death in

 

1511, Sir Robert Gyrlyng, chaplain to Thomas Earl of Surrey, had it of that Earl's gift: he was succeeded by

 

Sir William Flatberry, chaplain to Thomas Duke of Norfolk, who presented him; he resigned in

 

1540, to Sir Nic. Stanton, chaplain to his patron, Tho. Duke of Norf. Lord Treasurer and Earl-Marshal, and was succeeded by

 

William Hide, priest. Ditto. He resigned, and the Duke presented it in

 

1561, to Sir John Inman, priest, who was buried here Aug. 1, 1586.

 

1586, Aug. 4, Master Richard Gibson was instituted, who was buried Oct. 1, 1625; he was presented by Robert Nichols of Cambridge, by purchase of the turn from William le Grice, Gent. and Hester le Grice, wife of Charles le Grice, Gent. true patrons.

 

1625, William Owles, who held it united to Billingford. John Knapp of Brockdish, by grant of this turn. He was succeeded in

 

1645, by Brian Witherel, and he by

 

Mr. James Aldrich, who died rector Nov. 10, 1657, from which time somebody held it without institution, till the Restoration, and then receded, for in

 

1663, May 14, Sir Augustine Palgrave, patron of this turn, in right of Catherine his wife, presented George Fish, on the cession of the last incumbent; he was buried here Oct. 29, 1686.

 

1686, Thomas Palgrave, A.M. buried here March 24, 1724. Fran. Laurence, Gent.

 

1724, Abel Hodges, A.B. he held it united to Tharston, and died in 1729. Richard Meen, apothecary, for this turn.

 

1729, Richard Clark, LL. B. was instituted Dec. 3, and died about six weeks after. Mrs. Ellen Laurence of Castleacre, widow.

 

1730, Alan Fisher. Ditto. He resigned in

 

1738, and was succeeded by Robert Laurence, A. B. of Caius college, who lies buried at the south-east corner of the chancel, and was succeeded in

 

1739, by Francis Blomefield, clerk, the present rector, who holds it united to Fresfield rectory, being presented by Mrs. Ellen Laurence aforesaid.

 

The church is dedicated to the honour of the apostles St. Peter and Paul, and hath a square tower about 16 yards high, part of which was rebuilt with brick in 1714; there are five bells; the third, which is said to have been brought from Pulham in exchange, hath this on it;

 

Sancta Maria ora pro nobis.

 

and on the fourth is this,

 

Uirgo Coronata duc nos ad Regna beata.

 

The nave, chancel, and south isle are leaded, the south porch tiled, and the north porch is ruinated. The roof of this chancel is remarkable for its principals, which are whole trees without any joint, from side to side, and bent in such a rising manner, as to be agreeable to the roof. The chancel is 30 feet long and 20 broad, the nave is 54 feet long and 32 broad, and the south isle is of the same length, and 10 feet broad.

 

At the west end of the nave is a black marble thus inscribed,

 

Here lyeth buried the Body of Richard Wythe Gent. who departed this Life the 6 of Sept. 1671, who lived 64 Years and 4 Months and 9 Days.

 

This family have resided here till lately, ever since Edw. the Third's time, and had a considerable estate here, and the adjacent villages. See their arms, vol. iv. p. 135.

 

Another marble near the desk hath this,

 

Near this Place lays Elizabeth Wife of John Moulton Gent. who died Oct. 31, 1716, aged 32 Years. And here lieth Mary the late Wife of John Moulton, who died March 20, 1717, aged 27 Years. And also here lyeth the Body of John Moulton Gent. who died June 12, 1718, aged 38 Years.

 

Moulton's arms and crest as at vol. iv. p. 501.

 

In a north window are the arms of De la Pole quartering Wingfield.

 

In 1465, Jeffry Wurliche of Brockdish was buried here, and in 1469 John Wurliche was interred in the nave, and left a legacy to pave the bottom of the steeple. In 1518, Henry Bokenham of Brockdish was buried in the church, as were many of the Spaldings, (fn. 2) Withes, Howards, Grices, Tendrings, and Laurences; who were all considerable owners and families of distinction in this town.

 

The chapel at the east end of the south isle was made by Sir Ralf Tendring of Brockdish, Knt. whose arms remain in its east window at this day, once with, and once without, a crescent az. on the fess, viz. az. a fess between two chevrons arg.

 

His altar monument stands against the east wall, north and south, and hath a sort of cupola over it, with a holy-water stope by it, and a pedestal for the image of the saint to which it was dedicated, to stand on, so that it served both for a tomb and an altar; the brass plates of arms and circumscription are lost.

 

On the north side, between the chapel and nave, stands another altar tomb, covered with a most curious marble disrobed of many brass plates of arms and its circumscription, as are several other stones in the nave, isle, and chancel. This is the tomb of John Tendring of Brockdish-hall, Esq. who lived there in 1403, and died in 1436, leaving five daughters his heirs, so that he was the last male of this branch of the Tendrings. Cecily his wife is buried by him.

 

On the east chancel wall, on the south side of the altar, is a white marble monument with this,

 

Obdormit hìc in Domino, lætam in Christo expectans Resurrectionem, Robertus, Roberti Laurence, ac Annæ Uxoris ejus, Filius, hujusce Ecclesiæ de Brockdish in Comitatû Norfolciensi Rector, ejusdem Villæ Dominus, ac Ecclesiæ Patronus, jure hereditario (si vixîsset) Futurus; Sed ah! Fato nimium immaturo abreptus; Cœlestia per Salvatoris merita sperans, Terrestria omnia, Juvenis reliquit. Dec. 31°. Anno æræ Christianæ mdccxxxixo. Ætatis xxvo. Maria, unica Soror et Hæres, Roberti Frankling Generosi Uxor, Fraterni Amoris hoc Testimonium animo grato, Memoriæ Sacrum posuit.

 

1. Laurence, arg. a cross raguled gul. on a chief gul. a lion passant guardant or.

 

2. Aslack, sab. a chevron erm. between three catherine-wheels arg.

 

3. Lany, arg. on a bend between two de-lises gul. a mullet of the field for difference.

 

4. Cooke, or, on a chevron ingrailed gul. a crescent of the field for difference, between three cinquefoils az. on a chief of the second, a lion passant guardant of the first.

 

5. Bohun, gul. a crescent erm. in an orle of martlets or.

 

6. Bardolf, az. three cinquefoils or.

 

7. Ramsey, gul. a chevron between three rams heads caboshed arg.

 

8. as 1.

 

Crest, a griffin seiant proper.

 

Motto, Floreat ut Laurus.

 

On a flat stone under this monument, is a brass plate thus inscribed,

 

Sacrum hoc Memoriæ Roberti Laurence Armigeri, qui obijt xxviijo die Julij 1637, Elizabeth Uxor ejus, Filia Aslak Lany Armigeri posuit.

 

Arms on a brass plate are,

 

Lawrence impaling Lany and his quarterings, viz. 1, Lany. 2, Aslack. 3, Cooke. 4, Bohun. 5, nine de-lises, 3, 3, and 3. 6, Bardolf. 7, Charles. 8, on a chevron three de-lises. 9, Ramsey. 10, Tendring. 11, on a fess two coronets. 12, Wachesam, arg. a fess, in chief two crescents gul. 13, a lion rampant. 14, Lany.

 

There is a picture of this Robert drawn in 1629, æt. 36. He built the hall in 1634; it stands near half a mile north-east of the church, and was placed near the old site of Brockdishe's-hall; the seat of the Tendrings, whose arms, taken out of the old hall when this was built, were fixed in the windows. The arms of this man and his wife, and several of their quarterings, are carved on the wainscot in the rooms.

 

On the south side of the churchyard is an altar tomb covered with a black marble, with the crest and arms of

 

Sayer, or Sawyer, gul. a chief erm. and a chevron between three seamews proper.

 

Crest, a hand holding a dragon's head erased proper.

 

To the Memory of Frances late the wife of Richard Tubby Esq. who departed this Life Dec. 22, 1728, in the 60th Year of her Age.

 

And adjoining is another altar tomb,

 

In Memory of Richard Tubby Esq. (fn. 3) who died Dec. 10th. 1741, in the 80th Year of his Age.

 

There are two other altar tombs in the churchyard, one for Mr. Rich. Chatton, and another for Eliz. daughter of Robert and Eliz. Harper, who died in 1719, aged 8 years.

 

The town takes its name from its situation on the Waveney or Wagheneye, which divides this county from that of Suffolk; the channel of which is now deep and broad, though nothing to what it was at that time, as is evident from the names of places upon this river, as the opposite vill, now called Sileham, (oftentimes wrote Sayl-holm, even to Edw. the Third's time) shows; for I make no doubt, but it was then navigable for large boats and barges to sail up hither, and continued so, till the sea by retiring at Yarmouth, and its course being stopt near Lowestoft, had not that influence on the river so far up, as it had before; which occasioned the water to retire, and leave much land dry on either side of the channel; though it is so good a stream, that it might with ease, even now, be made navigable hither; and it would be a good work, and very advantageous to all the adjacent country. That [Brod-dic] signifies no more than the broad-ditch, is very plain, and that the termination of ò, eau, or water, added to it, makes it the broad ditch of water, is as evident.

 

Before the Confessor's time, this town was in two parts; Bishop Stigand owned one, and the Abbot of Bury the other; the former afterwards was called the Earl's Manor, from the Earls of Norfolk; and the other Brockdishe's-hall, from its ancient lords, who were sirnamed from the town.

 

The superiour jurisdiction, lete, and all royalties, belonged to the Earl's manor, which was always held of the hundred of Earsham, except that part of it which belonged to Bury abbey, and that belonged to the lords of Brockdishe's-hall; but when the Earl's manor was sold by the Duke of Norfolk, with all royalties of gaming, fishing, &c. together with the letes, view of frankpledge, &c. free and exempt from his hundred of Earsham, and the two manors became joined as they now are, the whole centered in the lord of the town, who hath now the sole jurisdiction with the lete, belonging to it; and the whole parish being freehold, on every death or alienation, the new tenant pays a relief of a year's freehold rent, added to the current year: The annual free-rent, without such reliefs, amounting to above 3l. per annum. At the Conqueror's survey the town was seven furlongs long, and five furlongs and four perches broad, and paid 6d. to the geld or tax. At the Confessor's survey, there were 28 freemen here, six of which held half a carucate of land of Bishop Stigand, and the others held 143 acres under the Abbot of Bury, and the Abbot held the whole of Stigand, without whose consent the freemen could neither give away, nor sell their land, but were obliged to pay him 40s. a year free-rent; (fn. 4) and if they omitted paying at the year's end, they forfeited their lands, or paid their rent double; but in the Conqueror's time they paid 16l. per annum by tale. There were two socmen with a carucate of land, two villeins and two bordars here, which were given to Bury abbey along with the adjacent manor of Thorp-Abbots, but were after severed from that manor, and infeoffed by the Abbot of Bury in the lord of Brockdishe's-hall manor, with which it passed ever after. (fn. 5)

 

Brockdish-Earl's Manor, or Brockdish Comitis.

 

This manor always attended the manor of Forncet after it was granted from the Crown to the Bygods, along with the half hundred of Earsham, for which reason I shall refer you to my account of that manor at p. 223, 4. It was mostly part of the dower of the ladies of the several noble families that it passed through, and the living was generally given to their domestick chaplains. In 3 Edward I. the Abbot of Bury tried an action with Roger Bigod, then lord and patron, for the patronage; (fn. 6) pleading that a part of the town belonged to his house, and though they had infeoffed their manor here in the family of the Brockdishes, yet the right in the advowson remained in him; but it appearing that the advowson never belonged to the Abbot's manor, before the feofment was made, but that it wholly was appendant ever since the Confessor's time, to the Earl's manor, the Abbot was cast: notwithstanding which in 1335, Sir John Wingfield, Knt. and Thomas his brother, William de Lampet and Alice his wife, and Catherine her sister, owners of Brockdishe's manor, revived the claim to the advowson; and Thomas de Wingfield, and lady Eleanor wife of Sir John Wingfield, presented here, and put up their arms in the church windows, as patrons, which still remain; but Mary Countess Marshal, who then held this manor in dower, brought her quare impedit, and ejected their clerk; since which time, it constantly attended this manor, being always appendant thereto. In 15 Edw. I. Roger Bigot, then lord, had free-warren in all this town, as belonging to this manor, having not only all the royalties of the town, but also the assise of bread and ale, and amerciaments of all the tenants of his own manor, and of the tenants of Reginald de Brockdish, who were all obliged to do suit once a year at the Earl's view of frankpledge and lete in Brockdish; and it continued in the Norfolk family till 1570, and then Thomas Howard Duke of Norfolk, obtained license from Queen Elizabeth to sell it; it being held in capite or in chief of the Crown, as part of the barony and honour of the said Duke, who accordingly sold the manor, advowson, free-fishery, and all the place or manor-house, and demean lands; together with the lete, view of frankpledge, liberty of free warren, and all other royalties whatsoever, free and exempt from any jurisdiction or payment to his half hundred of Earsham, to

 

Charles le Grice, Esq. of Brockdish, and his heirs, who was descended from Sir Rorert le Grys of Langley in Norfolk, Knt. equerry to Ric. I. and Oliva his wife, whose son, Sir Simon le Grys, Knt. of Thurveton, was alive in 1238, and married Agnes daughter and coheir to Augustine son of Richard de Waxtenesham or Waxham, of Waxham in Norfolk, by whom he had Roger le Grys of Thurton, Esq. who lived in the time of Edward I. whose son Thomas le Grice of Thurton, had Roger le Grice of Brockdish, who lived here in 1392; whose son Thomas left John le Grice his eldest son and heir, who married a Bateman, and lies buried in St. John Baptist's church in Norwich; (see vol. iv. p. 127;) but having no male issue, William le Grice of Brockdish, Esq. son of Robert le Grice of Brockdish, his uncle, inherited; he married Sibill, daughter and sole heir of Edmund Singleton of Wingfield in Suffolk, and had

 

Anthony le Grice of Brockdish, Esq. (fn. 7) who married Margaret, daughter of John Wingfield, Esq. of Dunham, who lived in the place, and died there in 1553, and lies buried in the church, by whom his wife also was interred in 1562. His brother Gilbert Grice of Yarmouth, Gent. (fn. 8) first agreed with the Duke for Brockdish, but died before it was completed; so that Anthony, who was bound with him for performance of the covenants, went on with the purchase for his son,

 

Charles le Grice aforesaid, (fn. 9) to whom it was conveyed: he married two wives; the first was Susan, daughter and heir of Andrew Manfield, Gent. and Jane his wife, who was buried here in 1564; the second was Hester, daughter of Sir George Blagge, Knt. who held the manor for life; and from these two wives descended the numerous branches of the Grices of Brockdish, Norwich, Wakefield in Yorkshire, &c. He was buried in this church April 12, 1575, and was found to hold his manor of the hundred of Earsham, in free soccage, without any rent or service, and not in capite; and Brockdishe's-hall manor of the King, as of his barony of Bury St. Edmund in Suffolk, which lately belonged to the abbey there, in free soccage, without any rent or service, and not in capite, and

 

William le Grice, Esq. was his eldest son and heir, who at the death of his mother-in-law, was possessed of the whole estate; for in 1585, William Howard, then lord of Brockdishe's-hall manor, agreed and sold it to this William, and Henry le Grice his brother, and their heirs; but Howard dying the next year, the purchase was not completed till 1598, when Edw. Coppledick, Gent. and other trustees, brought a writ of entry against John son of the said William Howard, Gent. and had it settled absolutely in the Grices, from which time the two manors have continued joined as they are at this day; by Alice, daughter and heiress of Mr. Eyre of Yarmouth; he left

 

Francis le Grice, Esq. his son and heir, who sold the whole estate, manors, and advowson, to

 

Robert Laurence of Brockdish, Esq. (fn. 10) who married Elizabeth, daughter of Richard, son of Edmund Anguish of Great-Melton, by whom he had

 

Robert Laurence, Esq. his son and heir, who married Elizabeth, daughter of Aslack Lany, who survived him, and remarried in 1640, to Richard Smith, Gent. by whom she had one child, Eliz. buried here in 1641: he died July 24, 1637, and lies buried by the altar as aforesaid: he built the present hall, and had divers children, as Aslak Laurence, Robert, born in 1633, buried in 1635, Samuel Laurence, born in 1635, Ellen, born in 1635, Elizabeth, who married William Reynolds of Great-Massingham, Gent. and

 

Francis Laurence of Brockdish, Esq. his eldest son and heir, who married Ellen, daughter of Thomas Patrick of Castle-acre, Gent. widow of Mathew Halcote of Litcham, Gent. who survived him, and held Brockdish in jointure to her death, which happened Jan. 6, 1741, when she was buried in the nave of Litcham church: they had Frances, and Elizabeth, who died infants; Mary, who died single about 1736, and was buried in the vestry belonging to Castleacre church; Jane, married to Mr. Thomas Shin of Great Dunham, by whom a Thomas, a son, &c. she being dead; Ellen, now widow of Thomas Young of Oxboro, Gent. who died Oct. 1743, leaving issue, the Rev. Mr. Thomas-Patrick Young of Caius college in Cambridge, Benjamin and Mary, and

 

Samuel Lawrence, Gent. their second son, is now alive and single; and

 

Robert Lawrence, Esq. their eldest son and heir, is long since dead, but by Anne daughter of John Meriton, late rector of Oxburgh, his wife, he left one son,

 

Robert Laurence, late rector of Brockdish, who died single, and

 

Mrs. Mary Laurence, his only sister, who is now living, and married to Robert Frankling, Gent. of Lynn in Norfolk, is the present lord in her right, but they have no issue.

 

Brockdishe's-Hall Manor,

 

Belonged to Bury abbey as aforesaid, till the time of Henry I. and then the Abbot infeoffed

 

Sir Stephen de Brockdish in it, from whom it took its present name; he was to hold it at the 4th part of a knight's fee of that abbey: it contained a capital messuage or manor-house, called now Brockdishe's-hall; 105 acres of land in demean, 12 acres of wood, 8 of meadow, and 4l. 13s. 10d. rents of assise; he left it to

 

Jeffery de Brockdish his son, and he to

 

William, his son and heir, who in 1267, by the name of William de Hallehe de Brokedis, or Will. of Brockdish-hall, was found to owe suit and service once in a year with all his tenants, to the lete of the Earl of Norfolk, held here. He left this manor, and the greatest part of his estate in Norwich-Carleton (which he had with Alice Curson his wife) to

 

Thomas, his son and heir, and the rest of it to Nigel de Brockdish, his younger son; (see p. 102;) Thomas left it to

 

Reginald, his eldest son and heir, and he to

 

Sir Stephen de Brockdish, Knt. his son and heir, who was capital bailiff of all the Earl of Norfolk's manors in this county; he was lord about 1329, being succeeded by his son,

 

Stephen, who by Mary Wingfield his wife, had

 

Reginald de Brockdish, his son and heir, (fn. 11) to whom he gave Brockdish-hall manor in Burston, (see vol. i. p. 127, vol. ii. p. 506,) but he dying before his father, was never lord here; his two daughters and heiresses inheriting at his father's death, viz.

 

Alice, married to William de Lampet about 1355, and Catherine some time after, to William son of John de Herdeshull, lord of North Kellesey and Saleby in Lincolnshire, who inherited each a moiety, according to the settlement made by their grandfather, who infeoffed Sir John de Wingfield, Knt. and Eleanor his wife, and Thomas his brother, in trust for them; (fn. 12) soon after, one moiety was settled on Robert Mortimer and Catherine his wife, by John Hemenhale, clerk, and John de Lantony, their trustees; and not long after the whole was united, and belonged to

 

Sir William Tendring of Stokeneyland, Knt. and Margaret his wife, daughter and coheir of Sir Will. Kerdeston of Claxton in Norfolk, Knt. who were succeeded by their son and heir

 

Sir John Tendring of Stokeneyland, Knt. who jointly with Agnes his wife, settled it on

 

Sir Ralf Tendring of Brockdish, Knt. one of their younger sons, who built the old hall (which was pulled down by Robert Lawrence, Esq. when he erected the present house) and the south isle chapel, in which he and Alice his wife are interred; his son,

 

John Tendring of Brockdish, Esq. who was lord here and of Westhall in Colney, (see p. 5,) and was buried in the said chapel, with Cecily his wife, died in 1436, and left five daughrers, coheiresses, viz.

 

Cecily, married to Robert Ashfield of Stowlangetot in Suffolk, Esq.

 

Elizabeth, to Simeon Fincham of Fincham in Norfolk, Esq.

 

Alice, to Robert Morton.

 

Joan, to Henry Hall of Helwinton.

 

Anne, to John Braham of Colney.

 

Who joined and levied a fine and sold it to

 

Thomas Fastolff, Esq. and his heirs; and the year following, they conveyed all their lands, &c. in Wigenhall, Tilney, and Islington, to

 

Sir John Howard, Knt. and his heirs; and vested them in his trustees, who, the year following, purchased the manor of Fastolff to himself and heirs; this Sir John left Brockdish to a younger son,

 

Robert Howard, Esq. who settled here, and by Isabel his wife had

 

William Howard of Brockdish, Esq. who was lord in 1469; he had two wives, Alice and Margaret, from whom came a very numerous issue, but

 

Robert, his son and heir, had this manor, who by Joan his wife had

 

William Howard, his eldest son and heir, who died in 1566, seized of many lands in Cratfield, Huntingfield, Ubbeston, and Bradfield in Suffolk; and of many lands and tenements here, and in Sileham, &c. having sold this manor the year before his death, to the Grices as aforesaid; but upon the sale, he reserved, all other his estate in Brockdish, in which he dwelt, called Howard's Place, situate on the south side of the entrance of Brockdish-street; which house and farm went to

 

John Howard, his son and heir, the issue of whose three daughters, Grace, Margaret, and Elizabeth, failing, it reverted to

 

Mathew, son of William Howard, second brother to the said John Howard their father, whose second son,

 

Mathew Howard, afterwards owned it; and in 1711, it was owned by a Mathew Howard, and now by

 

Mr. Bucknall Howard of London, his kinsman (as I am informed.)

 

The site and demeans of the Earl's manor, now called the place, was sold from the manor by the Grices some time since, and after belonged to Sir Isaac Pennington, alderman of London, (see vol. i. p. 159,) and one of those who sat in judgment on the royal martyr, for which his estate was forfeited at the Restoration, and was given by Car. II. to the Duke of Grafton; and his Grace the present Duke of Grafton, now owns it.

 

the benefactions to this parish are,

 

One close called Algorshegge, containing three acres, (fn. 13) and a grove and dove-house formerly built thereon containing about one acre, at the east end thereof; the whole abutting on the King's highway north, and the glebe of Brockdish rectory west: and one tenement abutting on Brockdish-street south, called Seriches, (fn. 14) with a yard on the north side thereof, were given by John Bakon the younger, of Brockdish, son of John Bakon the elder, of Thorp-Abbots; the clear profits to go yearly to pay the tenths and fifteenths for the parish of Brockdish when laid, and when they are not laid, to repair and adorn the parish church there for ever: his will is proved in 1433. There are always to be 12 feoffees, of such as dwell, or are owners in the parish, and when the majority of them are dead, the survivors are to fill up the vacancies.

 

In 1590, 1 Jan. John Howard, Gent. John Wythe, Gent. William Crickmere and Daniel Spalding, yeomen, officers of Brockdish, with a legacy left to their parish in 1572, by John Sherwood, late of Brokdish, deceased, purchased of John Thruston of Hoxne, Gent. John Thruston his nephew, Thomas Barker, and the inhabitants of Hoxne in Suffolk, one annuity or clear yearly rent-charge of 6s. 8d. issuing out of six acres of land and pasture in Hoxne, in a close called Calston's-close, one head abutting on a way leading from Heckfield-Green to Moles-Cross, towards the east; to the only use and behoof of the poor of Brockdish, to be paid on the first of November in Hoxne church-porch, between 12 and 4 in the afternoon of the same day, with power to distrain and enter immediately for non-payment; the said six acres are warranted to be freehold, and clear of all incumbrances, except another rentcharge of 13s. 4d. granted to Hoxne poor, to be paid at the same day and place

 

In 1592, John Howard of Brockdish sold to the inhabitants there, a cottage called Laune's, lying between the glebes on all parts; this hath been dilapidated many years, but the site still belongs to the parish.

 

From the old Town Book.

 

1553, 1st Queen Mary, paid for a book called a manuel 2s. 6d.; for two days making the altar and the holy-water stope, and for a lock for the font. 1554, paid for the rood 9d. 1555, paid for painting the rood-loft 14d. At the visitation of my Lord Legate 16d. To the organs maker 4d. and for the chalice 26s. 1557, paid for carriage of the Bible to Bocnam 12d. for deliverance of the small books at Harlstone 15d.; the English Bibles and all religious Protestant tracts usually at this time left in the churches for the information and instruction of the common people, being now called in by the Papist Queen. Paid for two images making 5s.; for painting them 16d. for irons for them 8d. But in 1558, as soon as Queen Elizabeth ascended the throne, all these Popish, images, &c. were removed out of the church. Paid for sinking the altar 4d.; carrying out the altar 5d.; mending the communion table 3d.; 1561, paid for the X. Commandments 18d.; for pulling down the rood-loft 14d.; paid Roger Colby repairing the crosse in the street 26s. 8d.; for a lock to the crosse-house, &c.; 1565, for digging the ground and levelling the low altar, (viz. in the south chapel,) and mending the pavement. For makyng the communion cup at Harlston 5s. 4d. besides 6s. 2d. worth of silver more than the old chalice weyed. 1569, paid to Belward the Dean for certifying there is no cover to the cup, 8d. 1657, layd out 19s. 4d. for the relief of Attleburgh, visited with the plague. Laid out 17s. for the repair of the Brockdish part of Sileham bridge, leading over the river to Sileham church. This bridge is now down, through the negligence of both the parishes, though it was of equal service to both, and half of it repaired by each of them. In 1618, the church was wholly new paved and repaired; and in 1619, the pulpit and desk new made, new books, pulpit-cloth, altar-cloth, &c. bought.

 

From the Register:

 

1593, Daniel son of Robert Pennington, Gent. bapt. 13 July. 1626, John Brame, Gent. and Anne Shardelowe, widow, married Sept. 2. 1631, John Blomefield and Elizabeth Briges married May 30. 1666, Roger Rosier, Gent. buried. 1735, Henry Blomefield of Fersfield, Gent. single man, and Elizabeth Bateman of Mendham, single woman, married Feb. 27.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/topographical-hist-norfolk/vol5...

At 21:47 GMT, the equinox happened, and so from then on, light is destined to win over darkness. Which meant, of course, that the day before then was the shortest "day", or amount of daylight.

 

This is the end of the year, the build up and excitement before Christmas, and at the same time, looking back at the year, and what has happened in the previous 50 or so weeks. So, a time of mixed emotions, good and bad, happy and sad.

 

But I was on vacation, or not going to work.

 

I am not up to date, but I did all the tasks I was supposed to do, threw a few electronic grenades over the walls, and was now happy not to think of that shit for two whole weeks.

 

For Jools, however, there was half a day to do, and then her employers paid for all those employed at the factory to go to a fancy place in Folkestone for lunch, drinks at the bar and a bottle of wine between four folks.

 

It was, in short, a time for celebration. Something I realise has not happened in my job since I left operational quality, to be happy and give thanks to those we work with. And be recognised for the good job we do.

 

So, I was to take Jools to work, and have the car for the day.

 

Jools was conscious that my plan for the day involved driving to the far west of Kent, so realised I needed an early start, and not dropping her off in Hythe at seven.

 

We left after coffee just after six, driving through Dover and Folkestone on the main road and motorway before turning over the downs into Hythe. I dropped her off in the town, so she could get some walking in. She always didn't walk, as waves of showers swept over the town, and me as I drove back home for breakfast and do all the chores before leaving on a mini-churchcrawl.

 

So, back home for breakfast, more coffee, wash up, do the bird feeders and with postcodes, set out for points in the extreme west. Now, Kent is not a big county, not say, Texas big, but it takes some time to get to some parts of the west of the county. Main roads run mainly from London to the coast, so going cross-country or cross-county would take time.

 

At first it was as per normal up the A20 then onto the motorway to Ashford then to Maidstone until the junction before the M26 starts. One of the reasons for going later was to avoid rush hours in and around Maidstone, Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells.

 

As it was, after turning down the A road, things were fine until I got to Mereworth, but from there the road began to twist and turn until it lead me into Tonbridge. Once upon a time, this was a sleepy village or small town. The the railways came and it became a major junction. The road to Penshurt took me though the one way system, then down the wide High Street, over the river Medway and up the hill the other side.

 

Two more turns took me to my target, through what were once called stockbroker mansions, then down a hill, with the village laid out before me just visible through the trees.

 

The village was built around the outskirts of Penshurst Place, home to the Sidney family since Tudor times. Just about everything is named the Leicester something, the village having its own Leicester Square, though with no cinemas, and all timber framed houses and painfully picturesque.

 

The church lays behind the houses, the tower in golden sandstone topped with four spirelets.

 

I parked the car, and armed with two cameras, several lenses and a photographer's eye, walked to the church.

 

The reason for coming was I can only remember a little about my previous visit, but the Leicester name thing triggered in my head the thought the memorials and tombs might be worth a revisit.

 

So there I was.

 

Gilbert Scott was very busy here, so there is little of anything prior to the 19th century, but the memorials are there. Including one which features the heads of the children of Robert Sidney (d1702) in a cloud. Including the eldest son who died, apparently, so young he wasn't named, and is recorded as being the first born.

 

This is in the Sidney Chapel where the great and good are buried and remembered, it has a colourful roof, or roof beams, and heraldic shields. It has a 15th century font, which, sadly, has been brightly painted so is gaudy in the extreme.

 

I go around getting my shots, leave a fiver for the church. Go back to the car and program Speldhurst into the sat nav.

 

Its just a ten minute drive, but there is no place to park anywhere near the church. I could see from my slow drive-by the porch doors closed, and I convinced myself they were locked and not worth checking out.

 

I went on to Groombridge, where there is a small chapel with fabulous glass. I had been here before too, but wanted to redo my shots.

 

It was by now pouring with rain, and as dark as twilight, I missed the church on first pass, went to the mini-roundabout only to discover that it and the other church in the village were in Sussex. I turned round, the church looked dark and was almost certainly locked. I told myself.

 

I didn't stop here either, so instead of going to the final village church, I went straigh to Tunbridge Wells where there was another church to revisit.

 

I drove into the town, over the man road and to the car park with no waiting in traffic, how odd, I thought.

 

It was hard to find a parking space, but high up in the parking house there were finally spaced. I parked near the stairs down, grabbed my cameras and went down.

 

I guess I could have parked nearer the church, but once done it would be easier to leave the town as the road back home went past the exit.

 

I ambled down the hill leading to the station, over the bridge and down the narrow streets, all lined with shops. I think its fair to say that it is a richer town than Dover because on one street there were three stores offering beposke designer kitchens.

 

The church is across the road from the Georgian square known at The Pantiles, but it was the church I was here to visit.

 

I go in, and there is a service underway. I decide to sit at the back and observe.

 

And pray.

 

I did not take communion, though. The only one there who didn't.

 

About eight elderly parishioners did, though.

 

I was here to photograph the ceiling, and then the other details I failed to record when we were last here over a decade ago.

 

I was quizzed strongly by a warden as to why I was doing this. I had no answer other than I enjoyed it, and for me that is enough.

 

After getting my shots, I leave and begin the slog back up to the car, but on the way keeping my promise to a young man selling the Big Issue that I would come back and buy a copy. I did better than that in that I gave him a fiver and didn't take a copy.

 

He nearly burst into tears. I said, there is kindness in the world, and some of us do keep our promises.

 

By the time I got to the car park, it was raining hard again. I had two and a half hours to get to Folkestone to pick up Jools after her meal.

 

Traffic into Tunbridge Wells from this was was crazy, miles and miles of queues, so I was more than happy going the other way.

 

I get back to the M20, cruise down to Ashford, stopping at Stop 24 services for a coffee and something to eat. I had 90 minutes to kill, so eat, drink and scroll Twitter as I had posted yet more stuff that morning. In other news: nothing changed, sadly.

 

At quarter past four I went to pick up Jools, stopping outside the restaurant. When she got in she declared she had been drinking piña coladas. Just two, but she was bubby and jabbering away all the way home.

 

With Jools having eaten out, and with snacks I had, no dinner was needed, so when suppertime came round, we dined on cheese and crackers, followed by a large slice of Christmas cake.

 

She was now done for Christmas too.

 

----------------------------------------------------

 

A large sandstone church of nave, aisles, chancel and chapels that was restored by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1864. It stands in an excellent position set back from the street in a large well-kept churchyard. The tower is of three stages with four pinnacles strangely set well back from the corners. Inside it is obvious that there have been many rebuildings and repairs, leaving a general character of the Victorian period. The good chancel screen is by Bodley and Garner and dates from 1897. Whilst it is well carved the florid design is more suited to a West Country church than to the Garden of England. The fifteenth-century font has been painted in bold colours in a way that can never have been imagined when it was new! Nearby is the Becket window designed by Lawrence Lee in 1970. It is quite unlike any other window in Kent and has an emphasis on heraldry - the figure of Becket and three knights are almost lost in the patchwork effect. Under the tower is the famous Albigensian Cross, a portion of thirteenth-century coffin lid with the effigy of a woman at prayer. The south chapel, which belongs to Penshurst Place, was rebuilt by Rebecca in 1820 and has a lovely painted ceiling. It contains some fine monuments including Sir Stephen de Pencester, a damaged thirteenth-century knight. Nearby is the large standing monument to the 4th Earl of Leicester (d. 1704) designed by William Stanton. It is a large urn flanked by two angels, above which are the heads of the earls children's floating in the clouds!

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Penshurst

 

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PENSHURST.

THE next parish eastward from Chidingstone is Penhurst, called in the Textus Roffenfis, Pennesherst. It takes its name from the old British word Pen, the height or top of any thing, and byrst, a wood. (fn. 1) It is called in some antient records, Pen cestre, and more vulgarly, Penchester, from some sortified camp or fortress antiently situated here.

 

There is a district in this parish, called Hallborough, which is within the lowy of Tunbridge, the manerial rights of which belong to Thomas Streatfeild, esq. and there is another part of it, comprehending the estate of Chafford, which is within the jurisdiction of the duchy court of Lancaster.

 

THIS PARISH lies in the Weald, about four miles Southward from the foot of the sand hills, and the same distance from Tunbridge town, and the high London road from Sevenoke. The face of the country is much the same as in those parishes last described, as is the soil, for the most part a stiff clay, being well adapted to the large growth of timber for which this parish is remarkable; one of these trees, as an instance of it, having been cut down here, about twenty years ago, in the park, called, from its spreading branches, Broad Oak, had twenty-one ton, or eight hundred and forty feet of timber in it. The parish is watered by the river Eden, which runs through the centre of it, and here taking a circular course, and having separated into two smaller streams, joins the river Medway, which flows by the southern part of the park towards Tunbridge. At a small distance northward stands the noble mansion of Penshurst-place, at the south west corner of the park, which, till within these few years, was of much larger extent, the further part of it, called North, alias Lyghe, and South parks, having been alienated from it, on the grounds of the latter of which the late Mr. Alnutt built his seat of that name, from whence the ground rises northward towards the parish of Lyghe. Close to the north west corner of Penshurst-park is the seat of Redleaf, and at the south west corner of it, very near to the Place, is the village of Penshurst, with the church and parsonage. At a small distance, on the other side the river, southward, is Ford-place, and here the country becomes more low, and being watered by the several streams, becomes wet, the roads miry and bad, and the grounds much covered with coppice wood; whence, about a mile southward from the river, is New House, and the boroughs of Frendings and Kingsborough; half a mile southward from which is the river Medway; and on the further side of it the estate of Chafford, a little beyond which it joins the parish of Ashurst, at Stone cross. In a deep hole, in the Medway, near the lower end of Penshurst-park, called Tapner's-hole, there arises a spring, which produces a visible and strong ebullition on the surface of the river; and above Well-place, which is a farm house, near the south-east corner of the park, there is a fine spring, called Kidder's-well, which, having been chemically analized, is found to be a stronger chalybeate than those called Tunbridge-wells; there is a stone bason for the spring to rise in, and run to waste, which was placed here by one of the earls of Leicester many years ago. This parish, as well as the neighbouring ones, abounds with iron ore, and most of the springs in them are more or less chalybeate. In the losty beeches, near the keeper's lodge, in Penshurst-park, is a noted beronry; which, since the destruction of that in lord Dacre's park, at Aveley, in Effex, is, I believe, the only one in this part of England. A fair is held here on July I, for pedlary, &c.

 

The GREATEST PART of this parish is within the jurisdiction of the honour of Otford, a subordinate limb to which is the MANOR of PENSHURST HALIMOTE, alias OTFORD WEALD, extending likewise over parts of the adjoining parishes of Chidingstone, Hever, and Cowden. As a limb of that of honour, it was formerly part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, and was held for a long time in lease of the archbishops, by the successive owners of Penhurst manor, till the death of the duke of Buckingham, in the 13th year of king Henry VIII. in the 29th year of which reign, Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, exchanging Otford with the crown, this, as an appendage, passed with it, and it remained in the hands of the crown till the death of king Charles I. 1648; after which the powers then in being, having seised on the royal estates, passed an ordinance to vest them in trustees, to be sold, to supply the necessities of the state; when, on a survey made of this manor, in 1650, it appeared that the quit-rents due to the lord, from the freeholders in free socage tenure, were 16l. 18s. 3½d. and that they paid a heriot of the best living thing, or in want thereof, 3s. 4d. in money. That there were copyholders holding of it, within this parish, by rent and fine certain; that there was a common fine due from the township or borough of Halebury, and a like from the township of Penshurst, a like from the townships or boroughts of Chidingstone, Standford, and Cowden; and that there was a court baron and a court leet. The total rents, profits, &c. of all which amounted to 23l. and upwards. (fn. 2) After this the manor was sold by the state to colonel Robert Gibbon, with whom it remained till the restoration of king Charles II. when the possession and inheritance of it returned to the crown, where it remains, as well as the honour of Otford, at this time, his grace the duke of Dorset being high steward of both; but the see farm rents of it, with those of other manors belonging to the above mentioned honour, were alienated from the crown in king Charles II.'s reign, and afterwards became the property of Sir James Dashwood, bart. in whose family they still continue.

 

SOON AFTER the reign of William the Conqueror Penshurst was become the residence of a family, who took their name from it, and were possessed of the manor then called the manor of Peneshurste; and it appears by a deed in the Registrum Roffense, that Sir John Belemeyns, canon of St. Paul, London, was in possession of this manor, as uncle and trustee, in the latter part of king Henry III.'s reign, to Stephen de Peneshurste or Penchester, who possessed it in the beginning of the reign of king Edward I. He had been knighted, and made constable of Dover castle and warden of the cinque ports by Henry III. in which posts he continued after the accession of king Edward I. (fn. 3) He died without issue male, and was buried in the south chancel of this church, under an altar tomb, on which lay his figure in armour, reclining on a cushion. He left Margery, his second wife, surviving, who held this manor at her death, in the 2d year of king Edward II. and two daughters and coheirs; Joane, married to Henry de Cobham of Rundale, second son of John de Cobham, of Cobham, in this county, by his first wife, daughter of Warine Fitz Benedict; (fn. 4) and Alice to John de Columbers, as appears by an inquisition, taken in the 3d year of king Edward II. His arms, being Sable, a bend or, a label of three points argent, still remain on the roof of the cloisters of Canterbury cathedral. Alice, above mentioned, had this manor, with that of Lyghe adjoining, assigned to her for her proportion of their inheritance; soon after which these manors were conveyed to Sir John de Pulteney, son of Adam de Pulteney of Misterton, in Leicestershire, by Maud his wife. In the 15th year of that reign he had licence to embattle his mansion houses of Penshurst, Chenle in Cambridgeshire, and in London. (fn. 5) In the 11th year of king Edward III. Thomas, son of Sir John de Columbers of Somersetshire, released to him all his right to this manor and the advowson of the chapel of Penshurst; (fn. 6) and the year following Stephen de Columbers, clerk, brother of Sir Philip, released to him likewise all his right in that manor and Yenesfeld, (fn. 7) and that same year he obtained a grant for free warren within his demesne lands within the former. He was a person greatly esteemed by that king, in whose reign he was four times lord mayor of London, and is noticed by our historians for his piety, wisdom, large possessions, and magnificent housekeeping. In his life time he performed several acts of public charity and munificence; and among others he founded a college in the church of St. Laurence, since from him named Poultney, in London. He built the church of Little Allhallows, in Thamesstreet, and the Carmelites church, and the gate to their monastery, in Coventry; and a chapel or chantry in St. Paul's, London. Besides which, by his will, he left many charitable legacies, and directed to be buried in the church of St. Laurence above mentioned. He bore for his arms, Argent a fess dancette gules, in chief three leopards heads sable.

 

By the inquisition taken after his death, it appears, that he died in the 23d year of that reign, being then possessed of this manor, with the advowson of the chapel, Lyghe, South-park, and Orbiston woods, with lands in Lyghe and Tappenash, and others in this county. He left Margaret his wife surviving, who married, secondly, Sir Nicholas Lovaine; and he, in her right, became possessed of a life estate in this manor and the others above mentioned, in which they seem afterwards jointly to have had the see; for Sir William Pulteney, her son, in his life time, vested his interest in these manors and estates in trustees, and died without issue in the 40th year of the same reign, when Robert de Pulteney was found to be his kinsman and next heir, who was ancestor to the late earl of Bath. The trustees afterwards, in the 48th year of it, conveyed them, together with all the other estates of which Sir John Pulteney died possessed, to Sir Nicholas Lovaine and Margaret his wife, and their heirs for ever. Sir Nicholas Lovaine above mentioned was a descendant of the noble family of Lovaine, a younger branch of the duke of Lorraine. Godfrey de Lovaine, having that surname from the place of his birth, possessed lands in England in right of his mother, grand daughter of king Stephen, of whose descendants this Nicholas was a younger branch. He bore for his arms, Gules, a fess argent between fourteen billets or; which arms were quartered by Bourchier earl of Bath, and Devereux earl of Essex. (fn. 8) He died possessed of this manor, leaving one son, Nicholas, who having married Margaret, eldest daughter of John de Vere, earl of Oxford, widow of Henry lord Beaumont, died without issue, and a daughter Margaret, who at length became her brother's heir.

 

Margaret, the widow of Nicholas the son, on his death, possessed this manor for her life, and was afterwards re-married to Sir John Devereux, who in her right held it. He was descended from a family which had their surname from Eureux, a town of note in Normandy, and there were several generations of them in England before they were peers of this realm, the first of them summoned to parliament being this Sir John Devereux, who being bred a soldier, was much employed in the wars both of king Edward III. and king Richard II. and had many important trusts conferred on him. In the 11th year of the latter reign, being then a knight banneret, he was made constable of Dover castle and warden of the cinque ports. In the 16th year of that reign, he had licence to fortify and embattle his mansion house at Penshurst, the year after which he died, leaving Margaret his wife, surviving, who had an assignation of this manor as part of her dower. She died possessed of it, with Yensfield, and other lands, about the 10th year of king Henry IV. and was succeeded in them by Margaret, sister and heir of her husband, Nicholas Lovaine, who was twice married, first to Rich. Chamberlayn, esq. of Sherburn, in Oxfordshire; and secondly to Sir Philip St. Clere, of Aldham, St. Clere, in Ightham. (fn. 9) Both of these, in right of their wife, seem to have possessed this manor, which descended to John St. Clere, son of the latter, who conveyed it by sale to John duke of Bedford, third son of king Henry IV. by Mary his wife, daughter and coheir of Humphry de Bohun, earl of Hereford, Essex, and Northampton.

 

The duke of Bedford was the great support and glory of this kingdom in the beginning of the reign of his infant nephew, king Henry VI. his courage was unequalled, and was followed by such rapid success in his wars in France, where he was regent, and commanded the English army in person, that he struck the greatest terror into his enemies. The victories he acquired so humbled the French, that he crowned king Henry VI. at Paris, in which city he died greatly lamented, in the 14th year of that reign, (fn. 10) and was buried in the cathedral church of Roan. He was twice married, but left issue by neither of his wives. He died possessed of the manors of Penshurst, Havenden-court, and Yensfield, as was then found by inquisition; in which he was succeeded by his next brother, Humphry duke of Gloucester, fourth son of king Henry IV. by Mary his wife, daughter and coheir of Humphry de Bohun, earl of Hereford, &c. who in the 4th year of king Henry V. had had the offices of constable of Dover castle and warden of the cinque ports, granted to him for the term of his life; and in the 1st year of king Henry VI. was, by parliament, made protector of England, during the king's minority; and the same year he was constituted chamberlain of England, at the coronation of that prince was appointed high steward of England.

 

The duke was, for his virtuous endowments, surnamed the Good, and for his justice was esteemed the father of his country, notwithstanding which, after he had, under king Henry VI. his nephew, governed this kingdom twenty-five years, with great applause, he was, by the means of Margaret of Aujou, his nephew's queen, who envied his power, arrested at the parliament held at St. Edmundsbury, by John lord Beaumont, then high constable of England, accompanied by the duke of Buckingham and others; and the night following, being the last of February, anno 25 king Henry VI. he was found dead in his bed, it being the general opinion that he was strangled; though his body was shewn to the lords and commons, with an account of his having died of an apoplexy or imposthume; after which he was buried in the abbey of St. Alban, near the shrine of that proto-martyr, and a stately monument was erected to his memory.

 

This duke married two wives; first Jaqueline, daughter and heir of William duke of Bavaria, to whom belonged the earldoms of Holand, Zeland, and Henault, and many other rich seignories in the Netherlands; after which he used these titles, Humphrey, by the grace of God, son, brother, and uncle to kings; duke of Gloucester; earl of Henault, Holand, Zeland, and Pembroke; lord of Friesland; great chamberlain of the kingdom of England; and protector and defender of the kingdom and church of England. But she having already been married to John duke of Brabant, and a suit of divorce being still depending between them, and the Pope having pronounced her marriage with the duke of Brabant lawful, the duke of Gloucester resigned his right to her, and forthwith, after this, married Eleanor Cobham, daughter of Reginald, lord Cobham of Sterborough, who had formerly been his concubine. A few years before the duke's death she was accused of witchcrast, and of conspiring the king's death; for which she was condemned to solemn pennance in London, for three several days, and afterwards committed to perpetual imprisonment in the isle of Man. He built the divinity schools at Oxford, and laid the foundation of that famous library over them, since increased by Sir Thomas Bodley, enriching it with a choice collection of manuscripts out of France and Italy. He bore for his arms, Quarterly, France and England, a berdure argent. (fn. 11)

 

By the inquisition, taken after his death, it appears, that he died possessed of the manors of Penshurst, Havenden-court, and Yensfield, in this county, and that dying, without issue, king Henry VI. was his cousin and next heir.

 

¶The manor of Penshurst thus coming into the hands of the crown, was granted that year to Humphrey Stafford, who, in consideration of his near alliance in blood to king Henry VI. being the son of Edmund earl of Stafford, by Anne, eldest daughter of Thomas of Woodstock, duke of Gloucester, sixth and youngest son of king Edward III. Mary, the other daughter and coheir, having married Henry of Bullingbroke, afterwards king Henry IV. and grandfather of king Henry VI. (fn. 12) as well as for his eminent services to his country, had been, in the 23d year of that reign, created duke of Buckingham. He was afterwards slain in the battle of Northampton, sighting valiantly there on the king's part. By the inquisition, taken after his death, it appears that he died in the 38th year of that reign possessed of this manor of Penshurst, among others in this county and elsewhere; which afterwards descended down to his great grandson, Edward duke of Buckingham, but in the 13th year of Henry VIII. this duke being accused of conspiring the king's death, he was brought to his trial, and being found guilty, was beheaded on Tower-hill that year. In the par liament begun April 15, next year, this duke, though there passed an act for his attainder, yet there was one likewise for the restitution in blood of Henry his eldest son, but not to his honors or lands, so that this manor, among his other estates, became forseited to the crown, after which the king seems to have kept it in his own hands, for in his 36th year, he purchased different parcels of land to enlarge his park here, among which was Well-place, and one hundred and seventy acres of land, belonging to it, then the estate of John and William Fry, all which he inclosed within the pale of it, though the purchase of the latter was not completed till the 1st year of king Edward VI. (fn. 13) who seems to have granted the park of Penshurst to John, earl of Warwick, for that earl, in the 4th year of that reign, granted this park to that king again in exchange for other premises. In which year the king granted the manor of Penshurst, with its members and appurtenances, late parcel of the possessions of the duke of Buckingham, to Sir Ralph Fane, to hold in capite by knight's service, being the grandson of Henry Vane, alias Fane, of Hilsden Tunbridge, esq. but in the 6th year of that reign, having zealously espoused the interests of the duke of Somersee, he was accused of being an accomplice with him, and being found guilty, was hanged on Tower-hill that year.

  

PENSHURST is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Rochester, and being a peculiar of the archbishop of Canterbury, is as such within the deanry of Shoreham.

 

The church, which is a large handsome building, is dedicated to St. John Baptist. It consists of three isles, a cross isle, and three chancels, having a tower steeple at the west end.

 

Among other monuments and inscriptions in this church are the following:—In the middle isle, a grave-stone, with the figure of a man and his two wives, now torn off, but the inscription remains in black letter, for Watur Draynowtt, and Johanna and Anne his wives, obt. 1507; beneath are the figures of four boys and three girls, at top, arms, two lions passant, impaling or, on a chief, two lions heads erased; a memorial for Oliver Combridge, and Elizabeth his wife, obt. 1698. In the chancel, memorials on brass for Bulman and Paire; within the rails of the altar a gravestone for William Egerton, LL. D. grandon of John, earl of Bridgwater, rector of Penshurst and Allhallows, Lombard-street, chancellor and prebendary of Hereford, and prebendary of Can terbury, he left two daughters and one son, by Anne, daughter of Sir Francis Head, obt. Feb. 26, 1737; on the south side of the altar, a memorial in brass for John Bust, God's painful minister in this place for twenty-one years; on the north side a mural monument for Gilbert Spencer, esq. of Redleafe-house, obt. 1709, arms, Spencer, an escutcheon of pretence for Combridge; underneath is another stone, with a brass plate, and inscription for William Darkenol, parson of this parish, obt. July 12, 1596; on grave-stones are these shields in brass, the figures and inscriptions on which are lost, parted per fess, in chief two lions passant guardant in base, two wolves heads erased; on another, the same arms, impaling a chevron between three padlocks; another, a lion rampant, charged on the shoulder with an annulet, and another, three lions passant impaling parted per chevron, the rest defaced. In the south chancel, on a stone, the figures of a man and woman in brass, and inscription in black letter, for Pawle Yden, gent. and Agnes his wife, son of Thomas Yden, esq. obt. 1564, beneath is the figure of a girl, arms, four shields at the corner of the stone, the first, Yden, a fess between three helmets; two others, with inscriptions on brass for infant children of the Sidney family; a small grave-stone, on which is a cross gradated in brass, and inscription in black letter, for Thomas Bullayen, son of Sir Thomas Bullayen; here was lately a monument for lady Mary . . . . . . eldest daughter of the famous John, duke of Northumberland, and sister to Ambrose, earl of Warwick, Robert, earl of Leicester, and Catharine, countess of Huntingdon, wife of the right hon. Sir Henry Sidney, knight of the garter, &c. at the west end of the chancel, a mural monument for Sir William Coventry, youngest son of Thomas, lord Coventry, he died at Tunbridge-wells, 1686; on the south side a fine old monument of stone, under which is an altar tomb, and on the wall above it a brass plate, with inscription in black letter, for Sir William Sidney, knightbanneret, chamberlain and steward to king Edward VI. and the first of the name, lord of the manor, of Penshurst, obt. 1553; on the front are these names, Sir William Dormer, and Mary Sidney, Sir William Fitzwilliam, Sir James Haninngton, Anne Sidney, and Lucy Sidney; on the south side a handsome monument, with the arms and quarterings of the Sidney family, and inscription for lord Philip Sidney, fifth earl of Leicester, &c. obt. 1705, and was succeeded by John, his brother and heir; for John, sixth earl of Leicester, cosin and heir of Henry Sidney, earl of Romney, &c. obt. 1737, his heirs Mary and Elizabeth Sidney, daughters and heirs of his brother the hon. Thomas Sidney, third surviving son of Robert, earl of Leicester, became his joint heirs, for Josceline, seventh earl of Leicester, youngest brother and heir male of earl John, died s. p. in 1743, with whom the title of earl of Leicester expired; the aforesaid Mary and Elizabeth, his nieces, being his heirs, of whom the former married Sir Brownlow Sherard, bart. and Elizabeth, William Perry, esq. on the monument is an account of the several personages of this noble family, their descent, marriages and issue, too long by far to insert here; on the north side is a fine monument for several of the infant children of this family, and beneath is an urn and inscriptions for Frances Sidney, fourth daughter, obt. 1692, æt. 6; for Robert Sidney, earl of Leicester, &c. fourth earl of this family, who married lady Elizabeth Egerton, by whom he had fifteen children, of whom nine died young, whose figures, as cherubims, are placed above, obt. 1702; Robert, the eldest son, obt. 1680, æt. 6; Elizabeth, countess of Leicester, obt. 1709, and buried here in the same vault with her lord. In the same chancel is a very antient figure in stone of a knight in armour, being for Sir Stephen de Penchester, lord warden and constable of Dover-castle in the reign of king Edward I. It was formerly laid on an altar tomb in the chancel, but is now placed erect against the door on the south side, with these words painted on the wall above it, SIR STEPHEN DE PENCHESTER. In the fourth window of the north isle, are these arms, very antient, within the garter argent a fess gules in chief, three roundels of the second, being those of Sir John Devereux, K. G. lord warden and constable, and steward of the king's house in king Richard II's reign; near the former was another coat, nothing of which now remains but the garter. In the same windows are the arms of Sidney; in the second window is this crest, a griffin rampant or. In the east window of the great chancel are the arms of England. In the east window of the south chancel are the arms of the Sidney family, with all the quarterings; there were also, though now destroyed, the arms of Sir Thomas Ratcliff, earl of Sussex, and lady Frances Sidney.

 

This church was of the antient patronage of the see of Canterbury, and continued so till the 3d year of queen Elizabeth, when Matthew, archbishop of Canterbury, granted it to that queen in exchange for the parsonage of Earde, alias Crayford; and though in the queen's letters patent dated that year, confirming this exchange, there is no value expressed, yet in a roll in the queen's office, it is there set down, the tenth deducted, at the clear yearly value of 32l. 1s. 9d. (fn. 24)

 

¶Soon after which the queen granted the church of Penshurst to Sir Henry Sidney, whose descendants, earls of Leicester, afterwards possessed it; from whom it passed, in like manner as Penshurst manor and place, to William Perry, esq. who died possessed of it in 1757, leaving Elizabeth his wife surviving, who continued proprietor of the advowson of this church at the time of her death in 1783; she by her last will devised it to trustees for the use of her eldest grandson, John Shelley, esq who has since taken the name of Sidney, and is the present owner of it.

 

In the 15th year of king Edward I. this church was valued at thirty marcs. By virtue of the commission of enquiry into the value of ecclesiastical livings, taken in 1650, issuing out of chancery, it was returned that the tithes belonging to the parsonage of Penshurst were one hundred and ten pounds per annum, and the parsonage house and glebe lands about fifty pounds per annum, the earl of Leicester being patron, and master Mawdell, minister, who received the profits for his salary. (fn. 25)

 

The annual value of it is now esteemed to be four hundred pounds and upwards. The rectory of Penshurst is valued in the king's books at 30l. 6s. 0½d. and the yearly tenths at 3l. 0s. 7½d. (fn. 26)

 

John Acton, rector of this parish, in 1429, granted a lease for ninety-nine years, of a parcel of his glebe land, lying in Berecroft, opposite the gate of the rectory, containing one acre one rood and twelve perches, to Thomas Berkley, clerk, Richard Hammond, and Richard Crundewell, of Penshurst, for the purpose of building on, at the yearly rent of two shillings, and upon deaths and alienations, one shilling to be paid for an heriot, which lease was confirmed by the archbishop and by the dean and chapter of Canterbury. (fn. 27)

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol3/pp227-257

Damnoen Saduak is a village west of Bangkok, a popular day trip from Bangkok for its floating market. It is a district (Amphoe) of Ratchaburi.Damnoen Saduak ( pronounced Damnern Saduak ), is actually the name of the canal dug in the reign of King Rama IV. He had the canal dug to connect the Taachin River in Samut Sakhon Province and Maeklong River in Samut Songkram Province together.

Nowadays, most people live densely along both sides of the canal from one end of the canal to another. They grow different kinds of fruit and vegetables. Apart from providing transportation, Damnoen Saduak Canal also provides farmers with adequate water for agricultural purposes for the whole year around. By Bus: There are public buses leaving from the Southern Bus Terminal every 40 minutes from 06.00am. onwards. Damnoen Saduak is in Ratchaburi Province about 109 kilometres west of Bangkok or about 2 hours drive. Fare is around Baht 50 one way. The most suitable time to be at the floating market is from 08.00-10.00 hrs.

Warning: The bus or taxi might drop you 1 km away from the central area, but still next to the channel. You can hire the boat from there, but it can be very expensive ( 1000 Baht or even more depending on how honest the boat owners are ) and you have to bargain hard to beat the price. When I went in 2015 the main market was closed I just wanted to video all the side canals. They wanted 2500 Baht for the trip, I finally got it for 700 Baht plus 100 Baht tip.

The central area is close to the road bridge and surrounded by many souvenir shops. If you want to see all the three of the Floating Markets, Ton Khem, Hia Kui, Khun Phithak, you can hire a boat. You can also take a paddle boat at the pier at the price of Baht 10 Baht per person or just walk on the passage along the canal. Damnoen Saduak Floating Market I s open everyday, hundreds of vendor boats crowd the market area in the early morning till noon. The colourful fruit and vegetable market is crowded with local vendors floating in small rowing boats.

The best time to visit the market is the early morning, as early as possible; to avoid great throngs of tourists and before the produce is sold out. Canal cruising around the serene neighbourhood is also offered. The market is open everyday from around 06.30am to 11.00am.

Damnoen Saduak is believed to be one of the most well known of all the Floating Markets. Historically, Damnoen Saduak was actually the name of the canal dug in the reign of King Rama IV by the military men and the people of Rajburi, Samut Sakhon and Samut Songkram Province directed by Phayasrisuriyawong, the minister of Defence. In those days without rivers and canals, transportation was almost motionless; King Rama IV with his great concern over the country's future economic growth, he finally had the canal dug to connect the Taachin River in Samutsakorn Province and Maklong River in Samutsongkram Province together.

Nowadays Damnoen Saduak is one of a provincial districts of Ratchaburi Province. Most people live along both sides of the canal from one end of the canal to another. The majority of these people are agriculturists. They grow several different kinds of fruit and vegetable for examples oranges, grapes, papayas, cabbages, bean, onion etc. The land in this area is naturally fertile. Apart from providing transportation, Damnoen Saduak Canal also provides farmers with adequate water for agricultural purposes for the whole year around. More than 200 small canals were dug by local peasants to connect with it to get water to irrigate their land. Moreover; these small canals also become the best way of taking their agricultural products to the markets in neighbouring provinces and Bangkok.

Day in and day out from about 8 am. to about 11 am. the Floating Market is routinely crowded with hundreds of vendors and purchasers floating in their small rowing boats selling and buying or exchanging their goods. What they purchase are particularly food, fruit and vegetable which mostly brought from their own orchards. They usually travel on their small rowing boats. However; today the long-tailed boats pushing by engine become very popular. People tend to use them instead. Anyhow because of the shortage of fuel today long-tailed boats are quite unavailable compared to a few years ago.

Damnoen Saduak in Ratchaburi about 109 kilometres south of Bangkok or about 2 hours drive.

 

Graffiti (plural; singular graffiti or graffito, the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written words to elaborate wall paintings, and has existed since ancient times, with examples dating back to ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, and the Roman Empire (see also mural).

 

Graffiti is a controversial subject. In most countries, marking or painting property without permission is considered by property owners and civic authorities as defacement and vandalism, which is a punishable crime, citing the use of graffiti by street gangs to mark territory or to serve as an indicator of gang-related activities. Graffiti has become visualized as a growing urban "problem" for many cities in industrialized nations, spreading from the New York City subway system and Philadelphia in the early 1970s to the rest of the United States and Europe and other world regions

 

"Graffiti" (usually both singular and plural) and the rare singular form "graffito" are from the Italian word graffiato ("scratched"). The term "graffiti" is used in art history for works of art produced by scratching a design into a surface. A related term is "sgraffito", which involves scratching through one layer of pigment to reveal another beneath it. This technique was primarily used by potters who would glaze their wares and then scratch a design into them. In ancient times graffiti were carved on walls with a sharp object, although sometimes chalk or coal were used. The word originates from Greek γράφειν—graphein—meaning "to write".

 

The term graffiti originally referred to the inscriptions, figure drawings, and such, found on the walls of ancient sepulchres or ruins, as in the Catacombs of Rome or at Pompeii. Historically, these writings were not considered vanadlism, which today is considered part of the definition of graffiti.

 

The only known source of the Safaitic language, an ancient form of Arabic, is from graffiti: inscriptions scratched on to the surface of rocks and boulders in the predominantly basalt desert of southern Syria, eastern Jordan and northern Saudi Arabia. Safaitic dates from the first century BC to the fourth century AD.

 

Some of the oldest cave paintings in the world are 40,000 year old ones found in Australia. The oldest written graffiti was found in ancient Rome around 2500 years ago. Most graffiti from the time was boasts about sexual experiences Graffiti in Ancient Rome was a form of communication, and was not considered vandalism.

 

Ancient tourists visiting the 5th-century citadel at Sigiriya in Sri Lanka write their names and commentary over the "mirror wall", adding up to over 1800 individual graffiti produced there between the 6th and 18th centuries. Most of the graffiti refer to the frescoes of semi-nude females found there. One reads:

 

Wet with cool dew drops

fragrant with perfume from the flowers

came the gentle breeze

jasmine and water lily

dance in the spring sunshine

side-long glances

of the golden-hued ladies

stab into my thoughts

heaven itself cannot take my mind

as it has been captivated by one lass

among the five hundred I have seen here.

 

Among the ancient political graffiti examples were Arab satirist poems. Yazid al-Himyari, an Umayyad Arab and Persian poet, was most known for writing his political poetry on the walls between Sajistan and Basra, manifesting a strong hatred towards the Umayyad regime and its walis, and people used to read and circulate them very widely.

 

Graffiti, known as Tacherons, were frequently scratched on Romanesque Scandinavian church walls. When Renaissance artists such as Pinturicchio, Raphael, Michelangelo, Ghirlandaio, or Filippino Lippi descended into the ruins of Nero's Domus Aurea, they carved or painted their names and returned to initiate the grottesche style of decoration.

 

There are also examples of graffiti occurring in American history, such as Independence Rock, a national landmark along the Oregon Trail.

 

Later, French soldiers carved their names on monuments during the Napoleonic campaign of Egypt in the 1790s. Lord Byron's survives on one of the columns of the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion in Attica, Greece.

 

The oldest known example of graffiti "monikers" found on traincars created by hobos and railworkers since the late 1800s. The Bozo Texino monikers were documented by filmmaker Bill Daniel in his 2005 film, Who is Bozo Texino?.

 

In World War II, an inscription on a wall at the fortress of Verdun was seen as an illustration of the US response twice in a generation to the wrongs of the Old World:

 

During World War II and for decades after, the phrase "Kilroy was here" with an accompanying illustration was widespread throughout the world, due to its use by American troops and ultimately filtering into American popular culture. Shortly after the death of Charlie Parker (nicknamed "Yardbird" or "Bird"), graffiti began appearing around New York with the words "Bird Lives".

 

Modern graffiti art has its origins with young people in 1960s and 70s in New York City and Philadelphia. Tags were the first form of stylised contemporary graffiti. Eventually, throw-ups and pieces evolved with the desire to create larger art. Writers used spray paint and other kind of materials to leave tags or to create images on the sides subway trains. and eventually moved into the city after the NYC metro began to buy new trains and paint over graffiti.

 

While the art had many advocates and appreciators—including the cultural critic Norman Mailer—others, including New York City mayor Ed Koch, considered it to be defacement of public property, and saw it as a form of public blight. The ‘taggers’ called what they did ‘writing’—though an important 1974 essay by Mailer referred to it using the term ‘graffiti.’

 

Contemporary graffiti style has been heavily influenced by hip hop culture and the myriad international styles derived from Philadelphia and New York City Subway graffiti; however, there are many other traditions of notable graffiti in the twentieth century. Graffiti have long appeared on building walls, in latrines, railroad boxcars, subways, and bridges.

 

An early graffito outside of New York or Philadelphia was the inscription in London reading "Clapton is God" in reference to the guitarist Eric Clapton. Creating the cult of the guitar hero, the phrase was spray-painted by an admirer on a wall in an Islington, north London in the autumn of 1967. The graffito was captured in a photograph, in which a dog is urinating on the wall.

 

Films like Style Wars in the 80s depicting famous writers such as Skeme, Dondi, MinOne, and ZEPHYR reinforced graffiti's role within New York's emerging hip-hop culture. Although many officers of the New York City Police Department found this film to be controversial, Style Wars is still recognized as the most prolific film representation of what was going on within the young hip hop culture of the early 1980s. Fab 5 Freddy and Futura 2000 took hip hop graffiti to Paris and London as part of the New York City Rap Tour in 1983

 

Commercialization and entrance into mainstream pop culture

Main article: Commercial graffiti

With the popularity and legitimization of graffiti has come a level of commercialization. In 2001, computer giant IBM launched an advertising campaign in Chicago and San Francisco which involved people spray painting on sidewalks a peace symbol, a heart, and a penguin (Linux mascot), to represent "Peace, Love, and Linux." IBM paid Chicago and San Francisco collectively US$120,000 for punitive damages and clean-up costs.

 

In 2005, a similar ad campaign was launched by Sony and executed by its advertising agency in New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and Miami, to market its handheld PSP gaming system. In this campaign, taking notice of the legal problems of the IBM campaign, Sony paid building owners for the rights to paint on their buildings "a collection of dizzy-eyed urban kids playing with the PSP as if it were a skateboard, a paddle, or a rocking horse".

 

Tristan Manco wrote that Brazil "boasts a unique and particularly rich, graffiti scene ... [earning] it an international reputation as the place to go for artistic inspiration". Graffiti "flourishes in every conceivable space in Brazil's cities". Artistic parallels "are often drawn between the energy of São Paulo today and 1970s New York". The "sprawling metropolis", of São Paulo has "become the new shrine to graffiti"; Manco alludes to "poverty and unemployment ... [and] the epic struggles and conditions of the country's marginalised peoples", and to "Brazil's chronic poverty", as the main engines that "have fuelled a vibrant graffiti culture". In world terms, Brazil has "one of the most uneven distributions of income. Laws and taxes change frequently". Such factors, Manco argues, contribute to a very fluid society, riven with those economic divisions and social tensions that underpin and feed the "folkloric vandalism and an urban sport for the disenfranchised", that is South American graffiti art.

 

Prominent Brazilian writers include Os Gêmeos, Boleta, Nunca, Nina, Speto, Tikka, and T.Freak. Their artistic success and involvement in commercial design ventures has highlighted divisions within the Brazilian graffiti community between adherents of the cruder transgressive form of pichação and the more conventionally artistic values of the practitioners of grafite.

 

Graffiti in the Middle East has emerged slowly, with taggers operating in Egypt, Lebanon, the Gulf countries like Bahrain or the United Arab Emirates, Israel, and in Iran. The major Iranian newspaper Hamshahri has published two articles on illegal writers in the city with photographic coverage of Iranian artist A1one's works on Tehran walls. Tokyo-based design magazine, PingMag, has interviewed A1one and featured photographs of his work. The Israeli West Bank barrier has become a site for graffiti, reminiscent in this sense of the Berlin Wall. Many writers in Israel come from other places around the globe, such as JUIF from Los Angeles and DEVIONE from London. The religious reference "נ נח נחמ נחמן מאומן" ("Na Nach Nachma Nachman Meuman") is commonly seen in graffiti around Israel.

 

Graffiti has played an important role within the street art scene in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), especially following the events of the Arab Spring of 2011 or the Sudanese Revolution of 2018/19. Graffiti is a tool of expression in the context of conflict in the region, allowing people to raise their voices politically and socially. Famous street artist Banksy has had an important effect in the street art scene in the MENA area, especially in Palestine where some of his works are located in the West Bank barrier and Bethlehem.

 

There are also a large number of graffiti influences in Southeast Asian countries that mostly come from modern Western culture, such as Malaysia, where graffiti have long been a common sight in Malaysia's capital city, Kuala Lumpur. Since 2010, the country has begun hosting a street festival to encourage all generations and people from all walks of life to enjoy and encourage Malaysian street culture.

 

The modern-day graffitists can be found with an arsenal of various materials that allow for a successful production of a piece. This includes such techniques as scribing. However, spray paint in aerosol cans is the number one medium for graffiti. From this commodity comes different styles, technique, and abilities to form master works of graffiti. Spray paint can be found at hardware and art stores and comes in virtually every color.

 

Stencil graffiti is created by cutting out shapes and designs in a stiff material (such as cardboard or subject folders) to form an overall design or image. The stencil is then placed on the "canvas" gently and with quick, easy strokes of the aerosol can, the image begins to appear on the intended surface.

 

Some of the first examples were created in 1981 by artists Blek le Rat in Paris, in 1982 by Jef Aerosol in Tours (France); by 1985 stencils had appeared in other cities including New York City, Sydney, and Melbourne, where they were documented by American photographer Charles Gatewood and Australian photographer Rennie Ellis

 

Tagging is the practice of someone spray-painting "their name, initial or logo onto a public surface" in a handstyle unique to the writer. Tags were the first form of modern graffiti.

 

Modern graffiti art often incorporates additional arts and technologies. For example, Graffiti Research Lab has encouraged the use of projected images and magnetic light-emitting diodes (throwies) as new media for graffitists. yarnbombing is another recent form of graffiti. Yarnbombers occasionally target previous graffiti for modification, which had been avoided among the majority of graffitists.

 

Theories on the use of graffiti by avant-garde artists have a history dating back at least to the Asger Jorn, who in 1962 painting declared in a graffiti-like gesture "the avant-garde won't give up"

 

Many contemporary analysts and even art critics have begun to see artistic value in some graffiti and to recognize it as a form of public art. According to many art researchers, particularly in the Netherlands and in Los Angeles, that type of public art is, in fact an effective tool of social emancipation or, in the achievement of a political goal

 

In times of conflict, such murals have offered a means of communication and self-expression for members of these socially, ethnically, or racially divided communities, and have proven themselves as effective tools in establishing dialog and thus, of addressing cleavages in the long run. The Berlin Wall was also extensively covered by graffiti reflecting social pressures relating to the oppressive Soviet rule over the GDR.

 

Many artists involved with graffiti are also concerned with the similar activity of stenciling. Essentially, this entails stenciling a print of one or more colors using spray-paint. Recognized while exhibiting and publishing several of her coloured stencils and paintings portraying the Sri Lankan Civil War and urban Britain in the early 2000s, graffitists Mathangi Arulpragasam, aka M.I.A., has also become known for integrating her imagery of political violence into her music videos for singles "Galang" and "Bucky Done Gun", and her cover art. Stickers of her artwork also often appear around places such as London in Brick Lane, stuck to lamp posts and street signs, she having become a muse for other graffitists and painters worldwide in cities including Seville.

 

Graffitist believes that art should be on display for everyone in the public eye or in plain sight, not hidden away in a museum or a gallery. Art should color the streets, not the inside of some building. Graffiti is a form of art that cannot be owned or bought. It does not last forever, it is temporary, yet one of a kind. It is a form of self promotion for the artist that can be displayed anywhere form sidewalks, roofs, subways, building wall, etc. Art to them is for everyone and should be showed to everyone for free.

 

Graffiti is a way of communicating and a way of expressing what one feels in the moment. It is both art and a functional thing that can warn people of something or inform people of something. However, graffiti is to some people a form of art, but to some a form of vandalism. And many graffitists choose to protect their identities and remain anonymous or to hinder prosecution.

 

With the commercialization of graffiti (and hip hop in general), in most cases, even with legally painted "graffiti" art, graffitists tend to choose anonymity. This may be attributed to various reasons or a combination of reasons. Graffiti still remains the one of four hip hop elements that is not considered "performance art" despite the image of the "singing and dancing star" that sells hip hop culture to the mainstream. Being a graphic form of art, it might also be said that many graffitists still fall in the category of the introverted archetypal artist.

 

Banksy is one of the world's most notorious and popular street artists who continues to remain faceless in today's society. He is known for his political, anti-war stencil art mainly in Bristol, England, but his work may be seen anywhere from Los Angeles to Palestine. In the UK, Banksy is the most recognizable icon for this cultural artistic movement and keeps his identity a secret to avoid arrest. Much of Banksy's artwork may be seen around the streets of London and surrounding suburbs, although he has painted pictures throughout the world, including the Middle East, where he has painted on Israel's controversial West Bank barrier with satirical images of life on the other side. One depicted a hole in the wall with an idyllic beach, while another shows a mountain landscape on the other side. A number of exhibitions also have taken place since 2000, and recent works of art have fetched vast sums of money. Banksy's art is a prime example of the classic controversy: vandalism vs. art. Art supporters endorse his work distributed in urban areas as pieces of art and some councils, such as Bristol and Islington, have officially protected them, while officials of other areas have deemed his work to be vandalism and have removed it.

 

Pixnit is another artist who chooses to keep her identity from the general public. Her work focuses on beauty and design aspects of graffiti as opposed to Banksy's anti-government shock value. Her paintings are often of flower designs above shops and stores in her local urban area of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Some store owners endorse her work and encourage others to do similar work as well. "One of the pieces was left up above Steve's Kitchen, because it looks pretty awesome"- Erin Scott, the manager of New England Comics in Allston, Massachusetts.

 

Graffiti artists may become offended if photographs of their art are published in a commercial context without their permission. In March 2020, the Finnish graffiti artist Psyke expressed his displeasure at the newspaper Ilta-Sanomat publishing a photograph of a Peugeot 208 in an article about new cars, with his graffiti prominently shown on the background. The artist claims he does not want his art being used in commercial context, not even if he were to receive compensation.

 

Territorial graffiti marks urban neighborhoods with tags and logos to differentiate certain groups from others. These images are meant to show outsiders a stern look at whose turf is whose. The subject matter of gang-related graffiti consists of cryptic symbols and initials strictly fashioned with unique calligraphies. Gang members use graffiti to designate membership throughout the gang, to differentiate rivals and associates and, most commonly, to mark borders which are both territorial and ideological.

 

Graffiti has been used as a means of advertising both legally and illegally. Bronx-based TATS CRU has made a name for themselves doing legal advertising campaigns for companies such as Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Toyota, and MTV. In the UK, Covent Garden's Boxfresh used stencil images of a Zapatista revolutionary in the hopes that cross referencing would promote their store.

 

Smirnoff hired artists to use reverse graffiti (the use of high pressure hoses to clean dirty surfaces to leave a clean image in the surrounding dirt) to increase awareness of their product.

 

Graffiti often has a reputation as part of a subculture that rebels against authority, although the considerations of the practitioners often diverge and can relate to a wide range of attitudes. It can express a political practice and can form just one tool in an array of resistance techniques. One early example includes the anarcho-punk band Crass, who conducted a campaign of stenciling anti-war, anarchist, feminist, and anti-consumerist messages throughout the London Underground system during the late 1970s and early 1980s. In Amsterdam graffiti was a major part of the punk scene. The city was covered with names such as "De Zoot", "Vendex", and "Dr Rat". To document the graffiti a punk magazine was started that was called Gallery Anus. So when hip hop came to Europe in the early 1980s there was already a vibrant graffiti culture.

 

The student protests and general strike of May 1968 saw Paris bedecked in revolutionary, anarchistic, and situationist slogans such as L'ennui est contre-révolutionnaire ("Boredom is counterrevolutionary") and Lisez moins, vivez plus ("Read less, live more"). While not exhaustive, the graffiti gave a sense of the 'millenarian' and rebellious spirit, tempered with a good deal of verbal wit, of the strikers.

 

I think graffiti writing is a way of defining what our generation is like. Excuse the French, we're not a bunch of p---- artists. Traditionally artists have been considered soft and mellow people, a little bit kooky. Maybe we're a little bit more like pirates that way. We defend our territory, whatever space we steal to paint on, we defend it fiercely.

 

The developments of graffiti art which took place in art galleries and colleges as well as "on the street" or "underground", contributed to the resurfacing in the 1990s of a far more overtly politicized art form in the subvertising, culture jamming, or tactical media movements. These movements or styles tend to classify the artists by their relationship to their social and economic contexts, since, in most countries, graffiti art remains illegal in many forms except when using non-permanent paint. Since the 1990s with the rise of Street Art, a growing number of artists are switching to non-permanent paints and non-traditional forms of painting.

 

Contemporary practitioners, accordingly, have varied and often conflicting practices. Some individuals, such as Alexander Brener, have used the medium to politicize other art forms, and have used the prison sentences enforced on them as a means of further protest. The practices of anonymous groups and individuals also vary widely, and practitioners by no means always agree with each other's practices. For example, the anti-capitalist art group the Space Hijackers did a piece in 2004 about the contradiction between the capitalistic elements of Banksy and his use of political imagery.

 

Berlin human rights activist Irmela Mensah-Schramm has received global media attention and numerous awards for her 35-year campaign of effacing neo-Nazi and other right-wing extremist graffiti throughout Germany, often by altering hate speech in humorous ways.

 

In Serbian capital, Belgrade, the graffiti depicting a uniformed former general of Serb army and war criminal, convicted at ICTY for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including genocide and ethnic cleansing in Bosnian War, Ratko Mladić, appeared in a military salute alongside the words "General, thank to your mother". Aleks Eror, Berlin-based journalist, explains how "veneration of historical and wartime figures" through street art is not a new phenomenon in the region of former Yugoslavia, and that "in most cases is firmly focused on the future, rather than retelling the past". Eror is not only analyst pointing to danger of such an expressions for the region's future. In a long expose on the subject of Bosnian genocide denial, at Balkan Diskurs magazine and multimedia platform website, Kristina Gadže and Taylor Whitsell referred to these experiences as a young generations' "cultural heritage", in which young are being exposed to celebration and affirmation of war-criminals as part of their "formal education" and "inheritance".

 

There are numerous examples of genocide denial through celebration and affirmation of war criminals throughout the region of Western Balkans inhabited by Serbs using this form of artistic expression. Several more of these graffiti are found in Serbian capital, and many more across Serbia and Bosnian and Herzegovinian administrative entity, Republika Srpska, which is the ethnic Serbian majority enclave. Critics point that Serbia as a state, is willing to defend the mural of convicted war criminal, and have no intention to react on cases of genocide denial, noting that Interior Minister of Serbia, Aleksandar Vulin decision to ban any gathering with an intent to remove the mural, with the deployment of riot police, sends the message of "tacit endorsement". Consequently, on 9 November 2021, Serbian heavy police in riot gear, with graffiti creators and their supporters, blocked the access to the mural to prevent human rights groups and other activists to paint over it and mark the International Day Against Fascism and Antisemitism in that way, and even arrested two civic activist for throwing eggs at the graffiti.

 

Graffiti may also be used as an offensive expression. This form of graffiti may be difficult to identify, as it is mostly removed by the local authority (as councils which have adopted strategies of criminalization also strive to remove graffiti quickly). Therefore, existing racist graffiti is mostly more subtle and at first sight, not easily recognized as "racist". It can then be understood only if one knows the relevant "local code" (social, historical, political, temporal, and spatial), which is seen as heteroglot and thus a 'unique set of conditions' in a cultural context.

 

A spatial code for example, could be that there is a certain youth group in an area that is engaging heavily in racist activities. So, for residents (knowing the local code), a graffiti containing only the name or abbreviation of this gang already is a racist expression, reminding the offended people of their gang activities. Also a graffiti is in most cases, the herald of more serious criminal activity to come. A person who does not know these gang activities would not be able to recognize the meaning of this graffiti. Also if a tag of this youth group or gang is placed on a building occupied by asylum seekers, for example, its racist character is even stronger.

By making the graffiti less explicit (as adapted to social and legal constraints), these drawings are less likely to be removed, but do not lose their threatening and offensive character.

 

Elsewhere, activists in Russia have used painted caricatures of local officials with their mouths as potholes, to show their anger about the poor state of the roads. In Manchester, England, a graffitists painted obscene images around potholes, which often resulted in them being repaired within 48 hours.

 

In the early 1980s, the first art galleries to show graffitists to the public were Fashion Moda in the Bronx, Now Gallery and Fun Gallery, both in the East Village, Manhattan.

 

A 2006 exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum displayed graffiti as an art form that began in New York's outer boroughs and reached great heights in the early 1980s with the work of Crash, Lee, Daze, Keith Haring, and Jean-Michel Basquiat. It displayed 22 works by New York graffitists, including Crash, Daze, and Lady Pink. In an article about the exhibition in the magazine Time Out, curator Charlotta Kotik said that she hoped the exhibition would cause viewers to rethink their assumptions about graffiti.

 

From the 1970s onwards, Burhan Doğançay photographed urban walls all over the world; these he then archived for use as sources of inspiration for his painterly works. The project today known as "Walls of the World" grew beyond even his own expectations and comprises about 30,000 individual images. It spans a period of 40 years across five continents and 114 countries. In 1982, photographs from this project comprised a one-man exhibition titled "Les murs murmurent, ils crient, ils chantent ..." (The walls whisper, shout and sing ...) at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris.

 

In Australia, art historians have judged some local graffiti of sufficient creative merit to rank them firmly within the arts. Oxford University Press's art history text Australian Painting 1788–2000 concludes with a long discussion of graffiti's key place within contemporary visual culture, including the work of several Australian practitioners.

 

Between March and April 2009, 150 artists exhibited 300 pieces of graffiti at the Grand Palais in Paris.

 

Spray paint has many negative environmental effects. The paint contains toxic chemicals, and the can uses volatile hydrocarbon gases to spray the paint onto a surface.

 

Volatile organic compound (VOC) leads to ground level ozone formation and most of graffiti related emissions are VOCs. A 2010 paper estimates 4,862 tons of VOCs were released in the United States in activities related to graffiti.

 

In China, Mao Zedong in the 1920s used revolutionary slogans and paintings in public places to galvanize the country's communist movement.

 

Based on different national conditions, many people believe that China's attitude towards Graffiti is fierce, but in fact, according to Lance Crayon in his film Spray Paint Beijing: Graffiti in the Capital of China, Graffiti is generally accepted in Beijing, with artists not seeing much police interference. Political and religiously sensitive graffiti, however, is not allowed.

 

In Hong Kong, Tsang Tsou Choi was known as the King of Kowloon for his calligraphy graffiti over many years, in which he claimed ownership of the area. Now some of his work is preserved officially.

 

In Taiwan, the government has made some concessions to graffitists. Since 2005 they have been allowed to freely display their work along some sections of riverside retaining walls in designated "Graffiti Zones". From 2007, Taipei's department of cultural affairs also began permitting graffiti on fences around major public construction sites. Department head Yong-ping Lee (李永萍) stated, "We will promote graffiti starting with the public sector, and then later in the private sector too. It's our goal to beautify the city with graffiti". The government later helped organize a graffiti contest in Ximending, a popular shopping district. graffitists caught working outside of these designated areas still face fines up to NT$6,000 under a department of environmental protection regulation. However, Taiwanese authorities can be relatively lenient, one veteran police officer stating anonymously, "Unless someone complains about vandalism, we won't get involved. We don't go after it proactively."

 

In 1993, after several expensive cars in Singapore were spray-painted, the police arrested a student from the Singapore American School, Michael P. Fay, questioned him, and subsequently charged him with vandalism. Fay pleaded guilty to vandalizing a car in addition to stealing road signs. Under the 1966 Vandalism Act of Singapore, originally passed to curb the spread of communist graffiti in Singapore, the court sentenced him to four months in jail, a fine of S$3,500 (US$2,233), and a caning. The New York Times ran several editorials and op-eds that condemned the punishment and called on the American public to flood the Singaporean embassy with protests. Although the Singapore government received many calls for clemency, Fay's caning took place in Singapore on 5 May 1994. Fay had originally received a sentence of six strokes of the cane, but the presiding president of Singapore, Ong Teng Cheong, agreed to reduce his caning sentence to four lashes.

 

In South Korea, Park Jung-soo was fined two million South Korean won by the Seoul Central District Court for spray-painting a rat on posters of the G-20 Summit a few days before the event in November 2011. Park alleged that the initial in "G-20" sounds like the Korean word for "rat", but Korean government prosecutors alleged that Park was making a derogatory statement about the president of South Korea, Lee Myung-bak, the host of the summit. This case led to public outcry and debate on the lack of government tolerance and in support of freedom of expression. The court ruled that the painting, "an ominous creature like a rat" amounts to "an organized criminal activity" and upheld the fine while denying the prosecution's request for imprisonment for Park.

 

In Europe, community cleaning squads have responded to graffiti, in some cases with reckless abandon, as when in 1992 in France a local Scout group, attempting to remove modern graffiti, damaged two prehistoric paintings of bison in the Cave of Mayrière supérieure near the French village of Bruniquel in Tarn-et-Garonne, earning them the 1992 Ig Nobel Prize in archeology.

 

In September 2006, the European Parliament directed the European Commission to create urban environment policies to prevent and eliminate dirt, litter, graffiti, animal excrement, and excessive noise from domestic and vehicular music systems in European cities, along with other concerns over urban life.

 

In Budapest, Hungary, both a city-backed movement called I Love Budapest and a special police division tackle the problem, including the provision of approved areas.

 

The Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 became Britain's latest anti-graffiti legislation. In August 2004, the Keep Britain Tidy campaign issued a press release calling for zero tolerance of graffiti and supporting proposals such as issuing "on the spot" fines to graffiti offenders and banning the sale of aerosol paint to anyone under the age of 16. The press release also condemned the use of graffiti images in advertising and in music videos, arguing that real-world experience of graffiti stood far removed from its often-portrayed "cool" or "edgy'" image.

 

To back the campaign, 123 Members of Parliament (MPs) (including then Prime Minister Tony Blair), signed a charter which stated: "Graffiti is not art, it's crime. On behalf of my constituents, I will do all I can to rid our community of this problem."

 

In the UK, city councils have the power to take action against the owner of any property that has been defaced under the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 (as amended by the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005) or, in certain cases, the Highways Act. This is often used against owners of property that are complacent in allowing protective boards to be defaced so long as the property is not damaged.

 

In July 2008, a conspiracy charge was used to convict graffitists for the first time. After a three-month police surveillance operation, nine members of the DPM crew were convicted of conspiracy to commit criminal damage costing at least £1 million. Five of them received prison sentences, ranging from eighteen months to two years. The unprecedented scale of the investigation and the severity of the sentences rekindled public debate over whether graffiti should be considered art or crime.

 

Some councils, like those of Stroud and Loerrach, provide approved areas in the town where graffitists can showcase their talents, including underpasses, car parks, and walls that might otherwise prove a target for the "spray and run".

 

Graffiti Tunnel, University of Sydney at Camperdown (2009)

In an effort to reduce vandalism, many cities in Australia have designated walls or areas exclusively for use by graffitists. One early example is the "Graffiti Tunnel" located at the Camperdown Campus of the University of Sydney, which is available for use by any student at the university to tag, advertise, poster, and paint. Advocates of this idea suggest that this discourages petty vandalism yet encourages artists to take their time and produce great art, without worry of being caught or arrested for vandalism or trespassing.[108][109] Others disagree with this approach, arguing that the presence of legal graffiti walls does not demonstrably reduce illegal graffiti elsewhere. Some local government areas throughout Australia have introduced "anti-graffiti squads", who clean graffiti in the area, and such crews as BCW (Buffers Can't Win) have taken steps to keep one step ahead of local graffiti cleaners.

 

Many state governments have banned the sale or possession of spray paint to those under the age of 18 (age of majority). However, a number of local governments in Victoria have taken steps to recognize the cultural heritage value of some examples of graffiti, such as prominent political graffiti. Tough new graffiti laws have been introduced in Australia with fines of up to A$26,000 and two years in prison.

 

Melbourne is a prominent graffiti city of Australia with many of its lanes being tourist attractions, such as Hosier Lane in particular, a popular destination for photographers, wedding photography, and backdrops for corporate print advertising. The Lonely Planet travel guide cites Melbourne's street as a major attraction. All forms of graffiti, including sticker art, poster, stencil art, and wheatpasting, can be found in many places throughout the city. Prominent street art precincts include; Fitzroy, Collingwood, Northcote, Brunswick, St. Kilda, and the CBD, where stencil and sticker art is prominent. As one moves farther away from the city, mostly along suburban train lines, graffiti tags become more prominent. Many international artists such as Banksy have left their work in Melbourne and in early 2008 a perspex screen was installed to prevent a Banksy stencil art piece from being destroyed, it has survived since 2003 through the respect of local street artists avoiding posting over it, although it has recently had paint tipped over it.

 

In February 2008 Helen Clark, the New Zealand prime minister at that time, announced a government crackdown on tagging and other forms of graffiti vandalism, describing it as a destructive crime representing an invasion of public and private property. New legislation subsequently adopted included a ban on the sale of paint spray cans to persons under 18 and increases in maximum fines for the offence from NZ$200 to NZ$2,000 or extended community service. The issue of tagging become a widely debated one following an incident in Auckland during January 2008 in which a middle-aged property owner stabbed one of two teenage taggers to death and was subsequently convicted of manslaughter.

 

Graffiti databases have increased in the past decade because they allow vandalism incidents to be fully documented against an offender and help the police and prosecution charge and prosecute offenders for multiple counts of vandalism. They also provide law enforcement the ability to rapidly search for an offender's moniker or tag in a simple, effective, and comprehensive way. These systems can also help track costs of damage to a city to help allocate an anti-graffiti budget. The theory is that when an offender is caught putting up graffiti, they are not just charged with one count of vandalism; they can be held accountable for all the other damage for which they are responsible. This has two main benefits for law enforcement. One, it sends a signal to the offenders that their vandalism is being tracked. Two, a city can seek restitution from offenders for all the damage that they have committed, not merely a single incident. These systems give law enforcement personnel real-time, street-level intelligence that allows them not only to focus on the worst graffiti offenders and their damage, but also to monitor potential gang violence that is associated with the graffiti.

 

Many restrictions of civil gang injunctions are designed to help address and protect the physical environment and limit graffiti. Provisions of gang injunctions include things such as restricting the possession of marker pens, spray paint cans, or other sharp objects capable of defacing private or public property; spray painting, or marking with marker pens, scratching, applying stickers, or otherwise applying graffiti on any public or private property, including, but not limited to the street, alley, residences, block walls, and fences, vehicles or any other real or personal property. Some injunctions contain wording that restricts damaging or vandalizing both public and private property, including but not limited to any vehicle, light fixture, door, fence, wall, gate, window, building, street sign, utility box, telephone box, tree, or power pole.

 

To help address many of these issues, many local jurisdictions have set up graffiti abatement hotlines, where citizens can call in and report vandalism and have it removed. San Diego's hotline receives more than 5,000 calls per year, in addition to reporting the graffiti, callers can learn more about prevention. One of the complaints about these hotlines is the response time; there is often a lag time between a property owner calling about the graffiti and its removal. The length of delay should be a consideration for any jurisdiction planning on operating a hotline. Local jurisdictions must convince the callers that their complaint of vandalism will be a priority and cleaned off right away. If the jurisdiction does not have the resources to respond to complaints in a timely manner, the value of the hotline diminishes. Crews must be able to respond to individual service calls made to the graffiti hotline as well as focus on cleanup near schools, parks, and major intersections and transit routes to have the biggest impact. Some cities offer a reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of suspects for tagging or graffiti related vandalism. The amount of the reward is based on the information provided, and the action taken.

 

When police obtain search warrants in connection with a vandalism investigation, they are often seeking judicial approval to look for items such as cans of spray paint and nozzles from other kinds of aerosol sprays; etching tools, or other sharp or pointed objects, which could be used to etch or scratch glass and other hard surfaces; permanent marking pens, markers, or paint sticks; evidence of membership or affiliation with any gang or tagging crew; paraphernalia including any reference to "(tagger's name)"; any drawings, writing, objects, or graffiti depicting taggers' names, initials, logos, monikers, slogans, or any mention of tagging crew membership; and any newspaper clippings relating to graffiti crime.

Remembrance Sunday, 8 November 2015

 

In the United Kingdom, Remembrance Sunday is held on the second Sunday in November, which is the Sunday nearest to 11 November, Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of hostilities in the First World War at 11 a.m. on 11 November 1918. Remembrance Sunday is held to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts.

 

Remembrance Sunday is marked by ceremonies at local war memorials in most cities, towns and villages, attended by civic dignitaries, ex-servicemen and -women, members of local armed forces regular and reserve units, military cadet forces and uniformed youth organisations. Two minutes’ silence is observed at 11 a.m. and wreaths of remembrance poppies are then laid on the memorials.

 

The United Kingdom national ceremony is held in London at the Cenotaph in Whitehall. Wreaths are laid by Queen Elizabeth II, principal members of the Royal Family normally including the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cambridge, the Duke of York, the Princess Royal, the Earl of Wessex and the Duke of Kent, the Prime Minister, leaders of the other major political parties, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Commonwealth High Commissioners and representatives from the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force, the Merchant Navy and Fishing Fleets and the civilian services, and veterans’ groups. Two minutes' silence is held at 11 a.m., before the laying of the wreaths. This silence is marked by the firing of a field gun on Horse Guards Parade to begin and end the silence, followed by Royal Marines buglers sounding Last Post.

 

The parade consists mainly of an extensive march past by veterans, with military bands playing music following the list of the Traditional Music of Remembrance.

 

Other members of the British Royal Family watch from the balcony of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

 

After the ceremony, a parade of veterans and other related groups, organised by the Royal British Legion, marches past the Cenotaph, each section of which lays a wreath as it passes. Only ticketed participants can take part in the march past.

 

From 1919 until the Second World War remembrance observance was always marked on 11 November itself. It was then moved to Remembrance Sunday, but since the 50th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in 1995, it has become usual to hold ceremonies on both Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday.

 

Each year, the music at the National Ceremony of Remembrance remains the same, following a programme finalised in 1930:

 

Rule, Britannia! by Thomas Arne

Heart of Oak by William Boyce

The Minstrel Boy by Thomas Moore

Men of Harlech

The Skye Boat Song

Isle of Beauty by Thomas Haynes Bayly

David of the White Rock

Oft in the Stilly Night by John Stevenson

Flowers of the Forest

Nimrod from the Enigma Variations by Edward Elgar

Dido's lament by Henry Purcell

O Valiant Hearts by Charles Harris

Solemn Melody by Walford Davies

Last Post – a bugle call

Beethoven's Funeral March No. 1, by Johann Heinrich Walch

O God, Our Help in Ages Past – words by Isaac Watts, music by William Croft

Reveille – a bugle call

God Save The Queen

 

Other pieces of music are then played during the march past and wreath laying by veterans, starting with Trumpet Voluntary and followed by It's A Long Way To Tipperary, the marching song of the Connaught Rangers, a famous British Army Irish Regiment of long ago.

 

The following is complied from press reports on 8 November 2015:

 

"The nation paid silent respect to the country's war dead today in a Remembrance Sunday service. Leading the nation in remembrance, as ever, was the Queen, who first laid a wreath at the Cenotaph in 1945 and has done so every year since, except on the four occasions when she was overseas.

 

Dressed in her customary all-black ensemble with a clutch of scarlet poppies pinned against her left shoulder, she stepped forward following the end of the two-minute silence marked by the sounding of Last Post by 10 Royal Marine buglers.

 

The Queen laid her wreath at the foot of the Sir Edwin Lutyens Portland stone monument to the Glorious Dead, then stood with her head momentarily bowed.

 

She was joined by King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, who was invited to the Cenotaph for the first time to lay a wreath marking the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands by British troops.

 

Watched by his wife Queen Maxima, who stood next to the Duchess of Cambridge in the Royal Box, the King laid a wreath marked with the simple message, 'In remembrance of the British men and women who gave their lives for our future.'

 

Wreaths were then laid by members of the Royal Family, all wearing military uniform: Prince Philip; then Prince Andrew, Prince Harry and Prince William at the same time ; then Prince Edward, Princess Anne and the Duke of Kent at the same time.

 

Three members of the Royal Family laying wreaths at the same time was an innovation in 2015 designed to slightly reduce the amount of time of the ceremony and thereby reduce the time that the Queen had to be standing.

 

Prince Charles attended a remembrance service in New Zealand.

 

The Prime Minister then laid a wreath. The Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, appeared at the Cenotaph for the first time. He wore both a suit and a red poppy for the occasion.

 

His bow as he laid a wreath marked with the words 'let us resolve to create a world of peace' was imperceptible – and not enough for some critics. Yet unlike the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Battle service earlier this year, Mr Corbyn did join in with the singing of the national anthem.

 

Following the end of the official service at the Cenotaph, a mammoth column more than 10,000-strong (some 9,000 of whom were veterans) began marching along Whitehall, saluting the Cenotaph as they passed, Parliament Street, Great George Street, Horse Guards Road and back to Horse Guard Parade. The Duke of Cambridge took the salute from the column on Horse Guards Parade.

 

Time takes its inevitable toll on even the most stoic among us, and this year only a dozen World War Two veterans marched with the Spirit of Normandy Trust, a year after the Normandy Veterans' Association disbanded.

 

Within their ranks was 95-year-old former Sapper Don Sheppard of the Royal Engineers. Sheppard was of the eldest on parade and was pushed in his wheelchair by his 19-year-old grandson, Sam who, in between studying at Queen Mary University, volunteers with the Normandy veterans.

 

'It is because of my admiration for them,' he says. 'I see them as role models and just have the utmost respect for what they did.'

 

While some had blankets covering their legs against the grey November day, other veterans of more recent wars had only stumps to show for their service to this country during 13 long years of war in Afghanistan.

 

As well as that terrible toll of personal sacrifice, the collective losses – and triumphs - of some of the country’s most historic regiments were also honoured yesterday.

 

The Gurkha Brigade Association - marking 200 years of service in the British Army – marched to warm ripples of applause. The King’s Royal Hussars, represented yesterday by 126 veterans, this year also celebrate 300 years since the regiment was raised.

 

They were led by General Sir Richard Shirreff, former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander of Nato and Colonel of the regiment who himself was marching for the first time.

 

'We are joined by a golden thread to all those generations who have gone before us,” he said. “We are who we are, because of those that have gone before us.' "

 

Cenotaph Ceremony & March Past - 8 November 2015

Summary of Contingents

 

Column Number of marchers

B (Lead) 1,754

C 1,298

D 1,312

E 1,497

F 1,325

A 1,551

Ex-Service Total 8,737

M (Non ex-Service) 1,621

Total 10,358

 

Column B

Marker Detachment Number

1 Reconnaissance Corps 18 Anniversary

2 43rd Reconnaissance Regiment Old Comrades Assoc 10

3 3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery Association 60

4 Royal Artillery Association 18

5 Royal Engineers Association 37

6 Royal Engineers Bomb Disposal Association 65 Anniversary

7 Airborne Engineers Association 24

8 Royal Signals Association 48

9 Army Air Corps Association 42

10 Royal Army Service Corps & Royal Corps Transport Assoc 54

11 RAOC Association 18

12 Army Catering Corps Association 48

13 Royal Pioneer Corps Association 54 Anniversary

14 Royal Army Medical Corps Association 36

15 Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers Association 48

16 Royal Military Police Association 100

17 The RAEC and ETS Branch Association 12

18 Royal Army Pay Corps Regimental Association 36

19 Royal Army Veterinary Corps & Royal Army Dental Corps 18

20 Royal Army Physical Training Corps 24

21 Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps Assoc 48

22 Royal Scots Dragoon Guards 30

23 Royal Dragoon Guards 78

24 Queen's Royal Hussars (The Queen's Own & Royal Irish) 12

25 Kings Royal Hussars Regimental Association 126

26 16/5th Queen's Royal Lancers 36

27 17/21 Lancers 30

28 The Royal Lancers 24 New for 2015

29 JLR RAC Old Boys' Association 30

30 Association of Ammunition Technicians 24

31 Beachley Old Boys Association 36

32 Arborfield Old Boys Association 25

33 Gallipoli & Dardenelles International 24

34 Special Observers Association 24

35 The Parachute Squadron Royal Armoured Corps 24 New

36 Intelligence Corps Association 48

37 Women's Royal Army Corps Association 120

38 656 Squadron Association 24

39 Home Guard Association 9

40 British Resistance Movement (Coleshill Research Team) 12

41 British Limbless Ex-Service Men's Association 48

42 British Ex-Services Wheelchair Sports Association 24

43 Royal Hospital Chelsea 30

44 Queen Alexandra's Hospital Home for Disabled Ex-Servicemen & Women 30

45 The Royal Star & Garter Homes 20

46 Combat Stress 48

Total 1,754

 

Column C

Marker Detachment Number

1 Royal Air Force Association 150

2 Royal Air Force Regiment Association 300

3 Royal Air Forces Ex-Prisoner's of War Association 20

4 Royal Observer Corps Association 75 Anniversary

5 National Service (Royal Air Force) Association 42

6 RAFLING Association 24

7 6 Squadron (Royal Air Force) Association 18

8 7 Squadron Association 25

9 8 Squadron Association 24

10 RAF Habbaniya Association 25

11 Royal Air Force & Defence Fire Services Association 30

12 Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Association 30

13 Units of the Far East Air Force 28 New

14 Royal Air Force Yatesbury Association 16

15 Royal Air Force Airfield Construction Branch Association 12

16 RAFSE(s) Assoc 45 New

17 Royal Air Force Movements and Mobile Air Movements Squadron Association (RAF MAMS) 24

18 Royal Air Force Masirah & Salalah Veterans Assoc 24 New

19 WAAF/WRAF/RAF(W) 25

19 Blenheim Society 18

20 Coastal Command & Maritime Air Association 24

21 Air Sea Rescue & Marine Craft Sections Club 15

22 Federation of RAF Apprentice & Boy Entrant Assocs 150

23 Royal Air Force Air Loadmasters Association 24

24 Royal Air Force Police Association 90

25 Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service Association 40

Total 1,298

 

Column D

Marker Detachment Number

1 Not Forgotten Association 54

2 Stoll 18

3 Ulster Defence Regiment 72

4 Army Dog Unit Northern Ireland Association 48

5 North Irish Horse & Irish Regiments Old Comrades Association 78

6 Northern Ireland Veterans' Association 40

7 Irish United Nations Veterans Association 12

8 ONET UK 10

9 St Helena Government UK 24

10 South Atlantic Medal Association 196

11 SSAFA 37

12 First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (Princess Royal's Volunteers Corps) 12

13 Association of Jewish Ex-Servicemen & Women 48

14 British Nuclear Test Veterans Association 48

15 War Widows Association 132

16 Gurkha Brigade Association 160 Anniversary

17 British Gurkha Welfare Society 100 Anniversary

18 West Indian Association of Service Personnel 18

19 Trucial Oman Scouts Association 18

20 Bond Van Wapenbroeders 35

21 Polish Ex-Combatants Association in Great Britain 25

22 Stowarzyszenie Polskich Kombatantów Limited 18 New

23 Royal Hong Kong Regiment Association 12

24 Canadian Veterans Association 10

25 Hong Kong Ex-Servicemen's Association (UK Branch) 24

26 Hong Kong Military Service Corps 28

27 Foreign Legion Association 24

28 Undivided Indian Army Ex Servicemen Association 11 New

Total 1,312

 

Column E

Marker Detachment Number

1 Royal Marines Association 198

2 Royal Naval Association 150

3 Merchant Navy Association 130

4 Sea Harrier Association 24

5 Flower Class Corvette Association 18

6 HMS Andromeda Association 18

7 HMS Argonaut Association 30

8 HMS Bulwark, Albion & Centaur Association 25

9 HMS Cumberland Association 18

10 HMS Ganges Association 48

11 HMS Glasgow Association 30

12 HMS St Vincent Association 26

13 HMS Tiger Association 25

14 Algerines Association 20

15 Ton Class Association 24

16 Type 42 Association 48

17 Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service 36

18 Association of WRENS 90

19 Royal Fleet Auxiliary Association 10

20 Royal Naval Communications Association 30

21 Royal Naval Medical Branch Ratings & Sick Berth Staff Association 24

22 Royal Naval Benevolent Trust 18

23 Yangtze Incident Association 24

24 Special Boat Service Association 6

25 Submariners Association 30

26 Association of Royal Yachtsmen 30

27 Broadsword Association 36

28 Aircraft Handlers Association 36

29 Aircrewmans Association 40 Anniversary

30 Cloud Observers Association 10

31 The Fisgard Association 40

32 Fleet Air Arm Armourers Association 36

33 Fleet Air Arm Association 25

34 Fleet Air Arm Bucaneer Association 24

35 Fleet Air Arm Field Gun Association 24

36 Fleet Air Arm Junglie Association 18

37 Fleet Air Arm Officers Association 30

38 Fleet Air Arm Safety Equipment & Survival Association 24

39 Royal Navy School of Physical Training 24

Total 1,497

 

Column F

Marker Detachment Number

1 Blind Veterans UK 198

2 Far East Prisoners of War 18

3 Burma Star Association 40

4 Monte Cassino Society20

5 Queen's Bodyguard of The Yeoman of The Guard 18

6 Pen and Sword Club 15

7 TRBL Ex-Service Members 301

8 The Royal British Legion Poppy Factory 4

9 The Royal British Legion Scotland 24

10 Officers Association 5

11 Black and White Club 18

12 National Pigeon War Service 30

13 National Service Veterans Alliance 50

14 Gallantry Medallists League 46

15 National Malaya & Borneo Veterans Association 98

16 National Gulf Veterans & Families Association 30

17 Fellowship of the Services 100

18 Memorable Order of Tin Hats 24

19 Suez Veterans Association 50

20 Aden Veterans Association 72

21 1st Army Association 36

22 Showmens' Guild of Great Britain 40

23 Special Forces Club 12

24 The Spirit of Normandy Trust 28

25 Italy Star Association, 1943-1945, 48

Total 1,325

 

Column A

Marker Detachment Number

1 1LI Association 36

2 Royal Green Jackets Association 198

3 Parachute Regimental Association 174

4 King's Own Scottish Borderers 60

5 Black Watch Association 45

6 Gordon Highlanders Association 60

7 Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders Regimental Association 12

8 Queen's Own Highlanders Regimental Association 48

9 London Scottish Regimental Association 30

10 Grenadier Guards Association 48

11 Coldstream Guards Association 48

12 Scots Guards Association 48

13 Guards Parachute Association 36

14 4 Company Association (Parachute Regiment) 24

15 Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment 72

16 Royal East Kent Regiment (The Buffs) Past & Present Association 30

17 Prince of Wales' Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians) Regimental Association 24

18 Royal Hampshire Regiment Comrades Association 14

19 The Royal Hampshire Regimental Club 24 New for 2015

20 Royal Northumberland Fusiliers 48 New

21 Royal Sussex Regimental Association 12

22 Green Howards Association 24

23 Cheshire Regiment Association 24

24 Sherwood Foresters & Worcestershire Regiment 36

25 Mercian Regiment Association 30

26 Special Air Service Regimental Association 4

27 The King's Own Royal Border Regiment 100

28 The Staffordshire Regiment 48

29 Rifles Regimental Association 40

30 The Rifles & Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire & Wiltshire Regimental Association 30

31 Durham Light Infantry Association 60

32 King's Royal Rifle Corps Association 50

33 King's African Rifles 14 New for 2015

Total 1,551

 

Column M

Marker Detachment Number

1 Transport For London 48

2 Children of the Far East Prisoners of War 60

3 First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (Princess Royal's Volunteers Corps) 24

4 Munitions Workers Association18

5 Evacuees Reunion Association48

6 TOC H 20

7 Salvation Army 36

8 Naval Canteen Service & Expeditionary Force Institutes Association 12 Previously NAAFI

9 Royal Voluntary Service 24

10 Civil Defence Association 8

11 National Association of Retired Police Officers 36

12 Metropolitan Special Constabulary 36

13 London Ambulance Service NHS Trust 36

14 London Ambulance Service Retirement Association 18

15 St John Ambulance 36

16 British Red Cross 12

17 St Andrew's Ambulance Association 6

18 The Firefighters Memorial Trust 24

19 Royal Ulster Constabulary (GC) Association 36

20 Ulster Special Constabulary Association 30

21 Commonwealth War Graves Commission 12

22 Daniel's Trust 36

23 Civilians Representing Families 180

24 Royal Mail Group Ltd 24

25 Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals 24

26 The Blue Cross 24

27 PDSA 24

28 HM Ships Glorious Ardent & ACASTA Association 24 Anniversary

29 Old Cryptians' Club 12

30 Fighting G Club 18 Anniversary

31 Malayan Volunteers Group 12

32 Gallipoli Association 18

33 Ministry of Defence 20

34 TRBL Non Ex-Service Members 117

35 TRBL Women's Section 20

36 Union Jack Club 12

37 Western Front Association 8

38 Shot at Dawn Pardons Campaign 18

39 Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes 24

40 National Association of Round Tables 24

41 Lions Club International 24

42 Rotary International 24

43 41 Club 6

44 Equity 12

45 Romany & Traveller Society 18

46 Sea Cadet Corps 30

47 Combined Cadet Force 30

48 Army Cadet Force 30

49 Air Training Corps 30

50 Scout Association 30

51 Girlguiding London & South East England 30

52 Boys Brigade 30

53 Girls Brigade England & Wales 30

54 Church Lads & Church Girls Brigade 30

55 Metropolitan Police Volunteer Police Cadets 18

56 St John Ambulance Cadets 18

57 YMCA 12

Total 1,621

Hanoi; Vietnamese: Hà Nội is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts and 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam. It was eclipsed by Huế, the imperial capital of Vietnam during the Nguyễn Dynasty (1802–1945), but Hanoi served as the capital of French Indochina from 1902 to 1954. From 1954 to 1976, it was the capital of North Vietnam, and it became the capital of a reunified Vietnam in 1976, after the North's victory in the Vietnam War.

 

The city lies on the right bank of the Red River. Hanoi is 1,760 km north of Ho Chi Minh City and 120 km west of Hai Phong city.

 

October 2010 officially marked 1000 years since the establishment of the city. The Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Mural is a 4 km ceramic mosaic mural created to mark the occasion.

 

NAMES

Hanoi (河內) has had many names throughout history. During the Chinese occupation of Vietnam, it was known first as Long Biên, then Tống Bình (宋平, "Song Peace") and Long Đỗ (龍肚, "Dragonbelly"). In 866, it was turned into a citadel and named Đại La (大羅, "Big Net"). During the Lê dynasty, Hanoi was known as Đông Kinh (東京, "Eastern Capital"); this gave the name to Tonkin.

 

HISTORY

Pre-Thăng Long period

Hanoi has been inhabited since at least 3000 BC. The Cổ Loa Citadel in Dong Anh district served as the capital of the Âu Lạc kingdom founded by the Shu emigrant Thục Phán after his 258 BC conquest of the native Văn Lang.

 

In 197 BC, Âu Lạc Kingdom was annexed by Nanyue, which ushered in more than a millennium of Chinese domination. By the middle of the 5th century, in the center of ancient Hanoi, the Liu Song Dynasty set up a new district (縣) called Songping (Tong Binh), which later became a commandery (郡), including two districts Yihuai (義懷) and Suining (綏寧) in the south of the Red River (now Từ Liêm and Hoài Đức districts) with a metropolis (the domination centre) in the present inner Hanoi. By the year 679, the Tang dynasty changed the region's name into Annan (Pacified South), with Songping as its capital.

 

In order to defeat the people’s uprisings, in the later half of the 8th century, Zhang Boyi (張伯儀), a Tang dynasty viceroy, built Luocheng (羅城, La Thanh or La citadel, from Thu Le to Quan Ngua in present-day Ba Dinh precinct). In the earlier half of the 9th century, it was further built up and called Jincheng (金城, Kim Thanh or Kim Citadel). In 866, Gao Pian, the Chinese Jiedushi, consolidated and named it Daluocheng (大羅城, Dai La citadel, running from Quan Ngua to Bach Thao), the then-largest citadel of ancient Hanoi.

 

Thăng Long, Đông Đô, Đông Quan, Đông Kinh

In 1010, Lý Thái Tổ, the first ruler of the Lý Dynasty, moved the capital of Đại Việt to the site of the Đại La Citadel. Claiming to have seen a dragon ascending the Red River, he renamed the site Thăng Long (昇龍, "Soaring Dragon") - a name still used poetically to this day. Thăng Long remained the capital of Đại Việt until 1397, when it was moved to Thanh Hóa, then known as Tây Đô (西都), the "Western Capital". Thăng Long then became Đông Đô (東都), the "Eastern Capital."

 

In 1408, the Chinese Ming Dynasty attacked and occupied Vietnam, changing Đông Đô's name to Dongguan (Chinese: 東關, Eastern Gateway), or Đông Quan in Sino-Vietnamese. In 1428, the Vietnamese overthrew the Chinese under the leadership of Lê Lợi, who later founded the Lê Dynasty and renamed Đông Quan Đông Kinh (東京, "Eastern Capital") or Tonkin. Right after the end of the Tây Sơn Dynasty, it was named Bắc Thành (北城, "Northern Citadel").

During Nguyễn Dynasty and the French colonial period

In 1802, when the Nguyễn Dynasty was established and moved the capital to Huế, the old name Thăng Long was modified to become Thăng Long (昇龍, "Soaring Dragon"). In 1831, the Nguyễn emperor Minh Mạng renamed it Hà Nội (河内, "Between Rivers" or "River Interior"). Hanoi was occupied by the French in 1873 and passed to them ten years later. As Hanoï, it became the capital of French Indochina after 1887.

 

DURING TWO WARS

The city was occupied by the Japanese in 1940 and liberated in 1945, when it briefly became the seat of the Viet Minh government after Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the independence of Vietnam. However, the French returned and reoccupied the city in 1946. After nine years of fighting between the French and Viet Minh forces, Hanoi became the capital of an independent North Vietnam in 1954.

 

During the Vietnam War, Hanoi's transportation facilities were disrupted by the bombing of bridges and railways. These were all, however, promptly repaired. Following the end of the war, Hanoi became the capital of a reunified Vietnam when North and South Vietnam were reunited on July 2, 1976.

 

MODERN HANOI

On May 29, 2008, it was decided that Hà Tây Province, Vĩnh Phúc Province's Mê Linh District and 4 communes of Lương Sơn District, Hòa Bình Province be merged into the metropolitan area of Hanoi from August 1, 2008. Hanoi's total area then increased to 334,470 hectares in 29 subdivisions with the new population being 6,232,940., effectively tripling its size. The Hanoi Capital Region (Vùng Thủ đô Hà Nội), a metropolitan area covering Hanoi and 6 surrounding provinces under its administration, will have an area of 13,436 square kilometres with 15 million people by 2020

 

Hanoi has experienced a rapid construction boom recently. Skyscrapers, popping up in new urban areas, have dramatically changed the cityscape and have formed a modern skyline outside the old city. In 2015, Hanoi is ranked # 39 by Emporis in the list of world cities with most skyscrapers over 100 m; its two tallest buildings are Hanoi Landmark 72 Tower (336m, tallest in Vietnam and second tallest in Southeast Asia after Malaysia's Petronas Twin Towers) and Hanoi Lotte Center (272m, also second tallest in Vietnam)

 

GEOGRAPHY

LOCATION - TOPOGRAPHY

Hanoi is located in northern region of Vietnam, situated in the Vietnam’s Red River delta, nearly 90 km away from the coastal area. Hanoi contains three basic kind of terrain, which are the delta area, the midland area and mountainous zone. In general, the terrain is gradually lower from the north to the south and from the west to the east, with the average height ranging from 5 to 20 meters above the sea level. The hills and mountainous zones are located in the northern and western part of the city. The highest peak is at Ba Vi with 1281 m, located in the western part of the region.

 

CLIMATE

Hanoi features a warm humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa) with plentiful precipitation. The city experiences the typical climate of northern Vietnam, with 4 distinct seasons. Summer, from May until August, is characterized by hot and humid weather with abundant rainfall. September to October is fall, characterized by a decrease in temperature and precipitation. Winter, from November to January, is dry and cool by national standards. The city is usually cloudy and foggy in winter, averaging only 1.5 hours of sunshine per day in February.

 

Hanoi averages 1,680 millimetres of rainfall per year, the majority falling from May to September. There are an average of 114 days with rain.

 

The average annual temperature is 23.6 °C with a mean relative humidity of 79%. The highest recorded temperature was 42.8 °C on May 1926 while the lowest recorded temperature was 2.7 °C on January 1955.

 

ADMINISTRATIVES DIVISIONS

Hà Nội is divided into 12 urban districts, 1 district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. When Ha Tay was merged into Hanoi in 2008, Hà Đông was transformed into an urban district while Sơn Tây degraded to a district-leveled town. They are further subdivided into 22 commune-level towns (or townlets), 399 communes, and 145 wards.

 

DEMOGRAPHICS

Hanoi's population is constantly growing (about 3.5% per year), a reflection of the fact that the city is both a major metropolitan area of Northern Vietnam, and also the country's political centre. This population growth also puts a lot of pressure on the infrastructure, some of which is antiquated and dates back to the early 20th century.

 

The number of Hanoians who have settled down for more than three generations is likely to be very small when compared to the overall population of the city. Even in the Old Quarter, where commerce started hundreds of years ago and consisted mostly of family businesses, many of the street-front stores nowadays are owned by merchants and retailers from other provinces. The original owner family may have either rented out the store and moved into the adjoining house or moved out of the neighbourhood altogether. The pace of change has especially escalated after the abandonment of central-planning economic policies and relaxing of the district-based household registrar system.

 

Hanoi's telephone numbers have been increased to 8 digits to cope with demand (October 2008). Subscribers' telephone numbers have been changed in a haphazard way; however, mobile phones and SIM cards are readily available in Vietnam, with pre-paid mobile phone credit available in all areas of Hanoi.

 

ECONOMY

Hanoi has the highest Human Development Index among the cities in Vietnam. According to a recent ranking by PricewaterhouseCoopers, Hanoi will be the fastest growing city in the world in terms of GDP growth from 2008 to 2025. In the year 2013, Hanoi contributed 12.6% to GDP, exported 7.5% of total exports, contributed 17% to the national budget and attracted 22% investment capital of Vietnam. The city's nominal GDP at current prices reached 451,213 billion VND (21.48 billion USD) in 2013, which made per capita GDP stand at 63.3 million VND (3,000 USD). Industrial production in the city has experienced a rapid boom since the 1990s, with average annual growth of 19.1 percent from 1991–95, 15.9 percent from 1996–2000, and 20.9 percent during 2001–2003. In addition to eight existing industrial parks, Hanoi is building five new large-scale industrial parks and 16 small- and medium-sized industrial clusters. The non-state economic sector is expanding fast, with more than 48,000 businesses currently operating under the Enterprise Law (as of 3/2007).

 

Trade is another strong sector of the city. In 2003, Hanoi had 2,000 businesses engaged in foreign trade, having established ties with 161 countries and territories. The city's export value grew by an average 11.6 percent each year from 1996–2000 and 9.1 percent during 2001–2003. The economic structure also underwent important shifts, with tourism, finance, and banking now playing an increasingly important role. Hanoi's business districts are traditionally Hoàn Kiếm and the neighborhood; and a newly developing Cầu Giấy and Từ Liêm in the western part.

 

Similar to Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi enjoys a rapidly developing real estate market. The current most notable new urban areas are central Trung Hoa Nhan Chinh, Mỹ Đình, the luxurious zones of The Manor, Ciputra and Times City.

 

Agriculture, previously a pillar in Hanoi's economy, has striven to reform itself, introducing new high-yield plant varieties and livestock, and applying modern farming techniques.

 

Together with economic growth, Hanoi's appearance has also changed significantly, especially in recent years. Infrastructure is constantly being upgraded, with new roads and an improved public transportation system.

 

LANDMARKS

As the capital of Vietnam for almost a thousand years, Hanoi is considered one of the main cultural centres of Vietnam, where most Vietnamese dynasties have left their imprint. Even though some relics have not survived through wars and time, the city still has many interesting cultural and historic monuments for visitors and residents alike. Even when the nation's capital moved to Huế under the Nguyễn Dynasty in 1802, the city of Hanoi continued to flourish, especially after the French took control in 1888 and modeled the city's architecture to their tastes, lending an important aesthetic to the city's rich stylistic heritage. The city hosts more cultural sites than any other city in Vietnam, and boasts more than 1,000 years of history; that of the past few hundred years has been well preserved.

 

OLD QUARTER

The Old Quarter, near Hoàn Kiếm Lake, has the original street layout and architecture of old Hanoi. At the beginning of the 20th century the city consisted of only about 36 streets, most of which are now part of the old quarter. Each street then had merchants and households specializing in a particular trade, such as silk or jewelry. The street names nowadays still reflect these specializations, although few of them remain exclusively in their original commerce. The area is famous for its small artisans and merchants, including many silk shops. Local cuisine specialties as well as several clubs and bars can be found here also. A night market (near Đồng Xuân Market) in the heart of the district opens for business every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evening with a variety of clothing, souvenirs and food.

 

Some other prominent places are: The Temple of Literature (Văn Miếu), site of the oldest university in Vietnam 1010; One Pillar Pagoda (Chùa Một Cột); Flag Tower of Hanoi (Cột cờ Hà Nội). In 2004, a massive part of the 900-year-old Hanoi Citadel was discovered in central Hanoi, near the site of Ba Đình Square.

 

LAKES

A city between rivers built from low land, Hanoi has many scenic lakes and is sometimes called "city of lakes." Among its lakes, the most famous are Hoàn Kiếm Lake, West Lake, and Bay Mau Lake (inside Thongnhat Park). Hoan Kiem Lake, also known as Sword Lake, is the historical and cultural center of Hanoi, and is linked to the legend of the magic sword. West Lake (Hồ Tây) is a popular place for people to spend time. It is the largest lake in Hanoi and there are many temples in the area. The lakeside road in the Nghi Tam - Quang Ba area is perfect for bicycling, jogging and viewing the cityscape or enjoying lotus ponds in the summer. The best way to see the majestic beauty of a Westlake sunset is to view it from one of the many bars around the lake, especially the Sofitel Plaza rooftop bar.

 

COLONIAL HANOI

Under French rule, as an administrative centre for the French colony of Indochina, the French colonial architecture style became dominant, and many examples remain today: the tree-lined boulevards (e.g. Phan Dinh Phung street) and its many villas and mansions, Grand Opera House, State Bank of Vietnam (formerly The Bank of Indochina), Presidential Palace (formerly the Palace of the Governor-General of French Indochina), St. Joseph's Cathedral, and the historic Hotel Metropole. Many of the colonial structures are an eclectic mixture of French and traditional Vietnamese architectural styles, such as the National Museum of Vietnamese History, the Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts and the old Indochina Medical College. Gouveneur-Général Paul Doumer (1898-1902) played a crucial role in colonial Hanoi's urban planning. Under his tenure there was a major construction boom.

 

Critical historians of empire have noted that French colonial rule imposed a system of white supremacy on the city. Vietnamese subjects supplied labor and tax revenue, but the privileges and comforts of the city went to the white population. French efforts at rat eradication revealed some of the colonial city's racial double-standards.

 

MUSEUMS

Hanoi is home to a number of museums:

- National Museum of Vietnamese History

- Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts

- Vietnam Museum of Ethnology

- Vietnam Museum of Revolution

- Hỏa Lò Prison (Hanoi Hilton)

- Ho Chi Minh Museum

- Hanoi Contemporary Arts Centre

- Vietnam Military History Museum

- Hanoi Museum

 

TOURISM

Hanoi is a very picturesque city, the leafy metropolis sometimes dubbed the "Paris of Asia." With its tree-fringed boulevards, more than two dozen lakes and thousands of French colonial-era buildings, Hanoi is a popular tourist attraction and one of only a few Asian capitals to retain its historic charm amid rapid modernization and population growth.

  

In 2015, Hanoi ranks #4 in TripAdvisor's list of the World's Best Destinations (Travellers' Choice).

 

And Hanoi is the most affordable international destination in TripAdvisor's annual TripIndex report. Created to help travelers plan and budget their summer holiday, the TripIndex looks at the average cost of a three-night trip in 60 key tourist cities around the world.

 

ENTERTAINMENT

A variety of options for entertainment in Hanoi can be found throughout the city. Modern and traditional theaters, cinemas, karaoke bars, dance clubs, bowling alleys, and an abundance of opportunities for shopping provide leisure activity for both locals and tourists. Hanoi has been named one of the top 10 cities for shopping in Asia by Water Puppet Tours. The number of art galleries exhibiting Vietnamese art has dramatically increased in recent years, now including galleries such as "Nhat Huy" of Huynh Thong Nhat.

 

A popular traditional form of entertainment is Water puppetry, which is shown, for example, at the Thăng Long Water Puppet Theatre."

 

CUISINE

Hanoi has rich culinary traditions. Many of Vietnam's most famous dishes, such as phở, chả cá, bánh cuốn and cốm are believed to have originated in Hanoi. Perhaps most widely known is Phở - a simple rice noodle soup often eaten as breakfast at home or at street-side cafes, but also served in restaurants as a meal. Two varieties dominate the Hanoi scene: Phở Bò, containing beef, and Phở Gà, containing chicken.

 

Vietnam's national dish phở has been named as one of the Top 5 streetfoods in the world by globalpost.

 

Hanoi has a number of restaurants whose menus specifically offer dishes containing dog, snake and various species of insects. Insect-inspired menus can be found at a number of restaurants in Khuong Thuong village, Hanoi. The signature dishes at these restaurant are those containing processed ant-eggs, often in the culinary styles of Thai people or Vietnam's Muong and Tay ethnic people.

 

EDUCATION

Hanoi, as the capital of French Indochina, was home to the first Western-style universities in Indochina, including: Indochina Medical College (1902) - now Hanoi Medical University, Indochina University (1904) - now Hanoi National University (the largest), and École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de l'Indochine (1925) - now Hanoi University of Fine Art.

 

After the Communist Party took control over Hanoi in 1954 with support from the Soviet Union, many new universities were built, among them, Hanoi University of Technology, still the largest technical university in Vietnam. Recently ULIS (University of Languages and International Studies) was rated as one of the top universities in Southeast Asia for languages and language studies at the undergraduate level. Other universities that are not part of Vietnam National University or Hanoi University include Hanoi School for Public Health and Hanoi School of Agriculture.

 

Hanoi is the largest centre of education in Vietnam. It is estimated that 62% of the scientists in the whole country are living and working in Hanoi. Admissions to undergraduate study are through entrance examinations, which are conducted annually and open for everyone (who has successfully completed his/her secondary education) in the country. The majority of universities in Hanoi are public, although in recent years a number of private universities have begun operation. Thăng Long University, founded in 1988, by some Vietnamese mathematics professors in Hanoi and France is the first private university in Vietnam. Because many of Vietnam's major universities are located in Hanoi, students from other provinces (especially in the northern part of the country) wishing to enter university often travel to Hanoi for the annual entrance examination. Such events usually take place in June and July, during which a large number of students and their families converge on the city for several weeks around this intense examination period. In recent years, these entrance exams have been centrally coordinated by the Ministry of Education, but passing marks are decided independently by each university.

 

Although there are state owned kindergartens, there are also many private ventures that serve both local and international needs. Pre-tertiary (elementary and secondary) schools in Hanoi are generally state run, but there are also some independent schools. Education is equivalent to the K–12 system in the US, with elementary school between grades 1 and 5, middle school (or junior high) between grades 6 and 9, and high school from grades 10 to 12.

 

TRANSPORT

Hanoi is served by Noi Bai International Airport, located in the Soc Son District, approximately 15 km north of Hanoi. The new international terminal (T2), designed and built by Japanese contractors, opened in January 2015 and is a big facelift for Noibai International Airport. In addition, a new highway and the new Nhat Tan cable-stay bridge connecting the airport and the city center opened at the same time, offering much more convenience than the old road (via Thanglong bridge). Taxis are plentiful and usually have trip meters, although it is also common to agree on the trip price before taking a taxi from the airport to the city centre.

 

Hanoi is also the origin or departure point for many Vietnam Railways train routes in the country. The Reunification Express (tàu Thống Nhất) runs from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City from Hanoi station (formerly Hang Co station), with stops at cities and provinces along the line. Trains also depart Hanoi frequently for Hai Phong and other northern cities. The Reunification Express line was established during French colonial rule and was completed over a period of nearly forty years, from 1899 to 1936. The Reunification Express between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City covers a distance of 1,726 km and takes approximately 33 hours. As of 2005, there were 278 stations on the Vietnamese railway network, of which 191 were located along the North-South line.

 

The main means of transport within Hanoi city are motorbikes, buses, taxis, and a rising number of cars. In recent decades, motorbikes have overtaken bicycles as the main form of transportation. The increased number of motorcycles can cause gridlock. To minimize this and the negative consequences for the environment and health, the local government is trying to increase public transportation. Public buses run on many routes and fares can be purchased on the bus, with very cheap prices (30 cents for a journey where a taxi might cost $10).

 

There are 2 metro lines under construction in Hanoi now. The first one is expected to be operational in 2016, the second in 2018

 

Persons on their own or traveling in a pair who wish to make a fast trip around Hanoi to avoid traffic jams or to travel at an irregular time or by way of an irregular route often use "xe ôm" (literally, "hug bike"). Motorbikes can also be rented from agents within the Old Quarter of Hanoi.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Here is one from last year that I forgot to post. Taken at Boundary Bay at the peak of raptor season.

This shot is another one for our camera club monthly project: B&W Photography.

 

It is a view of the Town Hall (taken from the opposite side of the market square) in Poperinge in West Flanders, Belgium. It is quite a striking building, but has a dark secret within its walls.

 

During World War I, the town was one of only two in Belgium not under German occupation. It was used to billet British troops and also provided a safe area for field hospitals. Known familiarly as "Pop", it was just behind the front line and formed an important link for the soldiers and their families, especially through the rest house known as Talbot House (or "Toc H").

 

A grim reminder of that time remains within the town hall, where two death cells are preserved, and outside in the courtyard, where there is a public execution post used by firing squads. Some British soldiers were mentally unstable because of harsh life in the trenches and refused to go back or simply deserted. Once caught and trialled before court martial they spent their last night in the jail of the town hall before being shot at dawn. One can still visit the restored cell block with audiotape and the execution pole as a symbol of the insanity of war.

 

Another reminder is the location of a number of military cemeteries on the outskirts of the town with the graves of Canadian, British, Australian, French, German, US and Chinese servicemen. One of these is Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery for soldiers who had been wounded near Ypres and later died in the large Allied casualty clearing stations located in the area.

 

(source: Wikipedia)

BUTT x BETTER IS BAAACK!!!

Puri is a city and a Municipality of Odisha. It is the district headquarters of Puri district, Odisha, eastern India. It is situated on the Bay of Bengal, 60 kilometres south of the state capital of Bhubaneswar. It is also known as Jagannath Puri after the 12th-century Jagannath Temple located in the city. It is one of the original Char Dham pilgrimage sites for Indian Hindus.

 

Puri was known by several names from the ancient times to the present, and locally called as Badadeula. Puri and the Jagannath Temple were invaded 18 times by Hindu and Muslim rulers, starting from the 4th century to the start of the 19th century with the objective of looting the treasures of the temple. Odisha, including Puri and its temple, were under the British Raj from 1803 till India attained independence in August 1947. Even though princely states do not exist in independent India, the heirs of the Gajapati Dynasty of Khurda still perform the ritual duties of the temple. The temple town has many Hindu religious maths or monasteries.

 

The economy of Puri town is dependent on the religious importance of the Jagannath Temple to the extent of nearly 80%. The festivals which contribute to the economy are the 24 held every year in the temple complex, including 13 major festivals; Ratha Yatra and its related festivals are the most important which are attended by millions of people every year. Sand art and applique art are some of the important crafts of the city. Puri is one of the 12 heritage cities chosen by the Government of India for holistic development.

 

GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE

GEOGRAPHY

Puri, located on the east coast of India on the Bay of Bengal, is in the center of the district of the same name. It is delimited by the Bay of Bengal on the south east, the Mauza Sipaurubilla on the west, Mauz Gopinathpur in the north and Mauza Balukhand in the east. It is within the 67 kilometres coastal stretch of sandy beaches that extends between Chilika Lake and the south of Puri city. However, the administrative jurisdiction of the Puri Municipality extends over an area of 16.3268 square kilometres spread over 30 wards, which includes a shore line of 5 kilometres.

 

Puri is in the coastal delta of the Mahanadi River on the shores of the Bay of Bengal. In the ancient days it was near to Sisupalgarh (Ashokan Tosali) when the land was drained by a tributary of the River Bhargavi, a branch of the Mahanadi River, which underwent a meandering course creating many arteries altering the estuary, and formed many sand hills. These sand hills could not be "cut through" by the streams. Because of the sand hills, the Bhargavi River flowing to the south of Puri, moved away towards the Chilika Lake. This shift also resulted in the creation of two lagoons known as Sar and Samang on the eastern and northern parts of Puri respectively. Sar lagoon has a length of 8.0 km in an east-west direction and has a width of 3.2 km in north-south direction. The river estuary has a shallow depth of 1.5 m only and the process of siltation is continuing. According to a 15th-century chronicle the stream that flowed at the base of the Blue Mountain or Neelachal was used as the foundation or high plinth of the present temple which was then known as Purushottama, the Supreme Being. A 16th century chronicle attributes filling up of the bed of the river which flowed through the present Grand Road, during the reign of King Narasimha II (1278–1308).

 

CLIMATE

According to the Köppen and Geiger the climate of Puri is classified Aw. The city has moderate and tropical climate. Humidity is fairly high throughout the year. The temperature during summer touches a maximum of 36 °C and during winter it is 17 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1,337 millimetres and the average annual temperature is 26.9 °C.

 

HISTORY

NAMES IN HISTORY

Puri, the holy land of Lord Jaganath, also known popularly as Badadeula in local usage, has many ancient names in the Hindu scriptures such as the Rigveda, Matsya purana, Brahma Purana, Narada Purana, Padma Purana, Skanda Purana, Kapila samhita and Niladrimahodaya. In the Rigveda, in particular, it is mentioned as a place called Purushamandama-grama meaning the place where the Creator deity of the world – Supreme Divinity deified on altar or mandapa was venerated near the coast and prayers offered with vedic hymns. Over time the name got changed to Purushottama Puri and further shortened to Puri and the Purusha became Jagannatha. Close to this place sages like Bhrigu, Atri and Markandeya had their hermitage. Its name is mentioned, conforming to the deity worshipped, as Srikshetra, Purusottama Dhāma, Purusottama Kshetra, Purusottama Puri and Jagannath Puri. Puri is however, a common usage now. It is also known the geographical features of its siting as Shankhakshetra (layout of the town is in the form of a conch shell.), Neelāchala ("blue mountain" a terminology used to name very large sand lagoon over which the temple was built but this name is not in vogue), Neelāchalakshetra, Neelādri, The word 'Puri' in Sanskrit means "town", or 'city' and is cognate with polis in Greek.

 

Another ancient name is Charita as identified by Cunningham which was later spelled as Che-li-ta-lo by Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang.When the present temple was built by the Ganga king Chodangadev in the 11th and 12th centuries it was called Purushottamkshetra. However, the Moghuls, the Marathas and early British rulers called it Purushottama-chhatar or just Chhatar. In Akbar's Ain-i-Akbari and subsequent Muslim historical records it was known as Purushottama. In the Sanskrit drama authored by Murari Mishra in the 8th century it is referred as Purushottama only. It was only after twelfth century Puri came to be known by the shortened form of Jagannatha Puri, named after the deity or in a short form as Puri. In some records pertaining to the British rule, the word 'Jagannath' was used for Puri. It is the only shrine in India, where Radha, along with Lakshmi, Saraswati, Durga, Bhudevi, Sati, Parvati, and Shakti abodes with Krishna, also known as Jagannath.

 

ANCIENT PERIOD

According to the chronicle Madala Panji, in 318 the priests and servitors of the temple spirited away the idols to escape the wrath of the Rashtrakuta King Rakatavahu. The temple's ancient historical records also finds mention in the Brahma Purana and Skanda Purana as having been built by the king Indradyumna of Ujjayani.

 

According to W.J. Wilkinson, in Puri, Buddhism was once a well established practice but later Buddhists were persecuted and Brahmanism became the order of the religious practice in the town; the Buddha deity in now worshipped by the Hindus as Jagannatha. It is also said that some relics of Buddha were placed inside the idol of Jagannath which the Brahmins claimed were the bones of Krishna. Even during Ashoka’s reign in 240 BC Odisha was a Buddhist center and that a tribe known as Lohabahu (barbarians from outside Odisha) converted to Buddhism and built a temple with an idol of Buddha which is now worshipped as Jagannatha. It is also said that Lohabahu deposited some Buddha relics in the precincts of the temple.

 

Construction of the Jagannatha Temple started in 1136 and completed towards the later part of the 12th century. The King of the Ganga dynasty, Anangabhima dedicated his kingdom to the God, then known as the Purushottam-Jagannatha and resolved that from then on he and his descendants would rule under "divine order as Jagannatha's sons and vassals". Even though princely states do not exist in independent India, the heirs of the Gajapati dynasty of Khurda still perform the ritual duties of the temple; the king formally sweeps the road in front of the chariots before the start of the Rathayatra.

 

MEDIEVAL AND EARLY MODERN PERIODS

History of the temple is the history of the town of Puri, which was invaded 18 times during its history to plunder the treasures of the Jagannath Puri temple. The first invasion was in the 8th century by Rastrakuta king Govinda-III (AD 798–814) and the last was in 1881 by the followers of Alekh Religion who did not recognize Jagannath worship. In between, from the 1205 onward there were many invasions of the city and its temple by Muslims of the Afghans and Moghuls descent, known as Yavanas or foreigners; they had mounted attacks to ransack the wealth of the temple rather than for religious reasons. In most of these invasions the idols were taken to safe places by the priests and the servitors of the temple. Destruction of the temple was prevented by timely resistance or surrender by the kings of the region. However, the treasures of the temple were repeatedly looted. Puri is the site of the Govardhana matha, one of the four cardinal institutions established by Adi Shankaracharya, when he visited Puri in 810 and since then it has become an important dham (divine centre) for the Hindus; the others being those at Sringeri, Dwaraka and Jyotirmath. The matha is headed by Jagatguru Shankarachrya. The significance of the four dhams is that the Lord Vishnu takes his dinner at Puri, has his bath at Rameshwaram, spends the night at Dwarka and does penance at Badrinath.

 

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu of Bengal who established the Bhakti movements of India in the sixteenth century, now known by the name the Hare Krishna movement, spent many years as a devotee of Jagannatha at Puri; he is said to have merged his "corporal self" with the deity. There is also a matha of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu here.

 

In the 17th century for the sailors sailing on the east coast of India, the landmark was the temple located in a plaza in the centre of the town which they called the "White Pagoda" while the Konark Sun Temple, 60 kilometres away to the east of Puri, was known as the "Black Pagoda".

 

The iconographic representation of the images in the Jagannath temple are believed to be the forms derived from the worship made by the tribal groups of Sabaras belonging to northern Odisha. These images are replaced at regular intervals as the wood deteriorates. This replacement is a special event carried out ritulistically by special group of carpenters.

 

The town has many Mathas (Monasteries of the various Hindu sects). Among the important mathas is the Emar Matha founded by the Tamil Vaishnav Saint Ramanujacharya in the 12th century AD. At present this matha is located in front of Simhadvara across the eastern corner of the Jagannath Temple is reported to have been built in the 16th century during the reign of Suryavamsi Gajapati. The matha was in the news recently for the large cache of 522 silver slabs unearthded from a closed room.

 

The British conquered Orissa in 1803 and recognizing the importance of the Jagannatha Temple in the life of the people of the state they initially placed an official to look after the temple's affairs and later declared it a district with the same name.

 

MODERN HISTORY

In 1906, Sri Yukteswar an exponent of Kriya Yoga, a resident of Puri, established an ashram in the sea-side town of Puri, naming it "Kararashram" as a spiritual training center. He died on 9 March 1936 and his body is buried in the garden of the ashram.

 

The city is the site of the former summer residence of British Raj built in 1913–14 during the era of governors, the Raj Bhavan.

 

For the people of Puri Lord Jagannath, visualized as Lord Krishna, is synonymous with their city. They believe that the Jagannatha looks after the welfare of the state. However, after the incident of the partial collapse of the Jagannatha Temple, the Amalaka part of the tower on 14 June 1990 people became apprehensive and thought it was not a good omen for the welfare of the State of Odisha. The replacement of the fallen stone by another of the same size and weight (seven tons) had to be done only in the an early morning hours after the gods had woken up after a good nights sleep which was done on 28 February 1991.

 

Puri has been chosen as one of the heritage cities for the Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana scheme of the Indian Government. It is one of 12 the heritage cities chosen with "focus on holistic development" to be implemented in 27 months by end of March 2017.

 

Non-Hindus are not permitted to enter the shrines but are allowed to view the temple and the proceedings from the roof of the Raghunandan library within the precincts of the temple for a small donation.

 

DEMOGRAPHICS

As of 2001 India census, Puri city, an urban Agglomeration governed by Municipal Corporation in Orissa state, had a population of 157,610 which increased to 200,564 in 2011. Males, 104,086, females, 96,478, children under 6 years of age, 18,471. The sex ratio is 927 females to 1000 males. Puri has an average literacy rate of 88.03 percent (91.38 percent males and 84.43 percent females). Religion-wise data is not reported.

 

ECONOMY

The economy of Puri is dependent on tourism to the extent of about 80%. The temple is the focal point of the entire area of the town and provides major employment to the people of the town. Agricultural production of rice, ghee, vegetables and so forth of the region meets the huge requirements of the temple, with many settlements aroiund the town exclusively catering to the other religious paraphernalia of the temple. The temple administration employs 6,000 men to perform the rituals. The temple also provides economic sustenance to 20,000 people belonging to 36 orders and 97 classes. The kitchen of the temple which is said to be the largest in the world employs 400 cooks.

 

CITY MANAGEMENT AND GOVERNANCE

Puri Municipality, Puri Konark Development Authority, Public Health Engineering Organisastion, Orissa Water Supply Sewerage Board are some of the principal organizations that are devolved with the responsibility of providing for all the urban needs of civic amenities such as water supply, sewerage, waste management, street lighting, and infrastructure of roads. The major activity which puts maximum presuure on these organizations is the annual event of the Ratha Yatra held for 10 days during July when more than a million people attend the grand event. This event involves to a very large extent the development activities such as infrastructure and amenities to the pilgrims, apart from security to the pilgrims.

 

The civic administration of Puri is the responsibility of the Puri Municipality which came into existence in 1864 in the name of Puri Improvement Trust which got converted into Puri Municipality in 1881. After India's independence in 1947, Orissa Municipal Act-1950 was promulgated entrusting the administration of the city to the Puri Municipality. This body is represented by elected representative with a Chairperson and councilors representing the 30 wards within the municipal limits.

 

LANDMARKS

JAGANNATH TEMPLE AT PURI

The Temple of Jagannath at Puri is one of the major Hindu temples built in the Kalinga style of architecture, in respect of its plan, front view and structural detailing. It is one of the Pancharatha (Five chariots) type consisting of two anurathas, two konakas and one ratha with well-developed pagas. Vimana or Deula is the sanctum sanctorum where the triad (three) deities are deified on the ratnavedi (Throne of Pearls), and over which is the temple tower, known as the rekha deula; the latter is built over a rectangular base of the pidha temples as its roof is made up of pidhas that are sequentially arranged horizontal platforms built in descending order forming a pyramidal shape. The mandapa in front of the sanctum sanctorum is known as Jagamohana where devotees assemble to offer worship. The temple tower with a spire rises to a height of 58 m in height and a flag is unfurled above it fixed over a wheel (chakra). Within the temple complex is the Nata Mandir, a large hall where Garuda stamba (pillar). Chaitanya Mahaprabhu used to stand here and pray. In the interior of the Bhoga Mantap, adjoining the Nata mandir, there is profusion of decorations of sculptures and paintings which narrate the story of Lord Krishna. The temple is built on an elevated platform (of about 39,000 m2 area), 20 ft above the adjoining area. The temple rises to a height of 214 ft above the road level. The temple complex covers an area of 4,3 ha. There is double walled enclosure, rectangular in shape (rising to a height of 20 ft) surrounding the temple complex of which the outer wall is known as Meghanada Prachira, measuring 200 by 192 metres. The inner walled enclosure, known as Kurmabedha. measures 126m x 95m. There are four entry gates (in four cardinal directions to the temple located at the center of the walls in the four directions of the outer circle. These are: the eastern gate called Singhadwara (Lions Gate), the southern gate known as Ashwa Dwara (Horse Gate), the western gate called the Vyaghra Dwara (Tigers Gate) or the Khanja Gate, and the northern gate called the Hathi Dwara or (elephant gate). The four gates symbolize the four fundamental principles of Dharma (right conduct), Jnana (knowledge), Vairagya (renunciation) and Aishwarya (prosperity). The gates are crowned with pyramid shapes structures. There is stone pillar in front of the Singhadwara called the Aruna Stambha {Solar Pillar}, 11 metres in height with 16 faces, made of chlorite stone, at the top of which is mounted an elegant statue of Arun (Sun) in a prayer mode. This pillar was shifted from the Konarak Sun temple. All the gates are decorated with guardian statues in the form of lion, horse mounted men, tigers and elephants in the name and order of the gates. A pillar made of fossilized wood is used for placing lamps as offering. The Lion Gate (Singhadwara) is the main gate to the temple, which guarded by two guardian deities Jaya and Vijaya. The main gates is ascended through 22 steps known as Baisi Pahaca which are revered as it is said to possess "spiritual animation". Children are made to roll down these steps from top to bottom to bring them spiritual happiness. After entering the temple on the left hand side there is huge kitchen where food is prepared in hygienic conditions in huge quantities that it is termed as "the biggest hotel of the world".

 

The legend says that King Indradyumma was directed by Lord Jagannath in a dream to build a temple for him and he built it as directed. However, according to historical records the temple was started some time during the 12th century by King Chodaganga of the Eastern Ganga dynasty. It was however completed by his descendant, Anangabhima Deva, in the 12th century. The wooden images of Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra were then deified here. The temple was under the control of the Hindu rulers up to 1558. Then, when Orissa was occupied by the Afghan Nawab of Bengal, it was brought under the control of the Afghan General Kalapahad. Following the defeat of the Afghan king by Raja Mansingh, the General of Mughal emperor Akbar, the temple became a part of the Mughal empire till 1751 AD. Subsequently it was under the control of the Marathas till 1803. Then, when British Raj took over Orissa, the Puri Raja was entrusted with its to management until 1947.

 

The triad of images in the temple are of Jagannatha, personifying Lord Krishna, Balabhadra, his older brother, and Subhadra his younger sister, which are made of wood (neem) in an unfinished form. The stumps of wood which form the images of the brothers have human arms and that of Subhadra does not have any arms. The heads are large and un-carved and are painted. The faces are made distinct with the large circular shaped eyes.

 

THE PANCHA TIRTHA OF PURI

Hindus consider it essential to bathe in the Pancha Tirtha or the five sacred bathing spots of Puri, India, to complete a pilgrimage to Puri. The five sacred water bodies are the Indradyumana Tank, the Rohini Kunda, the Markandeya Tank, Swetaganga Tank, and the The Sea also called the Mahodadhi is considered a sacred bathing spot in the Swargadwar area. These tanks have perennial sources of supply in the form of rain water and ground water.

 

GUNDICHA TEMPLE

Known as the Garden House of Jagannath, the Gundicha temple stands in the centre of a beautiful garden, surrounded by compound walls on all sides. It lies at a distance of about 3 kilometres to the north east of the Jagannath Temple. The two temples are located at the two ends of the Bada Danda (Grand Avenue) which is the pathway for the Rath Yatra. According to a legend, Gundicha was the wife of King Indradyumna who originally built the Jagannath temple.

 

The temple is built using light-grey sandstone and architecturally, it exemplifies typical Kalinga temple architecture in the Deula style. The complex comprises four components: vimana (tower structure containing the sanctum), jagamohana (assembly hall), nata-mandapa (festival hall) and bhoga-mandapa (hall of offerings). There is also a kitchen connected by a small passage. The temple is set within a garden, and is known as "God's Summer Garden Retreat" or garden house of Jagannath. The entire complex, including garden, is surrounded by a wall which measures 131 m × 98 m with height of 6.1 m.

 

Except for the 9-day Rath Yatra when triad images are worshipped in Gundicha Temple, the rest of the year it remains unoccupied. Tourists can visit the temple after paying an entry fee. Foreigners (prohibited entry in the main temple) are allowed inside this temple during this period. The temple is under the Jagannath Temple Administration, Puri – the governing body of the main temple. A small band of servitors maintain the temple.

 

SWARGADWAR

Swargadwar is the name given to the cremation ground or burning ghat which is located on the shores of the sea were thousands of dead bodies of Hindus are brought from faraway places to cremate. It is a belief that the Chitanya Mahaparabhu disppaeread from this Swargadwar about 500 years back.

 

BEACH

The beach at Puri known as the "Ballighai beach} is 8 km away at the mouth of Nunai River from the town and is fringed by casurian trees. It has golden yellow sand and has pleasant sunshine. Sunrise and sunset are pleasant scenic attractions here. Waves break in at the beach which is long and wide.

 

DISTRICT MUSEUM

The Puri district museum is located on the station road where the exhibits are of different types of garments worn by Lord Jagannath, local sculptures, patachitra (traditional, cloth-based scroll painting) and ancient Palm-leaf manuscripts and local craft work.

 

RAGHUNANDANA LIBRARY

Raghunandana Library is located in the Emmra matha complex (opposite Simhadwara or Lion gate, the main entrance gate). The Jagannatha Aitihasika Gavesana Samiti (Jagannatha Historical Center) is also located here. The library contains ancient palm leaf manuscripts of Jagannatha, His cult and the history of the city. From the roof of the library one gets a picturesque view of the temple complex.

 

FESTIVALS OF PURI

Puri witnesses 24 festivals every year, of which 13 are major festivals. The most important of these is the Rath Yatra or the Car festival held in the month June–July which is attended by more than 1 million people.

 

RATH YATRA AT PURI

The Jagannath triad are usually worshiped in the sanctum of the temple at Puri, but once during the month of Asadha (Rainy Season of Orissa, usually falling in month of June or July), they are brought out onto the Bada Danda (main street of Puri) and travel 3 kilometrer to the Shri Gundicha Temple, in huge chariots (ratha), allowing the public to have darśana (Holy view). This festival is known as Rath Yatra, meaning the journey (yatra) of the chariots (ratha). The yatra starts, according to Hindu calendar Asadha Sukla Dwitiya )the second day of bright fortnight of Asadha (June–July) every year.

 

Historically, the ruling Ganga dynasty instituted the Rath Yatra at the completion of the great temple around 1150 AD. This festival was one of those Hindu festivals that was reported to the Western world very early. In his own account of 1321, Odoric reported how the people put the "idols" on chariots, and the King and Queen and all the people drew them from the "church" with song and music.

 

The Rathas are huge wheeled wooden structures, which are built anew every year and are pulled by the devotees. The chariot for Jagannath is about 14 m high and 35 feet square and takes about 2 months to construct. Th chariot is mounted with 16 wheels, each of 2.1 m diameter. The carvings in the front of the chariot has four wooden horses drawn by Maruti. On its other three faces the wooden carvings are Rama, Surya and Vishnu. The chariot is known as Nandi Ghosha. The roof of the chariot is covered with yellow and golden coloured cloth. The next chariot is that of Balabhadra which is 13 m in height fitted with 14 wheels. The chariot is carved with Satyaki as the charioteer. The carvings on this chariot also include images of Narasimha and Rudra as Jagannath's companions. The next chariot in the order is that of Subhadra, which is 13 m in height supported on 12 wheels, roof covered in black and red colour cloth and the chariot is known as Darpa-Dalaan. The charioteer carved is Arjuna. Other images carved on the chariot are that of Vana Durga, Tara Devi and Chandi Devi. The artists and painters of Puri decorate the cars and paint flower petals and other designs on the wheels, the wood-carved charioteer and horses, and the inverted lotuses on the wall behind the throne. The huge chariots of Jagannath pulled during Rath Yatra is the etymological origin of the English word Juggernaut. The Ratha-Yatra is also termed as the Shri Gundicha yatra and Ghosha yatra

 

CHHERA PAHARA

The Chhera Pahara is a significant ritual associated with the Ratha-Yatra. During the festival, the Gajapati King wears the outfit of a sweeper and sweeps all around the deities and chariots in the Chera Pahara (sweeping with water) ritual. The Gajapati King cleanses the road before the chariots with a gold-handled broom and sprinkles sandalwood water and powder with utmost devotion. As per the custom, although the Gajapati King has been considered the most exalted person in the Kalingan kingdom, he still renders the menial service to Jagannath. This ritual signified that under the lordship of Jagannath, there is no distinction between the powerful sovereign Gajapati King and the most humble devotee.

 

CHADAN YATRA

In Akshaya Tritiya every year the Chandan Yatra festival marks the commencement of the construction of the Chariots of the Rath Yatra. It also marks the celebration of the Hindu new year.

 

SNANA YATRA

On the Purnima day in the month of Jyestha (June) the triad images of the Jagannath temple are ceremonially bathed and decorated every year on the occasion of Snana Yatra. Water for the bath is taken in 108 pots from the Suna kuan (meaning: "golden well") located near the northern gate of the temple. Water is drawn from this well only once in a year for the sole purpose of this religious bath of the deities. After the bath the triad images are dressed in the fashion of the elephant god, Ganesha. Later during the night the original triad images are taken out in a procession back to the main temple but kept at a place known as Anasara pindi. After this the Jhulana Yatra is when proxy images of the deities are taken out in a grand procession for 21 days, cruised over boats in the Narmada tank.

 

ANAVASARA OR ANASARA

Anasara literally means vacation. Every year, the triad images without the Sudarshan after the holy Snana Yatra are taken to a secret altar named Anavasara Ghar Palso known as "Anasara pindi} where they remain for the next dark fortnight (Krishna paksha). Hence devotees are not allowed to view them. Instead of this devotees go to nearby place Brahmagiri to see their beloved lord in the form of four handed form Alarnath a form of Vishnu. Then people get the first glimpse of lord on the day before Rath Yatra, which is called Navayouvana. It is said that the gods suffer from fever after taking ritual detailed bath and they are treated by the special servants named, Daitapatis for 15 days. Daitapatis perform special niti (rite) known as Netrotchhaba (a rite of painting the eyes of the triad). During this period cooked food is not offered to the deities.

 

NAVA KALEVARA

One of the most grandiloquent events associated with the Lord Jagannath, Naba Kalabera takes place when one lunar month of Ashadha is followed by another lunar month of Aashadha, called Adhika Masa (extra month). This can take place in 8, 12 or even 18 years. Literally meaning the "New Body" (Nava = New, Kalevar = Body), the festival is witnessed by as millions of people and the budget for this event exceeds $500,000. The event involves installation of new images in the temple and burial of the old ones in the temple premises at Koili Vaikuntha. The idols that were worshipped in the temple, installed in the year 1996, were replaced by specially made new images made of neem wood during Nabakalebara 2015 ceremony held during July 2015. More than 3 million devotees were expected to visit the temple during the Nabakalebara 2015 held in July.

 

SUNA BESHA

Suna Bhesha also known as Raja or Rajadhiraja bhesha or Raja Bhesha, is an event when the triad images of the Jagannath Temple are adorned with gold jewelry. This event is observed 5 times during a year. It is commonly observed on Magha Purnima (January), Bahuda Ekadashi also known as Asadha Ekadashi (July), Dashahara (Vijyadashami) (October), Karthik Purnima (November), and Pousa Purnima (December). While one such Suna Bhesha event is observed on Bahuda Ekadashi during the Rath Yatra on the chariots placed at the lion's gate or the Singhdwar; the other four Bheshas' are observed inside the temple on the Ratna Singhasana (gem studded altar). On this occasion gold plates are decorated over the hands and feet of Jagannath and Balabhadra; Jagannath is also adorned with a Chakra (disc) made of gold on the right hand while a silver conch adorns the left hand. However, Balabhadra is decorated with a plough made of gold on the left hand while a golden mace adorns his right hand.

 

NILADRI BIJE

Celebrated on Asadha Trayodashi. It marks the end of the 12 days Ratha yatra. The large wooden images of the triad of gods are moved from the chariots and then carried to the sanctum sanctorum, swaying rhythmically, a ritual which is known as pahandi.

 

SAHI YATRA

Considered the world's biggest open-air theatre, the Sahi yatra is an 11 day long traditional cultural theatre festival or folk drama which begins on Ram Navami and ending in Rama avishke (Sanskrit:anointing) every year. The festival includes plays depicting various scenes from the Ramayan. The residents of various localities or Sahis are entrusted the task of performing the drama at the street corners.

  

TRANSPORT

Earlier when roads did not exist people walked or travelled by animal drawn vehicles or carriages along beaten tracks. Up to Calcutta travel was by riverine craft along the Ganges and then by foot or carriages to Puri. It was only during the Maratha rule that the popular Jagannath Sadak (Road) was built around 1790. The East India Company laid the rail track from Calcutta to Puri which became operational in 1898. Puri is now well connected by rail, road and air services. A broad gauge railway line of the South Eastern Railways connects with Puri and Khurda is an important Railway junction. By rail it is about 499 kilometres away from Calcutta and 468 kilometres from Vishakhapatnam. Road network includes NH 203 that links the town with Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha which is about 60 kilometres away. NH 203 B connects the town with Satapada via Brahmagiri. Marine drive which is part of NH 203 A connects Puri with Konark. The nearest airport is at Bhubaneswar, about 60 kilometres away from Puri. Puri railway station is among the top hundred booking stations of Indian Railways.

 

ARTS AND CRAFTS

SAND ART

Sand art is a special art form that is created on the beaches of the sea coast of Puri. The art form is attributed to Balaram Das, a poet who lived in the 14th century. He started crafting the sand art forms of the triad deities of the Jagannath Temple at the Puri beach. Now sculptures in sand of various gods and famous people are created by amateur artists which are temporal in nature as they get washed away by waves. This is an art form which has gained international fame in recent years. One of the well known sand artist is Sudarshan Patnaik. He has established the Golden Sand Art Institute in 1995 at the beach to provide training to students interested in this art form.

 

APPLIQUE ART

Applique art work, which is a stitching based craft, unlike embroidery, which was pioneered by the Hatta Maharana of Pipili is widely used in Puri, both for decoration of the deities but also for sale. His family members are employed as darjis or tailors or sebaks by the Maharaja of Puri who prepare articles for decorating the deities in the temple for various festivals and religious ceremonies. These applique works are brightly coloured and patterned fabric in the form of canopies, umbrellas, drapery, carry bags, flags, coberings of dummy horses and cows, and other household textiles which are marketed in Puri. The cloth used are in dark colours of red, black, yellow, green, blue and turquoise blue.

 

CULTURE

Cultural activities, apart from religiuos festivals, held annually are: The Puri Beach Festival held between 5 and 9 November and the Shreeksherta Utsav held from 20 December to 2 January where cultural programmes include unique sand art, display of local and traditional handicrafts and food festival. In addition cultural programmes are held every Saturday for two hours on in second Saturday of the moth at the district Collector's Conference Hall near Sea Beach Polic Station. Apart from Odissi dance, Odiya music, folk dances, and cultural programmes are part of this event. Odishi dance is the cultural heritage of Puri. This dance form originated in Puri in the dances performed Devadasis (Maharis) attached to the Jagannath temple who performed dances in the Natamantapa of the temple to please the deities. Though the devadadsi practice has been discontinued, the dance form has become modern and classical and is widely popular, and many of the Odishi virtuoso artists and gurus (teachers) are from Puri.

 

EDUCATION

SOME OF THE EDUCATIONNAL INSTITUTIONS IN PURI

- Ghanashyama Hemalata Institute of Technology and Management

- Gangadhar Mohapatra Law College, established in 1981[84]

- Extension Unit of Regional Research Institute of Homoeopathy; Puri under Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH), New Delhi established in March 2006

- Sri Jagannath Sanskrit Vishwavidyalaya, established in July 1981

- The Industrial Training Institute, a Premier Technical Institution to provide education in skilled, committed & talented technicians, established in 1966 of the Government of India

 

PURI PEOPLE

Gopabandhu Das

Acharya Harihar

Nilakantha Das

Kelucharan Mohapatra

Pankaj Charan Das

Manasi Pradhan

Raghunath Mohapatra

Sudarshan Patnaik

Biswanath Sahinayak

Rituraj Mohanty

 

WIKIPEDIA

Gangtok is a municipality, the capital and the largest town of the Indian state of Sikkim. It also is the headquarters of the East Sikkim district. Gangtok is located in the eastern Himalayan range, at an elevation of 1,650 m. The town's population of 100,000 belongs to different ethnicities such as Nepali, Lepchas and Bhutia. Nestled within higher peaks of the Himalaya and enjoying a year-round mild temperate climate, Gangtok is at the centre of Sikkim's tourism industry.

 

Gangtok rose to prominence as a popular Buddhist pilgrimage site after the construction of the Enchey Monastery in 1840. In 1894, the ruling Sikkimese Chogyal, Thutob Namgyal, transferred the capital to Gangtok. In the early 20th century, Gangtok became a major stopover on the trade route between Lhasa in Tibet and cities such as Kolkata (then Calcutta) in British India. After India won its independence from Britain in 1947, Sikkim chose to remain an independent monarchy, with Gangtok as its capital. In 1975, after the integration with the union of India, Gangtok was made India's 22nd state capital.

 

The precise meaning of the name Gangtok is unclear, though the most popular meaning is "hill top". Today, Gangtok is a centre of Tibetan Buddhist culture and learning, with the presence of several monasteries, religious educational institutions, and centres for Tibetology.

 

HISTORY

Like the rest of Sikkim, not much is known about the early history of Gangtok. The earliest records date from the construction of the hermitic Gangtok monastery in 1716. Gangtok remained a small hamlet until the construction of the Enchey Monastery in 1840 made it a pilgrimage center. It became the capital of what was left of Sikkim after an English conquest in the mid 19th century in response to a hostage crisis. After the defeat of the Tibetans by the British, Gangtok became a major stopover in the trade between Tibet and British India at the end of the 19th century. Most of the roads and the telegraph in the area were built during this time.

 

In 1894, Thutob Namgyal, the Sikkimese monarch under British rule, shifted the capital from Tumlong to Gangtok, increasing the city's importance. A new grand palace along with other state buildings was built in the new capital. Following India's independence in 1947, Sikkim became a nation-state with Gangtok as its capital. Sikkim came under the suzerainty of India, with the condition that it would retain its independence, by the treaty signed between the Chogyal and the then Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. This pact gave the Indians control of external affairs on behalf of Sikkimese. Trade between India and Tibet continued to flourish through the Nathula and Jelepla passes, offshoots of the ancient Silk Road near Gangtok. These border passes were sealed after the Sino-Indian War in 1962, which deprived Gangtok of its trading business. The Nathula pass was finally opened for limited trade in 2006, fuelling hopes of economic boom.

 

In 1975, after years of political uncertainty and struggle, including riots, the monarchy was abrogated and Sikkim became India's twenty-second state, with Gangtok as its capital after a referendum. Gangtok has witnessed annual landslides, resulting in loss of life and damage to property. The largest disaster occurred in June 1997, when 38 were killed and hundreds of buildings were destroyed.

 

GEOGRAPHY

Gangtok is located at 27.3325°N 88.6140°E (coordinates of Gangtok head post office). It is situated in the lower Himalayas at an elevation of 1,650 m. The town lies on one side of a hill, with "The Ridge", a promenade housing the Raj Bhawan, the governor's residence, at one end and the palace, situated at an altitude of about 1,800 m, at the other. The city is flanked on east and west by two streams, namely Roro Chu and Ranikhola, respectively. These two rivers divide the natural drainage into two parts, the eastern and western parts. Both the streams meet the Ranipul and flow south as the main Ranikhola before it joins the Teesta at Singtam. Most of the roads are steep, with the buildings built on compacted ground alongside them.

 

Most of Sikkim, including Gangtok, is underlain by Precambrian rocks which contains foliated phyllites and schists; slopes are therefore prone to frequent landslides. Surface runoff of water by natural streams (jhora) and man-made drains has contributed to the risk of landslides. According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, the town falls under seismic zone-IV (on a scale of I to V, in order of increasing seismic activity), near the convergent boundary of the Indian and the Eurasian tectonic plates and is subject to frequent earthquakes. The hills are nestled within higher peaks and the snow-clad Himalayan ranges tower over the town from the distance. Mount Kanchenjunga 8,598 m - the world's third-highest peak - is visible to the west of the city. The existence of steep slopes, vulnerability to landslides, large forest cover and inadequate access to most areas have been a major impediment to the natural and balanced growth of the city.

 

There are densely forested regions around Gangtok, consisting of temperate, deciduous forests of poplar, birch, oak, and elm, as well as evergreen, coniferous trees of the wet alpine zone. Orchids are common, and rare varieties of orchids are featured in flower shows in the city. Bamboos are also abundant. In the lower reaches of the town, the vegetation gradually changes from alpine to temperate deciduous and subtropical. Flowers such as sunflower, marigold, poinsettia, and others bloom, especially in November and December.

 

CLIMATE

Gangtok features a monsoon-influenced subtropical highland climate. Because of its elevation and sheltered environment, Gangtok enjoys a mild, temperate climate all year round. Like most Himalayan towns, Gangtok has five seasons: summer, monsoons, autumn, winter and spring. Temperatures range from an average maximum of 22 °C in summer to an average minimum of 4 °C in winter. Summers (lasting from late April to June) are mild, with maximum temperatures rarely crossing 25 °C. The monsoon season from June to September is characterised by intense torrential rains often causing landslides that block Gangtok's land access to the rest of the country. Rainfall starts to rise from pre-monsoon in May, and peaks during the monsoon, with July recording the highest monthly average of 649.6 mm. In winter temperature averages between 4 °C and 7 °C. Snowfall is rare, and in recent times Gangtok has received snow only in 1990, 2004, 2005 and January 2011. Temperatures below freezing are also rare. During this season the weather can be unstable, and change abruptly from bright sunshine and clear skies to heavy rain within a couple of hours. During spring and autumn the weather is generally sunny and mild. Owing to its elevation, Gangtok is often enveloped in fog during the monsoon and winter months.

 

ECONOMY

The hospitality industry is the largest industry in Gangtok as the city is the main base for Sikkim tourism. Summer and spring seasons are the most popular tourist seasons. Many of Gangtok's residents are employed directly and indirectly in the tourism industry, with many residents owning and working in hotels and restaurants.

 

Ecotourism has emerged as an important economic activity in the region which includes trekking, mountaineering, river rafting and other nature oriented activities. An estimated 351,000 tourists visited Sikkim in 2007, generating revenue of about Rs 50 crores (Rs 500 millions).

 

The Nathula Pass, located about 50 km from Gangtok, used to be the primary route of the wool, fur and spice trade with Tibet and spurred economic growth for Gangtok till the mid-20th century. In 1962, after the border was closed during the Sino-Indian War, Gangtok fell into recession. The pass was reopened in 2006 and trade through the pass is expected to boost the economy of Gangtok. The Sikkim government is keen to open a Lhasa–Gangtok bus service via Nathula pass. Sikkim's mountainous terrain results in the lack of train or air links, limiting the area's potential for rapid industrial development. The government is the largest employer in the city, both directly and as contractors. Gangtok's economy does not have a large manufacturing base, but has a thriving Cottage industry in watch-making, country-made alcohol and handicrafts. Among the handicrafts are the handmade paper industry made from various vegetable fibres or cotton rags. The main market in Gangtok provides many of the state's rural residents a place to offer their produce during the harvest seasons. The majority of the private business community is made up of Marwaris and Biharis. As part of Sikkim, Gangtok enjoys the status of being an income-tax free region as per the state's 1948 Income tax law. As Sikkim is a frontier state, the Indian army maintains a large presence in the vicinity of Gangtok. This leads to a population of semi-permanent residents who bring money into the local economy. The Sikkim government started India's first online lottery Playwin to boost government income, but this was later closed by a ruling from the Sikkim High Court.

 

In 2013 premier Indian publishing company Thomson Digital opened its production unit in Gangtok. Thus becoming first MNC to venture there and paving path for future private companies to explore potential of young workforce of Gangtok.

 

CULTURE

Apart from the major religious festivals of Dashain, Tihar, Christmas, Holi etc., the diverse ethnic populace of the town celebrates several local festivals. The Lepchas and Bhutias celebrate new year in January, while Tibetans celebrate the new year (Losar) with "Devil Dance" in January–February. The Maghe sankranti, Ram Navami are some of the important Nepalese festivals. Chotrul Duchen, Buddha Jayanti, the birthday of the Dalai Lama, Loosong, Bhumchu, Saga Dawa, Lhabab Duechen and Drupka Teshi are some other festivals, some distinct to local culture and others shared with the rest of India, Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet.

 

A popular food in Gangtok is the momo, a steamed dumpling containing pork, beef and vegetables cooked in a doughy wrapping and served with watery soup. Wai-Wai is a packaged snack consisting of noodles which are eaten either dry or in soup form. A form of noodle called thukpa, served in soup form is also popular in Gangtok. Other noodle-based foods such as the chowmein, thenthuk, fakthu, gyathuk and wonton are available. Other traditional Sikkimese cuisine include shah-phaley (Sikkimese patties with spiced minced meat in a crisp samosa-like case) and Gack-ko soup. Restaurants offer a wide variety of traditional Indian, continental and Chinese cuisines to cater to the tourists. Churpee, a kind of hard cheese made from cow's or yak's milk is sometimes chewed. Chhang is a local frothy millet beer traditionally served in bamboo tankards and drunk through bamboo or cane straws. Alcohol is cheap due to low excise duty in Sikkim. Beer, whiskey, rum and brandy are frequently consumed by both locals and non-locals.

 

Residents of Sikkim are music lovers and it is common to hear Western rock music being played in homes and restaurants. Hindi pop songs are also common. Indigenous Nepali rock, music suffused with a western rock beat and Nepali lyrics, is particularly popular.

 

Football (soccer), cricket and archery are the most popular sports in Gangtok. The Paljor Stadium, which hosts football matches, is the sole sporting ground in the city. Thangka - a notable handicraft - is an elaborately hand painted religious scroll in brilliant colours drawn on fabric hung in a monastery or a family altar and occasionally carried by monks in ceremonial processions. Chhaams are vividly costumed monastic dances performed on ceremonial and festive occasions, especially in the monasteries during the Tibetan new year.

 

CITY INSTITUTIONS

A centre of Buddhist learning and culture, Gangtok's most notable Buddhist institutions are the Enchey monastery, the Do-drul Chorten stupa complex and the Rumtek Monastery. The Enchey monastery is the city's oldest monastery and is the seat of the Nyingma order. The two-hundred-year-old baroque monastery houses images of gods, goddesses, and other religious artifacts. In the month of January, the Chaam, or masked dance, is performed with great fanfare. The Dro-dul Chorten is a stupa which was constructed in 1945 by Trulshik Rimpoché, head of the Nyingma order of Tibetan Buddhism. Inside this stupa are complete set of relics, holy books, and mantras. Surrounding the edifice are 108 Mani Lhakor, or prayer wheels. The complex also houses a religious school.

 

The Rumtek Monastery on the outskirts of the town is one of Buddhism's most sacred monasteries. The monastery is the seat of the Kagyu order, one of the major Tibetan sects, and houses some of the world's most sacred and rare Tibetan Buddhist scriptures and religious objects in its reliquary. Constructed in the 1960s, the building is modeled after a similar monastery in Lhasa, Tibet. Rumtek was the focus of international media attention in 2000 after the seventeenth Karmapa, one of the four holiest lamas, fled Lhasa and sought refuge in the monastery.

 

The Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, better known as the Tibetology Museum, houses a huge collection of masks, Buddhist scriptures, statues, and tapestries. It has over two hundred Buddhist icons, and is a centre of study of Buddhist philosophy.

 

The Thakurbari Temple, located in the heart of the city, established in 1935 on a prime piece of land donated by the then Maharaja of Sikkim is one of the oldest and best known Hindu temple in the city. The Ganesh Tok and the Hanuman Tok, dedicated to the Hindu gods Ganpati and Hanuman and housing important Hindu deities, are located in the upper reaches of the city. The Himalayan Zoological Park exhibits the fauna of the Himalayas in their natural habitats. The zoo features the Himalayan Black Bear, the barking deer, the snow leopard, the leopard cat, Tibetan wolf, Masked Palm Civet, red pandas and the spotted deer amongst the others. Jawaharlal Nehru Botanical Gardens, near Rumtek, houses many species of orchid and as many as fifty different species of tree, including many oaks.

 

EDUCATION

Gangtok's schools are either run by the state government or by private and religious organizations. Schools mainly use English and Nepali as their medium of instruction. The schools are either affiliated with the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education, Central Board of Secondary Education or the National Institute of Open Schooling. Notable schools include the Tashi Namgyal Academy, Paljor Namgyal Girls School, Taktse International School and Kendriya Vidyalaya.

 

Colleges conferring graduate degrees include Sikkim Government College, Sikkim Government Law College and Damber Singh College. Sikkim University established in 2007 is functioning in Gangtok; the university has been allotted land in neighbouring Yang Yang town for establishment of it own campus. The university offers a diverse range of courses and has a number of institutes affiliated to it. 8 km from here is the headquarters of the Sikkim Manipal University, which houses Sikkim Manipal Institute of Medical Sciences and Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology. The Indira Gandhi National Open University also has a regional center in the city. There are other institutions offering diplomas in Buddhist literature, catering and other non-mainstream fields. District Institute of Education and Training and State Institute of Education conduct teacher training programs. Students usually go to large cities in the vicinity such as Siliguri or Kolkata in pursuit of higher education. Naropa University also oversees a semester abroad program located in Gangtok. Do not confuse with Sikkim University and Sikkim Manipal University. Both are different.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Here is a spider in its retreat under a leaf of Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia, Fagaceae). I don't know what kind of spider it is, but it's not tiny, and it didn't seem to be attached to any proper web. The little black disks on the leaf are scale-like larvae or pupae of Whiteflies (Aleyrodidae, Sternorrhyncha, Hemiptera) - see this photo and this photo for more info. Hah, they look like little hocky pucks sitting in a puddle of jelly! If I just saw the webbing without the spider, I might think this is the work of a caterpillar. I should add this to the Web Wednesday group, but I already have my two shots for the group this week - but Happy Web Webnesday anyway! (San Marcos Pass, 8 February 2020)

This is a photograph is one of a set of photographs from the Castlepollard 5KM Road Race and Fun Run 2013 which was held in Castlepollard, Co. Westmeath, Ireland on Wednesday 13th August 2014 at 20:00. The race is hosted by North Westmeath Athletic Club. The race has grown in stature and popularity over the years and is now one of the most well attended road races in the midlands. The race offers prizes in all categories. Castlepollard 5KM Road Race attempts to support young runners and walkers by organising a range of underage races around the town square before the adult race at 20:00. Profits from the race go towards grassroots athletics in the region - North Westmeath Athletics, Schools Cross Country, and local community games.

 

Reading on a Smartphone or tablet? Don't forget to scroll down further to read more about this race and see important Internet links to other information about the race! You can also find out how to access and download these photographs.

 

The Castlepollard 5KM can be considered as the final major race in summer road racing in the midlands as with the fading light of the late summer comes less opportunities to hold races in the evening time. Castlepollard is a small town located in North County Westmeath amongst the lakes of Lough Lene and Lough Derravagh. One of the enduring symbols of the Castlepollard 5KM is the tireless work of Andy MacEoin of North Westmeath AC who has been a visitor to almost every road race in the Midlands and beyond over the past number of months to publicize the event. Many of the participants tonight will have seen Andy's strategically placed advertising signs around other road race routes. Certainly this work, and that of many other members of North Westmeath AC, has paid off well.

 

The race begins near the center of the town square and proceeds directly out the R395 towards Coole and Edgeworthstown. The first KM is flat and quick allowing the field to spread out. The race then enters the Tullynally Castle estate and proceeds up the tree-lined avenue. The gardens, like the castle are on a grand scale, taking in nearly 12 acres. This allows the race to make a big loop of the gardens with a quick downhill stretch followed by a sharp climb before the race rejoins it's outgoing path for the final 1.5KM of the race. The final 1100M from the gate of the Castle grounds to the finish is as the first - fast and flat and allows for a great finish passing the GAA grounds with finish line just outside the local Fire Station.

One of the show pieces of the race landscape is Tullynally Castle. The name Tullynally is an adaption of 'Tulaigh an Eallaigh' – the Hill of the Swan. The hill overlooks Lough Derravaragh, the legendary lake of the Children of Lir who were turned into swans. Tullynally Castle is still a family home to this day. Details of visitor times and other information is available on the links below.

 

This year over 450 participants took part in the race. This represented another great attendance. Last year's Castlepollard 5KM set the bar very high for future races with a record participation of just under 470 on the night. The race in 2013 showed an increase of over 100 participants from the previous record of 366 set at the 2012 event. It goes without saying that the Castlepollard 5KM has become one of the "must do" road race events in the midlands. Everything that is good about club road racing in Ireland can be found here.

 

We have a large set of photographs from the event today. The full set is accessible at: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/14714159280/ - They were taken at the start and finish of the event.

 

2014 Castlepollard 5KM Results: www.precisiontiming.net/result.aspx?v=2115

2013 Castlepollard 5KM Results: www.precisiontiming.net/result.aspx?v=1444

2012 Castlepollard 5KM Results: www.precisiontiming.net/result.aspx?v=960

Our Flickr Photographs from Castlepollard 5KM 2013: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157645912529346/

Our Flickr Photographs from Castlepollard 5KM 2011: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157627404031092/

Our Flickr Photographs from Castlepollard 5KM 2010: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157624655001130/

Our Flickr Photographs from Castlepollard 5KM 2009: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157622023529006/

 

Timing and event management was provided by Precision Timing. Results are available on their website at www.precisiontiming.net/result.aspx?v=2100 with additional material available on their Facebook page (www.facebook.com/davidprecisiontiming?fref=ts) See their promotional video on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-7_TUVwJ6Q

 

Reading on a Smartphone or tablet? Don't forget to scroll down further to read more about this race and see important Internet links to other information about the race! You can also find out how to access and download these photographs.

 

Can I use these photographs directly from Flickr on my social media account(s)?

 

Yes - of course you can! Flickr provides several ways to share this and other photographs in this Flickr set. You can share to: email, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Tumblr, LiveJournal, and Wordpress and Blogger blog sites. Your mobile, tablet, or desktop device will also offer you several different options for sharing this photo page on your social media outlets.

 

We take these photographs as a hobby and as a contribution to the running community in Ireland. Our only "cost" is our request that if you are using these images: (1) on social media sites such as Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest, Twitter,LinkedIn, Google+, etc or (2) other websites, blogs, web multimedia, commercial/promotional material that you must provide a link back to our Flickr page to attribute us.

 

This also extends the use of these images for Facebook profile pictures. In these cases please make a separate wall or blog post with a link to our Flickr page. If you do not know how this should be done for Facebook or other social media please email us and we will be happy to help suggest how to link to us.

 

I want to download these pictures to my computer or device?

 

You can download the photographic image here direct to your computer or device. This version is the low resolution web-quality image. How to download will vary slight from device to device and from browser to browser. However - look for a symbol with three dots 'ooo' or the link to 'View/Download' all sizes. When you click on either of these you will be presented with the option to download the image. Remember just doing a right-click and "save target as" will not work on Flickr.

 

I want get full resolution, print-quality, copies of these photographs?

 

If you just need these photographs for online usage then they can be used directly once you respect their Creative Commons license and provide a link back to our Flickr set if you use them. For offline usage and printing all of the photographs posted here on this Flickr set are available free, at no cost, at full image resolution.

 

Please email petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com with the links to the photographs you would like to obtain a full resolution copy of. We also ask race organisers, media, etc to ask for permission before use of our images for flyers, posters, etc. We reserve the right to refuse a request.

 

In summary please remember when requesting photographs from us - If you are using the photographs online all we ask is for you to provide a link back to our Flickr set or Flickr pages. You will find the link above clearly outlined in the description text which accompanies this photograph. Taking these photographs and preparing them for online posting does take a significant effort and time. We are not posting photographs to Flickr for commercial reasons. If you really like what we do please spread the link around your social media, send us an email, leave a comment beside the photographs, send us a Flickr email, etc. If you are using the photographs in newspapers or magazines we ask that you mention where the original photograph came from.

 

I would like to contribute something for your photograph(s)?

Many people offer payment for our photographs. As stated above we do not charge for these photographs. We take these photographs as our contribution to the running community in Ireland. If you feel that the photograph(s) you request are good enough that you would consider paying for their purchase from other photographic providers or in other circumstances we would suggest that you can provide a donation to any of the great charities in Ireland who do work for Cancer Care or Cancer Research in Ireland.

 

We use Creative Commons Licensing for these photographs

We use the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License for all our photographs here in this photograph set. What does this mean in reality?

The explaination is very simple.

Attribution- anyone using our photographs gives us an appropriate credit for it. This ensures that people aren't taking our photographs and passing them off as their own. This usually just mean putting a link to our photographs somewhere on your website, blog, or Facebook where other people can see it.

ShareAlike – anyone can use these photographs, and make changes if they like, or incorporate them into a bigger project, but they must make those changes available back to the community under the same terms.

 

Creative Commons aims to encourage creative sharing. See some examples of Creative Commons photographs on Flickr: www.flickr.com/creativecommons/

 

I ran in the race - but my photograph doesn't appear here in your Flickr set! What gives?

 

As mentioned above we take these photographs as a hobby and as a voluntary contribution to the running community in Ireland. Very often we have actually ran in the same race and then switched to photographer mode after we finished the race. Consequently, we feel that we have no obligations to capture a photograph of every participant in the race. However, we do try our very best to capture as many participants as possible. But this is sometimes not possible for a variety of reasons:

 

     ►You were hidden behind another participant as you passed our camera

     ►Weather or lighting conditions meant that we had some photographs with blurry content which we did not upload to our Flickr set

     ►There were too many people - some races attract thousands of participants and as amateur photographs we cannot hope to capture photographs of everyone

     ►We simply missed you - sorry about that - we did our best!

  

You can email us petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com to enquire if we have a photograph of you which didn't make the final Flickr selection for the race. But we cannot promise that there will be photograph there. As alternatives we advise you to contact the race organisers to enquire if there were (1) other photographs taking photographs at the race event or if (2) there were professional commercial sports photographers taking photographs which might have some photographs of you available for purchase. You might find some links for further information above.

 

Don't like your photograph here?

That's OK! We understand!

 

If, for any reason, you are not happy or comfortable with your picture appearing here in this photoset on Flickr then please email us at petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com and we will remove it as soon as possible. We give careful consideration to each photograph before uploading.

 

I want to tell people about these great photographs!

Great! Thank you! The best link to spread the word around is probably http://www.flickr.com/peterm7/sets

This Trident 2 was new to Stagecoach Manchester(Greater Manchester South)(19233), in 04/2008. It is seen here on Portland Street, Manchester, approaching Piccadilly Gardens, on 19/02/2025. At the time of this photo, this Trident 2 was based at the former Stagecoach Manchester operated Manchester Hyde Road depot. That depot, along with the former Stagecoach Manchester operated Ashton-under-Lyne(Tameside), and Sharston depots, together with the Arriva North West Wythenshawe depot passed to the control of new Manchester incumbent, Metroline Manchester on the eve of 04/01/2025 for Tranche 3 of Bee Network which began in the early hours of the following morning, 05/01/2025. This Trident 2 has since passed back in to the hands of Stagecoach Manchester and was then transferred to the Kingston-upon-Hull depot depot of Stagecoach East Midlands along several former colleagues. © Peter Steel 2025.

The PBJ Imp is the second in the Little Imp series. A common misconception is that the PBJ Imp was named because its coloration is reminiscent of a soaked Peanut Butter and Grape Jelly sandwich. In actuality the Imp was named for the sandwich, but not because of the coloration. Upon first discovery, this Imp was found to be complaining about the difficulty of finding really good grape jelly while at school in Germany, making it impossible to make an excellent PBJ while studying.

Recipe below:

2 slices of white bread

1 big glump of Skippy Extra Chunky PB (none of that all natural stuff)

2 knife fulls of real official Welch’s Grape Jelly ( with ALL the sugar)

1 ½ Big COLD glasses of milk.

 

Life is good!

 

The template for the Imp Series was drawn in Xara Xtreme a vector program. The blank template was then opened in Corel Painter 9 and colored. Print this little guy out as a simple reminder that life is precious, complex and GOOD.

 

This is Page 1 of a photographic atlas I created as a laboratory study resource for my BIOL 121 Anatomy and Physiology I students on the bones and bony landmarks of the appendicular skeleton.

 

Credits: All photography, text, and labels by Rob Swatski, Professor of Biology, Harrisburg Area Community College - York Campus, York, PA. Email: rjswatsk@hacc.edu

 

Studying Anatomy and Physiology? Check out my Survive and Thrive in Anatomy & Physiology series of A&P textbooks! I wrote and illustrated these books to help biology and healthcare students succeed in A&P! Available in paperback, e-book, and Kindle.

 

Available for purchase on my website and Amazon: robswatski.com/

 

Biology Core Concepts - Chemistry and Cells (Book 1): a.co/d/0ijoG8Jv

 

The Histology Comic Book (Book 2): a.co/d/09BADvyS

 

The next book in the series, focusing on the skin, skeleton, and muscles, will be available in Late Spring/Early Summer 2026!

Port of Makassar, also known as Port of Soekarno-Hatta, is a seaport in Makassar, Indonesia. It has the highest passenger traffic among Indonesian ports and the largest cargo traffic in Sulawesi. It is considered a primary port (Pelabuhan Kelas Utama) by the Indonesian Government, along with the Port of Tanjung Priok (Jakarta), Port of Tanjung Perak (Surabaya), and Port of Belawan (Medan).

 

An expansion to the port, dubbed New Port Makassar, is under construction with an expected additional capacity of 1.5 million TEUs in its first phase. The Indonesian Ministry of Transportation has expressed a desire to designate the port as hub for the rest of Eastern Indonesia, in accordance to the current government's maritime axis program.

 

Makassar (Buginese-Makassarese: ᨀᨚᨈ ᨆᨀᨔᨑ; historically spelled Macassar) is the capital of the Indonesian province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth largest urban centre after Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung, and Medan. From 1971 to 1999, the city was named after one of its subdistricts, Ujung Pandang. The city is located on the southwest coast of the island of Sulawesi, facing the Makassar Strait.

 

Throughout its history, Makassar has been an important trading port, hosting the center of the Gowa Sultanate and a Portuguese naval base before its conquest by the Dutch East India Company in the 17th century. It remained an important port in the Dutch East Indies, serving Eastern Indonesian regions with Makassarese fishermen going as far south as the Australian coast. For a brief period after Indonesian independence, Makassar became the capital of the State of East Indonesia, during which an uprising occurred.

 

The city's area is 199.3 square kilometres and it had a population of around 1.6 million in 2013. Its built-up (or metro) area has 1,976,168 inhabitants covering Makassar City and 15 districts. Its official metropolitan area, known as Mamminasata, with 17 additional districts, covers an area of 2,548 square kilometres and had a population of around 2.4 million according to 2010 Census. According to the National Development Planning Agency, Makassar is one of the four main central cities of Indonesia, alongside Medan, Jakarta, and Surabaya. According to Bank Indonesia, Makassar has the second-highest commercial property values in Indonesia, after Greater Jakarta.

 

HISTORY

The trade in spices figured prominently in the history of Sulawesi, which involved frequent struggles between rival native and foreign powers for control of the lucrative trade during the pre-colonial and colonial period, when spices from the region were in high demand in the West. Much of South Sulawesi's early history was written in old texts that can be traced back to the 13th and 14th centuries.

 

Makassar is mentioned in the Nagarakretagama, a Javanese eulogy composed in 14th century during the reign of Majapahit king Hayam Wuruk. In the text, Makassar is mentioned as an island under Majapahit dominance, alongside Butun, Salaya and Banggawi.

 

MAKASSARESE KINGDOM

The 9th King of Gowa Tumaparisi Kallonna (1512-1546) is described in the royal chronicle as the first Gowa ruler to ally with the nearby trade-oriented polity of Tallo, a partnership which endured throughout Makassar's apogee as an independent kingdom. The centre of the dual kingdom was at Sombaopu, near the then mouth of the Jeneberang River about 10 km south of the present city centre, where, where an international port and a fortress were gradually developed. First Malay traders (expelled from their Melaka metropolis by the Portuguese in 1511), then Portuguese from at least the 1540s, began to make this port their base for trading to the Spice Islands' (Maluku), further east.

 

The growth of Dutch maritime power over the spice trade after 1600 made Makassar more vital as an alternative port open to all traders, as well as a source of rice to trade with rice-deficient Maluku. The Dutch East India Company (VOC) sought a monopoly of Malukan nutmeg and cloves, and came close to succeeding at the expense of English, Portuguese and Muslims from the 1620s. The Makassar kings maintained a policy of free trade, insisting on the right of any visitor to do business in the city, and rejecting the attempts of the Dutch to establish a monopoly.

 

Makassar depended particularly on the Muslim Malay and Catholic Portuguese sailors communities as its two crucial economic assets. However the English East India Company also established a post there in 1613, the Danish Company arrived in 1618, and Chinese, Spanish and Indian traders were all important. When the Dutch conquered Portuguese Melaka in 1641, Makassar became the largest Portuguese base in Southeast Asia. The Portuguese population had been in the hundreds, but rose to several thousand, served by churches of the Franciscans, Dominicans and Jesuits as well as the regular clergy. By the 16th century, Makassar had become Sulawesi's major port and centre of the powerful Gowa and Tallo sultanates which between them had a series of 11 fortresses and strongholds and a fortified sea wall that extended along the coast. Portuguese rulers called the city Macáçar.

 

Makassar was very ably led in the first half of the 17th century, when it effectively resisted Dutch pressure to close down its trade to Maluku, and made allies rather than enemies of the neighbouring Bugis states. Karaeng Matoaya (c.1573-1636) was ruler of Tallo from 1593, as well as Chancellor or Chief Minister (Tuma'bicara-butta) of the partner kingdom of Gowa. He managed the succession to the Gowa throne in 1593 of the 7-year-old boy later known as Sultan Alaud-din, and guided him through the acceptance of Islam in 1603, numerous modernizations in military and civil governance, and cordial relations with the foreign traders. The conversion of the citizens to Islam was followed by the first official Friday Prayer in the city, traditionally dated to 9 November 1607, which is celebrated today as the city's official anniversary. John Jourdain called Makassar in his day "the kindest people in all the Indias to strangers". Matoaya's eldest son succeeded him on the throne of Tallo, but as Chancellor he had evidently groomed his brilliant second son, Karaeng Pattingalloang (1600-54), who exercised that position from 1639 until his death. Pattingalloang must have been partly educated by Portuguese, since as an adult he spoke Portuguese "as fluently as people from Lisbon itself", and avidly read all the books that came his way in Portuguese, Spanish or Latin. French Jesuit Alexandre de Rhodes described his passion for mathematics and astronomy, on which he pestered the priest endlessly, while even one of his Dutch adversaries conceded he was "a man of great knowledge, science and understanding."

 

DUTCH COLONIAL PERIOD

After Pattingalloang's death in 1654, a new king of Gowa, Sultan Hasanuddin, rejected the alliance with Tallo by declaring he would be his own Chancellor. Conflicts within the kingdom quickly escalated, the Bugis rebelled under the leadership of Bone, and the Dutch VOC seized its long-awaited chance to conquer Makassar with the help of the Bugis (1667-9). Their first conquest in 1667 was the northern Makassar fort of Ujung Pandang, while in 1669 they conquered and destroyed Sombaopu in one of the greatest battles of 17th century Indonesia. The VOC moved the city centre northward, around the Ujung Pandang fort they rebuilt and renamed Fort Rotterdam. From this base they managed to destroy the strongholds of the Sultan of Gowa who was then forced to live on the outskirts of Makassar. Following the Java War (1825–30), Prince Diponegoro was exiled to Fort Rotterdam until his death in 1855.

 

After the arrival of the Dutch, there was an important Portuguese community, also call a bandel, that received the name of Borrobos. Around 1660 the leader of this community, which today would be equivalent to a neighborhood, was the Portuguese Francisco Vieira de Figueiredo.

 

The character of this old trading center changed as a walled city known as Vlaardingen grew. Gradually, in defiance of the Dutch, the Arabs, Malays and Buddhist returned to trade outside the fortress walls, and were joined later by the Chinese.

The town again became a collecting point for the produce of eastern Indonesia – the copra, rattan, Pearls, trepang and sandalwood and the famous oil made from bado nuts used in Europe as men's hair dressing – hence the anti-macassars (embroidered cloths protecting the head-rests of upholstered chairs).

 

Although the Dutch controlled the coast, it was not until the early 20th century that they gained power over the southern interior through a series of treaties with local rulers. Meanwhile, Dutch missionaries converted many of the Toraja people to Christianity. By 1938, the population of Makassar had reached around 84,000 – a town described by writer Joseph Conrad as "the prettiest and perhaps, cleanest looking of all the towns in the islands".

 

In World War II the Makassar area was defended by approximately 1000 men of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army commanded by Colonel M. Vooren. He decided that he could not defend the coast, and was planning to fight a guerrilla war inland. The Japanese landed near Makassar on 9 February 1942. The defenders retreated but were soon overtaken and captured.

 

AFTER INDEPENDENCE

In 1945 came the Indonesian declaration of Independence, and in 1946, Makassar became the capital of the State of East Indonesia, part of the United States of Indonesia. In 1950, it was the site of fighting between pro-Federalist forces under Captain Abdul Assiz and Republican forces under Colonel Sunkono during the Makassar uprising. By the 1950s, the population had increased to such a degree that many of the historic sites gave way to modern development, and today one needs to look very carefully to find the few remains of the city's once grand history.

 

CONNECTION WITH AUSTRALIA

Makassar is also a major fishing center in Sulawesi. One of its major industries is the trepang (sea-cucumber) industry. Trepang fishing brought the Makassan people into contact with Indigenous Australian peoples of northern Australia, long before European settlement (from 1788).

 

C. C. MacKnight in his 1976 work entitled Voyage to Marege: Macassan Trepangers in Northern Australia has shown that they began frequenting the north of Australia around 1700 in search of trepang (sea-slug, sea cucumber, Beche-de-mer), an edible Holothurian. They left their waters during the Northwest Monsoon in December or January for what is now Arnhem Land, Marriage or Marega and the Kimberley region or Kayu Djawa. They returned home with the south-east trade winds in April.

A fleet of between 24 and 26 Macassan perahus was seen in 1803 by French explorers under Nicolas Baudin on the Holothuria Banks in the Timor Sea. In February 1803, Matthew Flinders in the Investigator met six perahus with 20–25 men each on board and was told by the fleet's chief Pobasso, that there were 60 perahus then on the north Australian coast. They were fishing for trepang and appeared to have only a small compass as a navigation aid. In June 1818 Macassan trepang fishing was noted by Phillip Parker King in the vicinity of Port Essington in the Arafura Sea. In 1865 R.J. Sholl, then Government Resident for the British settlement at Camden Sound (near Augustus Island in the Kimberley region) observed seven 'Macassan' perahus with a total of around 300 men on board. He believed that they made kidnapping raids and ranged as far south as Roebuck Bay (later Broome) where 'quite a fleet' was seen around 1866. Sholl believed that they did not venture south into other areas such as Nickol Bay (where the European pearling industry commenced around 1865) due to the absence of trepang in those waters. The Macassan voyages appear to have ceased sometime in the late nineteenth century, and their place was taken by other sailors operating from elsewhere in the Indonesian Archipelago.

 

ECONOMY

The city is southern Sulawesi's primary port, with regular domestic and international shipping connections. It is nationally famous as an important port of call for the pinisi boats, sailing ships which are among the last in use for regular long-distance trade.

 

During the colonial era, the city was widely known as the namesake of Makassar oil, which it exported in great quantity. Makassar ebony is a warm black hue, streaked with tan or brown tones, and highly prized for use in making fine cabinetry and veneers.

 

Nowadays, as the largest city in Sulawesi Island and Eastern Indonesia, the city's economy depends highly on the service sector, which makes up approximately 70% of activity. Restaurant and hotel services are the largest contributor (29.14%), followed by transportation and communication (14.86%), trading (14.86), and finance (10.58%). Industrial activity is next most important after the service sector, with 21.34% of overall activity.

 

TRANSPORTATION

Makassar has a public transportation system called pete-pete. A pete-pete (known elsewhere in Indonesia as an angkot) is a minibus that has been modified to carry passengers. The route of Makassar's pete-petes is denoted by the letter on the windshield. Makassar is also known for its becak (pedicabs), which are smaller than the "becak" in the island of Java. In Makassar, people who drive pedicabs are called Daeng. In addition to becak and pete-pete, the city has a government-run bus system, and taxis.

 

A bus rapid transit (BRT), which is known as "Trans Mamminasata" was started in 2014. It has some routes through Makassar to cities around Makassar region such as Maros, Takallar, and Gowa. Run by Indonesian Transportation Department, each bus has 20 seats and space for 20 standing passengers.

 

A 35-kilometer monorail in the areas of Makassar, Maros Regency, Sungguminasa (Gowa Regency), and Takalar Regency (the Mamminasata region) was proposed in 2011, with operations commencing in 2014, at a predicted cost of Rp.4 trillion ($468 million). The memorandum of understanding was signed on 25 July 2011 by Makassar city, Maros Regency and Gowa Regency. In 2014, the project was officially abandoned, citing insufficient ridership and a lack of financial feasibility.

 

The city of Makassar, its outlying districts, and the South Sulawesi Province are served by Hasanuddin International Airport. The airport is located outside the Makassar city administration area, being situated in the nearby Maros Regency.

The city is served by Soekarno-Hatta Sea Port. In January 2012 it was announced that due to limited capacity of the current dock at Soekarno-Hatta sea port, it will be expanded to 150x30 square meters to avoid the need for at least two ships to queue every day.

 

ADMINISTRATION AND GOVERNANCE

The executive head of the city is the mayor, who is elected by direct vote for a period of five years. The mayor is assisted by a deputy-mayor, who is also an elected person. There is a legislative assembly for the city, members of which are also elected for a period of five years. Makassar City is divided into 15 administrative districts and 153 urban villages. Districts in Makassar city are Biringkanaya, Bontoala, Sangkarang Islands, Makassar, Mamajang, Manggala, Mariso, Panakkukang, Rappocini, Tallo, Tamalanrea, Tamalate, Ujung Pandang, Ujung Tanah and Wajo.

 

GEOGRAPHY

This official metropolitan area covers 2.689,89 km2 and had a population of 2.696.242 (2017). The metropolitan area of Makassar (Mamminasata) extends over 47 administrative districts (kecamatan), consisting of all 15 districts within the city, all 9 districts of Takalar Regency, 11 (out of 18) districts of Gowa Regency and 12 (out of 14) districts of Maros Regency.

 

Districts of Takalar Regency which included in the metro area are, Mangara Bombang, Mappakasunggu, Sanrobone, Polombangkeng Selatan, Pattallassang, Polombangkeng Utara, Galesong Selatan, Galesong and Galesong Utara. Districts of Gowa Regency which included in the metro area are, Somba Opu, Bontomarannu, Pallangga, Bajeng, Bajeng Barat, Barombong, Manuju, Pattallassang, Parangloe, Bontonompo and Bontonompo Selatan. Districts of Maros Regency which included in the metro area are, Maros Baru, Turikale, Marusu, Mandai, Moncongloe, Bontoa, Lau, Tanralili, Tompo Bulu, Bantimurung, Simbang and Cenrana.

 

CLIMATE

Makassar has a tropical monsoon climate. The average temperature for the year in Makassar is 27.5 °C, with little variation due to its near-equatorial latitude: the average high is around 32.5 °C and the average low around 22.5 °C all year long. In contrast to the virtually consistent temperature, rainfall shows wide variation between months in Makassar due to movement of the Intertropical Convergence Zone. Makassar averages around 3,137 millimetres of rain on 187 days during the year, but during the month with least rainfall – August – only 15 millimetres on two days of rain can be expected. In contrast, during its very wet wet season, Makassar can expect over 530 millimetres per month between December and February. During the wettest month of January, 734 millimetres can be expected to fall on twenty-seven rainy days.

 

MAIN SIGHTS

Makassar is home to several prominent landmarks including:

- the 17th century Dutch fort Fort Rotterdam

- the Trans Studio Makassar—the third largest indoor theme park in the world

- the Karebosi Link—the first underground shopping center in Indonesia

- the floating mosque located at Losari Beach.

- the Nusantara

- the Bantimurung - Bulusaraung National Park well-known karst area, famous for the remarkable collection of butterflies in the local area, is nearby to Makassar (around 40 km to the north).

 

DEMOGRAPHICS

Makassar is a multi-ethnic city, populated mostly by Makassarese and Buginese. The remainder are Torajans, Mandarese, Butonese, Chinese and Javanese. The current population is approximately 1.5 million, with a Metropolitan total of 2.2 million.

 

EDUCATION

State University of Makassar

Hasanuddin University

Alauddin Islamic State University

Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar

Universitas Muslim Indonesia

 

By 2007 the city government began requiring all skirts of schoolgirls be below the knee.

 

TRADITIONAL FOOD

Makassar has several famous traditional foods. The most famous is Coto Makassar. It is a stew made from the mixture of nuts, spices, and selected offal which may include beef brain, tongue and intestine. Konro rib dish is also a popular traditional food in Makassar. Both Coto Makassar and Konro are usually eaten with Burasa or Ketupat, a glutinous rice cake. Another famous cuisine from Makassar is Ayam Goreng Sulawesi (Celebes fried chicken); the chicken is marinated with a traditional soy sauce recipe for up to 24 hours before being fried to a golden colour. The dish is usually served with chicken broth, rice and special sambal (chilli sauce).

 

In addition, Makassar is the home of Pisang Epe (pressed banana), as well as Pisang Ijo (green banana). Pisang Epe is a banana which is pressed, grilled, and covered with palm sugar sauce and sometimes eaten with Durian. Many street vendors sell Pisang Epe, especially around the area of Losari beach. Pisang Ijo is a banana covered with green colored flours, coconut milk, and syrup. Pisang Ijo is sometimes served iced, and often eaten during Ramadan.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Rainy day is the perfect time for photography. Not only is the contrast relatively low, the reflective surface on the floor adds interests to almost all compositions.

 

The faces are cropped off here to hide the athletes’ identities, but the essence of their playing is all there.

 

This is, as usual, a photograph by requests by some of my social media friends in Europe—specifically they asked to see photographs of Chinese men playing all kinds of random sports. Your wish is my command.

 

# SML Data

+ Date: 2013-03-31T15:45:34.66+0800

+ Dimensions: 4601 x 3067

+ Exposure: 1/320 sec at f/5.6

+ Focal Length: 196 mm

+ ISO: 1000

+ Flash: Did not fire

+ Camera: Canon EOS 7D

+ Lens: Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L USM + Canon EF 1.4x Extender III

+ GPS: 22°25'10" N 114°13'38" E

+ Location: 中國香港馬鞍山遊樂場硬地足球場 国香港马鞍山游乐场硬地足球场 Hard-Surface Soccer Pitch, Ma On Shan Recreation Ground, Ma On Shan, Hong Kong, China

+ Serial: SML.20130331.7D.37321

+ Workflow: Lightroom 4

+ Series: 體育 Sports, 男 Men

 

# Media Licensing

Creative Commons (CCBY) See-ming Lee 李思明 / SML Photography / SML Universe Limited

 

“雨天踢足球 Football (Soccer) on a rainy day” / 男運動員 Men in Sports / SML.20130331.7D.37321

/ #體育 #体育 #Sports #男 #Men #SMLMen #CCBY #SMLPhotography #SMLUniverse #SMLProjects

/ #中國 #中国 #China #香港 #HongKong #攝影 #摄影 #photography #城市 #Urban #足球 #Football #Soccer #雨 #rain #reflection

 

Kartikeya, also known as Skanda, Murugan and Subramaniyan, is the Hindu god of war. He is the commander-in-chief of the army of the devas (gods) and the son of Shiva and Parvati.

 

Murugan is often referred to as "Tamil Kadavul" (meaning "God of Tamils") and is worshiped primarily in areas with Tamil influences, especially South India, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Malaysia, Singapore and Reunion Island. His six most important shrines in India are the Arupadaiveedu temples, located in Tamil Nadu. In Sri Lanka, Hindus as well as Buddhists revere the sacred historical Nallur Kandaswamy temple in Jaffna and Katirkāmam Temple situated deep south.[1] Hindus in Malaysia also pray to Lord Murugan at the Batu Caves and various temples where Thaipusam is celebrated with grandeur.

 

In Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, Kartikeya is known as Subrahmanya with a temple at Kukke Subramanya known for Sarpa shanti rites dedicated to Him and another famous temple at Ghati Subramanya also in Karnataka. In Bengal and Odisha, he is popularly known as Kartikeya (meaning 'son of Krittika').[2]

Other names[edit]

Like most Hindu deities, Subrahmanya is known by many other names, including Senthil, Vēlaṇ, Kumāran (meaning 'prince or child or young one'), Swaminatha (meaning 'smart' or 'clever'), Saravaṇa, Arumugam or Shanmuga (meaning 'one with six faces'), Dhandapani (meaning God with a Club), Guhan or Guruguha (meaning 'cave-dweller'), Subrahmanya, Kartikeya and Skanda (meaning 'that which is spilled or oozed).[3][4] He was also known as Mahasena and the Kadamba Dynasty kings worshiped him by this name.[5]

Vedas[edit]

The Atharva Veda describes Kumaran as 'Agnibhuh' because he is form of 'Agni' (Fire God) & Agni hold in his hand when kumaran born. The Satapatha Brahmana refers to him as the son of Rudra and the six faces of Rudra. The Taittiriya Aranyaka contains the Gayatri mantra for Shanmukha. The Chandogya Upanishad refers to Skanda as the "way that leads to wisdom". The Baudhayana Dharmasutra mentions Skanda as 'Mahasena' and 'Subrahmanya.' The Aranya Parva canto of the Mahabharata relates the legend of Kartikeya Skanda in considerable detail. The Skanda Purana is devoted to the narrative of Kartikeya.[6] The Upanishads also constantly make a reference to a Supreme Being called Guha, the indweller.

The first elaborate account of Kartikeya's origin occurs in the Mahabharata. In a complicated story, he is said to have been born from Agni and Svaha, after the latter impersonated the six of the seven wives of the Saptarishi (Seven Sages). The actual wives then become the Pleiades. Kartikeya is said to have been born to destroy the Asura Mahisha.[7] (In later mythology, Mahisha became the adversary of Durga.) Indra attacks Kartikeya as he sees the latter as a threat, until Shiva intervenes and makes Kartikeya the commander-in-chief of the army of the Devas. He is also married to Devasena, Indra's daughter. The origin of this marriage lies probably in the punning of 'Deva-sena-pati'. It can mean either lord of Devasena or Lord of the army (sena) of Devas. But according to Shrii Shrii Anandamurti, in his master work on Shiva[8] and other works, Kartikeya was married to Devasenā and that is on the ground of his name as Devasena's husband, Devasenāpati, misinterpreted as Deva-senāpati (Deva's general) that he was granted the title general and made the Deva's army general.[9]

 

The Ramayana version is closer to the stories told in the Puranas discussed below.

Tolkappiyam, possibly the most ancient of the extant Sangam works, dated between the 3rd century BCE and 5th century CE glorified Murugan, "the red god seated on the blue peacock, who is ever young and resplendent," as "the favoured god of the Tamils."[10] The Sangam poetry divided space and Tamil land into five allegorical areas (tinai) and according to the Tirumurugarruppatai ( c. 400–450 AD) attributed to the great Sangam poet Nakkiirar, Murugan was the presiding deity the Kurinci region (hilly area). (Tirumurugaruppatai is a deeply devotional poem included in the ten idylls (Pattupattu) of the age of the third Sangam). The other Sangam era works in Tamil that refer to Murugan in detail include the Paripaatal, the Akananuru and the Purananuru. One poem in the Paripaatal describes the veneration of Murugan thus:

 

"We implore thee not for boons of enjoyment or wealth,

But for thy grace beatific, love and virtuous deeds."

 

According to the Tamil devotional work, Thiruppugazh, "Murugan never hesitates to come to the aid of a devotee when called upon in piety or distress". In another work, Thirumurukkarrupatai, he is described as a god of eternal youth;

 

His face shines a myriad rays light and removes the darkness from this world.[11]

The references to Murugan can be traced back to the first millennium BCE. There are references to Murugan in Kautilya's Arthashastra, in the works of Patanjali, in Kalidasa's epic poem the Kumarasambhavam. The Kushanas, who governed from what is today Peshawar, and the Yaudheyas, a republican clan in the Punjab, struck coins bearing the image of Skanda. The deity was venerated also by the Ikshvakus, an Andhra dynasty, and the Guptas.[6] The worship of Kumāra was one of the six principal sects of Hinduism at the time of Adi Shankara. The Shanmata system propagated by him included this sect. In many Shiva and Devi temples of Tamil Nadu, Murugan is installed on the left of the main deity. The story of His birth goes as follows:

 

Sati immolated herself in a pyre as her father King Daksha had insulted Shiva, her Lord. She was reborn as Parvathi or Uma, daughter of the King of Himalayas, Himavan. She then married her Lord Shiva. The Devas were under onslaught from the Asuras whose leader was Soorapadman. He had been granted boons that only Lord Shiva or his seed could kill him. Fearless he vanquished the Devas and made them his slaves. The Devas ran to Vishnu for help who told them that it was merely their fault for attending Daksha's yagna, without the presence of Lord Shiva. After this, they ran to Shiva for help. Shiva decided to take action against Soorapadman's increasing conceit. He frowned and his third eye- the eye of knowledge- started releasing sparks. These were six sparks in total. Agni had the responsibility to take them to Saravana Lake. As he was carrying them, the sparks were growing hotter and hotter that even the Lord of Fire could not withstand the heat. Soon after Murugan was born on a lotus in the Saravana Lake with six faces, giving him the name Arumukhan. Lord Shiva and Parvati visited and tears of joy started flowing as they witnessed the most handsome child. Shiva and Parvathi gave the responsibility of taking care of Muruga to the six Krittika sisters. Muruga grew up to be a handsome, intelligent, powerful, clever youth. All the Devas applauded at their saviour, who had finally come to release them from their woes. Murugan became the supreme general of the demi-gods, then escorted the devas and led the army of the devas to victory against the asuras.

Legends[edit]

Given that legends related to Murugan are recounted separately in several Hindu epics, some differences between the various versions are observed. Some Sanskrit epics and puranas indicate that he was the elder son of Shiva. This is suggested by the legend connected to his birth; the wedding of Shiva and Parvati being necessary for the birth of a child who would vanquish the asura named Taraka. Also, Kartikeya is seen helping Shiva fight the newborn Ganesha, Shiva's other son, in the Shiva Purana. In the Ganapati Khandam of the Brahma Vaivarta Purana, he is seen as the elder son of Shiva and Ganesha as the younger. In South India, it is believed that he is the younger of the two. A Puranic story has Ganesha obtain a divine fruit of knowledge from Narada winning a contest with Murugan. While Murugan speeds around the world thrice to win the contest for the fruit, Ganesha circumambulates Shiva and Parvati thrice as an equivalent and is given the fruit. After winning it, he offers to give the fruit to his upset brother. After this event, Ganesha was considered the elder brother owing as a tribute to his wisdom. Many of the major events in Murugan's life take place during his youth, and legends surrounding his birth are popular. This has encouraged the worship of Murugan as a child-God, very similar to the worship of the child Krishna in north India. He is married to two wives, Valli and Devasena. This lead to a very interesting name : Devasenapati viz. Pati (husband) of Devsena and/or Senapati (commander in chief) of Dev (gods)

Kartikeya symbols are based on the weapons – Vel, the Divine Spear or Lance that he carries and his mount the peacock. He is sometimes depicted with many weapons including: a sword, a javelin, a mace, a discus and a bow although more usually he is depicted wielding a sakti or spear. This symbolizes his purification of human ills. His javelin is used to symbolize his far reaching protection, his discus symbolizes his knowledge of the truth, his mace represents his strength and his bow shows his ability to defeat all ills. His peacock mount symbolizes his destruction of the ego.

 

His six heads represent the six siddhis bestowed upon yogis over the course of their spiritual development. This corresponds to his role as the bestower of siddhis.

In Tamil Nadu, Murugan has continued to be popular with all classes of society right since the Sangam age. This has led to more elaborate accounts of his mythology in the Tamil language, culminating in the Tamil version of Skanda Purana, called Kandha Purānam, written by Kacchiappa Sivachariyar (1350–1420 AD.) of Kumara Kottam in the city of Kanchipuram. (He was a scholar in Tamil literature, and a votary of the Shaiva Siddhanta philosophy.)

 

He is married to two deities, Valli, a daughter of a tribal chief and Deivayanai (also called Devasena), the daughter of Indhra. During His bachelorhood, Lord Murugan is also regarded as Kumaraswami (or Bachelor God), Kumara meaning a bachelor and Swami meaning God. Muruga rides a peacock and wields a bow in battle. The lance called Vel in Tamil is a weapon closely associated with him. The Vel was given to him by his mother, Parvati, and embodies her energy and power. His army's standard depicts a rooster. In the war, Surapadman was split into two, and each half was granted a boon by Murugan. The halves, thus turned into the peacock (his mount) and the rooster his flag, which also "refers to the sun".[12]

 

As Muruga is worshipped predominantly in Tamil Nadu, many of his names are of Tamil origin. These include Senthil, the red or formidable one; Arumugam, the six-faced one; Guhan and Maal-Marugan, the son-in-law of Vishnu. Murugan is venerated throughout the Tamil year. There is a six-day period of fast and prayer in the Tamil month of Aippasi known as the Skanda Shasti. He is worshipped at Thaipusam, celebrated by Tamil communities worldwide near the full moon of the Tamil month Thai. This commemorates the day he was given a Vel or lance by his mother in order to vanquish the asuras. Thirukarthigai or the full moon of the Tamil month of Karthigai signifies his birth. Each Tuesday of the Tamil month of Adi is also dedicated to the worship of Murugan. Tuesday in the Hindu tradition connotes Mangala, the god of planet Mars and war.

 

Other parts of India[edit]

Historically, God Kartikeya was immensely popular in the Indian subcontinent. One of the major Puranas, the Skanda Purana is dedicated to him. In the Bhagavad-Gita (Ch.10, Verse 24), Krishna, while explaining his omnipresence, names the most perfect being, mortal or divine, in each of several categories. While doing so, he says: "Among generals, I am Skanda, the lord of war."

 

Kartikeya's presence in the religious and cultural sphere can be seen at least from the Gupta age. Two of the Gupta kings, Kumaragupta and Skandagupta, were named after him. He is seen in the Gupta sculptures and in the temples of Ellora and Elephanta. As the commander of the divine armies, he became the patron of the ruling classes. His youth, beauty and bravery was much celebrated in Sanskrit works like the Kathasaritsagara. Kalidasa made the birth of Kumara the subject of a lyrical epic, the Kumaarasambhavam. In ancient India, Kartikeya was also regarded as the patron deity of thieves, as may be inferred from the Mrichchakatikam, a Sanskrit play by Shudraka, and in the Vetala-panchvimshati, a medieval collection of tales. This association is linked to the fact that Kartikeya had dug through the Krauncha mountain to kill Taraka and his brothers (in the Mrichchakatikam, Sarivilaka prays to him before tunnelling into the hero's house).

 

However, Kartikeya's popularity in North India receded from the Middle Ages onwards, and his worship is today virtually unknown except in parts of Haryana. There is a very famous temple dedicated to Him in the town of Pehowa in Haryana and this temple is very well known in the adjoining areas, especially because women are not allowed anywhere close to it. Women stay away from this temple in Pehowa town of Haryana because this shrine celebrates the Brahmachari form of Kartikeya. Reminders of former devotions to him include a temple at Achaleshwar, near Batala in Punjab, and another temple of Skanda atop the Parvati hill in Pune, Maharashtra. Another vestige of his former popularity can be seen in Bengal and Odisha, where he is worshipped during the Durga Puja festivities alongside Durga. Lord Subramanya is the major deity among the Hindus of northern Kerala. Lord Subramanya is worshipped with utmost devotion in districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi in the state of Karnataka. Rituals like nagaradhane are unique to this region.

Kartikeya also known as Kartik or Kartika is also worshipped in West Bengal, and Bangladesh on the last day of the Hindu month of 'Kartik'. However, the popularity of Kartik Puja (worshipping Kartik) is decreasing now, and Lord Kartik is primarily worshipped among those who intend to have a son. In Bengal, traditionally, many people drop images of Kartik inside the boundaries of different households, who all are either newly married, or else, intend to get a son to carry on with their ancestry. Lord Kartik is also associated to the Babu Culture prevailed in historic Kolkata, and hence, many traditional old Bengali paintings still show Kartik dressed in traditional Bengali style. Also, in some parts of West Bengal, Kartik is traditionally worshipped by the ancestors of the past royal families too, as in the district of Malda. Kartik Puja is also popular among the prostitutes. This can probably be linked to the fact that, the prostitutes mostly got clients from the upper class babu-s in old Kolkata, who all, in turn, had been associated to the image of Kartik (as discussed above). In Bansberia (Hooghly district) Kartik Puja festival is celebrated like Durga puja of Kolkata, Jagadhatri puja in Chandannagar for consecutive four days. The festival starts on 17 November every year and on 16 November in case of Leap year.[13] Some of the must see Puja committees are Bansberia Kundugoli Nataraj, Khamarapara Milan Samity RadhaKrishna, Kishor Bahini, Mitali Sangha, Yuva Sangha, Bansberia Pratap Sangha and many more.

 

In Durga Puja in Bengal, Kartikeya is considered to be a son of Parvati or Durga and Shiva along with his brother Ganesha and sisters Lakshmi and Saraswati.[14]

Kartikeya is worshiped during Durga Puja in Odisha as well as in various Shiva temples throughout the year. Kartik puja is celebrated in Cuttack along with various other parts of the state during the last phases of Hindu month of Kartik. Kartik purnima is celebrated with much joy and in a grand fashion in Cuttack and other parts in the state.

Murugan is adored by both Tamil Hindus and Sinhalese Buddhists in Sri Lanka. Numerous temples exist throughout the island. He is a favorite deity of the common folk everywhere and it is said he never hesitates to come to the aid of a devotee when called upon. In the deeply Sinhalese south of Sri Lanka, Murugan is worshipped at the temple in Katirkāmam, where he is known as Kathiravel or Katragama Deviyo (Lord of Katragama) . This temple is next to an old Buddhist place of worship. Local legend holds that Lord Murugan alighted in Kataragama and was smitten by Valli, one of the local aboriginal lasses. After a courtship, they were married. This event is taken to signify that Lord Murugan is accessible to all who worship and love him, regardless of their birth or heritage. The Nallur Kandaswamy temple, the Maviddapuram Kandaswamy Temple and the Sella Channithy Temple near Valvettiturai are the three foremost Murugan temples in Jaffna. The Chitravelayutha temple in Verukal on the border between Trincomalee and Batticaloa is also noteworthy as is the Mandur Kandaswamy temple in Batticaloa. The late medieval-era temple of the tooth in Kandy, dedicated to the tooth relic of the Buddha, has a Kataragama deiyo shrine adjacent to it dedicated to the veneration of Skanda in the Sinhalese tradition. Almost all buddhist temples house a shrine room for Kataragama deviyo(Murugan)reflecting the significance of Murugan in Sinhala Buddhism,

 

Based on archeological evidence found, it is believed that the Kiri Vehera was either renovated to build during the 1st century BCE. There are number of others inscriptions and ruins.[15]

 

By the 16th century the Kathiravel shrine at Katirkāmam had become synonymous with Skanda-Kumara who was a guardian deity of Sinhala Buddhism.[16] The town was popular as a place of pilgrimage for Hindus from India and Sri Lanka by the 15 the century. The popularity of the deity at the Kataragama temple was also recorded by the Pali chronicles of Thailand such as Jinkalmali in the 16th century. There are number of legends both Buddhist and Hindu that attribute supernatural events to the very locality.[16] Scholars such as Paul Younger and Heinz Bechert speculate that rituals practiced by the native priests of Kataragama temple betray Vedda ideals of propitiation. Hence they believe the area was of Vedda veneration that was taken over by the Buddhist and Hindus in the medieval period.[17]

Lord Murugan is one of the most important deities worshipped by Tamil people in Malaysia and other South-East Asian countries such as Singapore and Indonesia. Thai Poosam is one of the important festivals celebrated. Sri Subramanyar Temple at Batu Caves temple complex in Malaysia is dedicated to Lord Murugan.

The main temples of Murugan are located in Tamil Nadu and other parts of south India. They include the Aru Padaiveedu (six abodes) — Thiruchendur, Swamimalai, Pazhamudircholai, Thirupparangunram, Palani (Pazhani), Thiruthani and other important shrines like Mayilam, Sikkal, Marudamalai, Kundrathur, Vadapalani, Kandakottam, Thiruporur, Vallakottai, Vayalur, Thirumalaikoil, Pachaimalai and Pavalamalai near Gobichettipalayam. Malai Mandir, a prominent and popular temple complex in Delhi, is one of the few dedicated to Murugan in all of North India apart from the Pehowa temple in Haryana.

There are many temples dedicated to Lord Subramanya in Kerala. Amongst them are Atiyambur Sri Subramanya Temple in Kanhangad Kasaragod, Payyannur Subramanya Swamy temple in Payyanur, Panmana Subramanya Swamy temple in Panmana and the Subramanya temple in Haripad. There is a temple in Skandagiri, Secunderabad and one in Bikkavolu, East Godavari district in the state of Andhra Pradesh. In Karnataka there is the Kukke Subramanya Temple where Lord Murugan is worshiped as the Lord of the serpents. Aaslesha Bali, Sarpa Samskara with nagapathista samarpa are major prayers here. There is a temple called Malai Mandir in South Delhi. Malai means hill in Tamil. Mandir means temple in Hindi.

 

The key temples in Sri Lanka include the sylvan shrine in Kataragama / (Kadirgamam) or Kathirkamam in the deep south, the temple in Tirukovil in the east, the shrine in Embekke in the Kandyan region and the famed Nallur Kandaswamy temple in Jaffna. There are several temples dedicated to Lord Murugan in Malaysia, the most famous being the Batu Caves near Kuala Lumpur. There is a 42.7-m-high statue of Lord Murugan at the entrance to the Batu Caves, which is the largest Lord Murugan statue in the world. Sri Thandayuthapani Temple in Tank Road, Singapore is a major Hindu temple where each year the Thaipusam festival takes place with devotees of Lord Muruga carrying Kavadis seeking penance and blessings of the Lord.

 

In the United Kingdom, Highgate Hill Murugan temple is one of the oldest and most famous. In London, Sri Murugan Temple in Manor park is a well-known temple. In Midlands, Leicester Shri Siva Murugan Temple is gaining popularity recently. Skanda Vale in West Wales was founded by Guruji, a Tamil devotee of Subramaniam, and its primary deity is Lord Murugan. In Australia, Sydney Murugan temple in Parramatta (Mays Hill), Perth Bala Muruguan temple in Mandogalup and Kundrathu Kumaran temple in Rockbank, Melbourne are major Hindu temples for all Australian Hindus and Murugan devotees. In New Zealand, there is a Thirumurugan Temple in Auckland and a Kurinji Kumaran Temple in Wellington, both dedicated to Lord Murugan. In the USA, Shiva Murugan Temple in Concord, Northern California and Murugan Temple of North America[18] in Maryland, Washington DC region are popular. In Toronto, Canada, Canada Kanthasamy Temple is known amongst many Hindus in Canada. In Dollard-des-Ormeaux, a suburb of the city of Montreal in Canada, there is a monumental temple of Murugan. The Sri Sivasubramaniar Temple, located in the Sihl Valley in Adliswil, is the most famous and largest Hindu temple in Switzerland.[19]

Fjords

Norway is famous for its fjords, two of which, the Geirangerfjord and the Nærøyfjord, feature on the UNESCO World Heritage list. The Sognefjord, the longest of them all, and the Hardangerfjord, famed for its cherry and apple trees, are among the most visited.

 

Northern lights

The Northern lights are a common natural phenomenon in Northern Norway, and are most commonly observed above the Arctic Circle between late autumn and early spring.

 

Midnight sun

The sun does not set in summer over the Arctic Circle, meaning visitors to Northern Norway enjoy 24 hours of daylight this time of year.

 

Weather

The weather in Norway is much milder than one would expect. Because of the Gulf Stream, temperatures along the coast of Norway are 5-8°C higher than at comparable latitudes elsewhere.

 

Vikings

The Vikings have a bad reputation as raiders, but they were also traders, explorers and settlers, and the legacy from the Viking Age (AD 800-1050) lives on.

 

The Sami people

The Sami are the indigenous people of Norway. Known for their colourful clothes and the huge herds of reindeer they look after, the Sami have been living in northern Scandinavia for over 10,000 years, and today they have their own parliament in Karasjok.

 

Famous Norwegians

These include explorers Roald Amundsen, Fridtjof Nansen and Thor Heyerdahl, composer Edvard Grieg, violin virtuoso Ole Bull, artist Edvard Munch, playwright Henrik Ibsen, novelist Knut Hamsun, and politician Gro Harlem Brundtland, among many others.

 

The Royal Family

King Harald V, the King of Norway, and Queen Sonja have two children: a son, Crown Prince Haakon, who is married to Crown Princess Mette-Marit, with whom he has two children and a daughter, Princess Martha Louise, who is married to Ari Mikael Behn.

 

Trolls

Trolls are an important part of Norwegian folklore. They vary in size and appearance, but are invariably ugly and messy creatures, and always mischievous (if not downright nasty). They usually live in caves or deep in the forest, and only emerge from their hiding places after sunset - legend has it that they turn to stone upon contact with the sun. Several places in Western and Northern Norway have been named after them, such as Trollheimen, Trollstigen, Trollhatten and Trollveggen.

 

In Norway everyone has the right of access ("allemannsretten") in the countryside - including the national parks.

 

Marked trails

Several national parks have arrangements for outdoor activities with a network of marked paths and trails and overnight accommodation in either staffed lodges or self-service cabins.

 

In vulnerable areas where it is desirable to limit the impact of visitors, paths and accommodation are minimal. General regulations concerning free access and special regulations concerning preservation in the individual parks may limit what is allowed.

 

Wild reindeer

National parks are particularly important for species that need relatively large and undisturbed areas to survive, such as wild reindeer, predators and birds of prey. Many of these are at great risk from human intervention and some are even threatened with extinction. Norway has an international responsibility to look after endangered species and their habitats.

 

Nearly 85 per cent of Norway's national parks are mountains. The mountain landscape varies from endless gently rolling high plateaus to sharp peaks, ravines and glaciers.

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

The Lockheed L300 was originally conceived as a military strategic airlifter that served under the designation C-141 Starlifter with the Military Air Transport Service (MATS), its successor organization the Military Airlift Command (MAC), and finally the Air Mobility Command (AMC) of the United States Air Force (USAF).

 

In the early 1960s, the United States Air Force's Military Air Transport Service (MATS) relied on a substantial number of propeller-driven aircraft for strategic airlift, such as the C-124 Globemaster II and C-133 Cargomaster. As these aircraft were mostly obsolescent designs and the Air Force needed the benefits of jet power, the USAF ordered 48 Boeing C-135 Stratolifters as an interim step. The C-135 was a useful stop-gap, but only had side-loading doors and much of the bulky and oversize equipment employed by the U.S. Army would not fit.

 

In the spring of 1960, the Air Force released Specific Operational Requirement 182, calling for a new aircraft that would be capable of performing both strategic and tactical airlift missions. The strategic role demanded that the aircraft be capable of missions with a radius of at least 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km) with a 60,000 pounds (27,000 kg) load. The tactical role required it to be able to perform low-altitude air drops of supplies, as well as carry and drop combat paratroops. Several companies responded to SOR 182, including Boeing, Lockheed, and General Dynamics.

 

Lockheed responded to the requirement with a unique design: the Lockheed Model 300, the first large jet designed from the start to carry freight. The Model 300 had a swept high-mounted wing with four 21,000 pounds-force (93 kN) thrust TF33 turbofan engines pod-mounted below the wings. An important aspect was the cabin's floor height of only 50 inches (130 cm) above the ground, allowing easy access to the cabin through the rear doors. The two rear side doors were designed to allow the aircraft to drop paratroops (in August 1965 the aircraft performed the first paratroop drop from a jet-powered aircraft). The rear cargo doors could be opened in flight for airborne cargo drops. The high-mounted wings gave internal clearance in the cargo compartment of 10 feet (3.0 m) wide, 9 ft (2.7 m) high and 70 ft (21 m) long. The size enabled the Starlifter to carry, for example, a complete LGM-30 Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missile in its container. The aircraft was capable of carrying a maximum of 70,847 pounds (32,136 kg) over short distances, and up to 92,000 pounds (42,000 kg) in the version configured to carry the Minuteman, which lacked other equipment. The aircraft could also carry up to 154 troops, 123 paratroops or 80 litter patients.

 

President John F. Kennedy's first official act after his inauguration was to order the development of the Lockheed 300 on 13 March 1961, with a contract for five aircraft for test and evaluation to be designated the C-141. One unusual aspect of the aircraft was that it was designed to meet both military and civil airworthiness standards, since Lockheed hoped to sell the aircraft, much like the C-130 Hercules, to airlines, too. The prototype C-141A (s/n 61-2775) was manufactured and assembled in record time. The prototype was rolled out of the Lockheed factory at Marietta, Georgia on 22 August 1963 and first flew on 17 December, the 60th anniversary of the Wright brothers' first flight. The company and the Air Force then started an operational testing program and the delivery of 284 C-141 aircraft.

 

The effort to sell the aircraft on the civilian market included some detail changes like a different yoke and cockpit equipment. Two versions were offered: the original aircraft (designated L300-100 StarLifter), based on the C-141’s hull, and a strongly stretched version, 37 feet (11 m) longer than the L300-100, and marketed as the L300-200 SuperstarLifter. Specialized versions like an aerial firefighting water bomber were proposed, too, and an initial L300-100 prototype made a global sales tour (which was later donated to NASA).

Response from the civil market was rather lukewarm, though, and resulted only in orders from Flying Tiger Line and Slick Airways for four aircraft each. Nevertheless, production of the civil StarLifter was launched in 1966, since the differences to the military aircraft were only minimal and Lockheed considered the financial risks to be acceptable. However, only twelve aircraft were initially ordered when production was greenlighted, but there was the expectation to attract more sales once the aircraft proved itself in daily business.

 

Despite a very good service record, this did not happen. To make matters worse, unexpected legal problems seriously threatened the newly introduced transport aircraft: In the early 1970s, strict noise limits for civil aircraft threatened operations, esp. in the USA. Several American L300 operators approached Lockheed for suitable noise reduction modifications, but the company did not react. However, third parties that had developed aftermarket hush kits for other airliners like the Boeing 707 or the Douglas DC-8 chimed in and saw their opportunity, and in 1975 General Electric began discussions with the major L300 operators with a view to fitting the new and considerably quieter Franco-American CFM56 engine to the transport aircraft. Lockheed still remained reluctant, but eventually came on board in the late 1970s and supported the conversion kit with new nacelles and pylons. This engine kit was unofficially baptized the “StarSilencer” program, which was offered as a retrofit kit and as an option for newly built aircraft, which were designated L300-1100 and -1200, respectively.

 

The kit was well received and all operational private L300s were upgraded with the fuel-efficient 22,000 lb (98.5 kN) CFM56-2 high-bypass turbofans until 1984, preventing a premature legal end of operations in wide parts of the world. The benefits of the upgrade were remarkable: The new engines were markedly quieter than the original Pratt & Whitney TF33-P-7 turbofans, and fuel efficiency was improved by 20%, resulting in a higher range. The CFM56s also offered 10% more thrust than the TF33-P-7s’ 20,250 lbf (90.1 kN each) output, and this extra thrust improved the aircraft’s take-off performance, too.

The USAF did not adopt the “StarSilencer” upgrade and rather focused on the fuselage extension program that converted all existing C-141As into C-141Bs from 1979 onwards, so that the aircraft’s payload potential could be better exploited. However, the new CFM56 engines made the L300 more attractive to civil operators, and, beyond the upgrade program for existing airframes, a second wave of orders was placed for both the L300-1100 and -1200: until 1981, when civil L300 production was stopped, eighteen more aircraft had been ordered, primarily for operators in North America and Canada, bringing total production to 40 machines, plus the initial demonstrator prototype.

 

One of these late buyers outside of the American continent was Air Greenland. Founded in 1960 as Grønlandsfly, the airline started its first services with Catalina water planes and within the decade expanded to include DHC-3 Otters as well as Sikorsky S-61 helicopters, some of which remain in active service. Grønlandsfly also picked up a Danish government contract to fly reconnaissance missions regarding the sea ice around Greenland.

During the 1970s, Grønlandsfly upgraded its airliner fleet, and mining in the Uummannaq Fjord opened new business opportunities beyond passenger services. To enter the bulk cargo business for mining companies with routes to Canada, North America and Europe as well as civil freight flights for the U.S. Army in Greenland (e. g. for the USAF’s Sondrestrom and Thule Air Bases), the purchase of a dedicated transport aircraft was considered. This eventually led to the procurement of a single, new L300-1100 StarLifter with CFM56-2 engines in 1980 – at the time, the biggest aircraft operated by Grønlandsfly. Domestic as well as international passenger service flourished, too: By the end of 1979, the number of Grønlandsfly passengers served annually exceeded 60,000 – this was more than the population of Greenland itself! However, the airline’s first true jet airliner, a Boeing 757-200, began operation in May 1998. Before, only propeller-driven aircraft like vintage Douglas DC-4 and DC-6 or the DHC Twin Otter and Dash 7 turboprop aircraft had been the main passenger types. In 1999, the airline already served 282,000 passengers, nearly triple the number at the end of the previous decade.

In 2002 the company rebranded itself, anglicizing its name to Air Greenland and adopting a new logo and livery. The L300-1100 was kept in service and remained, until the introduction of a single Airbus A330 in 2003 (purchased after SAS abandoned its Greenland service and Air Greenland took these over), Air Greenland’s biggest aircraft, with frequent cargo flights for the Maarmorilik zinc and iron mines.

 

StarLifters remained in military duty for over 40 years until the USAF withdrew the last C-141s from service in 2006, after replacing the airlifter with the C-17 Globemaster III. In civil service, however, the L300, despite its small production number, outlasted the C-141. After the military aircraft’s retirement, more than twenty StarLifters were still in private service, most of them operating under harsh climatic conditions and in remote parts of the world.

  

General characteristics:

Crew: 4 - 6 (2 pilots, 2 flight engineers, 1 navigator, 1 loadmaster)

Length: 145 ft (44.27 m)

Wingspan: 160 ft 0 in (48.8 m)

Height: 39 ft 3 in (12 m)

Wing area: 3,228 ft² (300 m²)

Empty weight: 136,900 lbs (62,153 kg)

Loaded weight: 323,100 lbs (146,688 kg)

Max Payload, 2.25g: 94,508 lb (42.906 kg)

Max Takeoff Weight, 2.25g: 343,000 lb (155,722 kg)

 

Powerplant:

4× CFM International CFM56-2 high-bypass turbofans, delivering 22,000 lb (98.5 kN) each

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: 567 mph (493 kn, 912 km/h)

Cruise speed: 495 mph (430 kn, 800 km/h)

Range: 4,320 mi (2,350 nmi, 6,955 km)

Ferry range: 7,245 mi (6,305 nmi, 11,660 km)

Service ceiling: 41,000 ft (12,500 m)

Rate of climb: 2,600 ft/min (13.2 m/s)

Wing loading: 100.1 lb/ft2 (490 kg/m²)

Thrust/weight: 0.25

  

The kit and its assembly:

This is another project I had on my agenda for a long time, it was inspired by a picture of the civilian L300 demonstrator and the question what a StarLifter in civil service could look like? Such a type (like the C-130) would only make sense for bulk cargo transport business, and probably only for rather remote locations, so I went up North with my thoughts and initially considered Air Canada or Buffalo Airways as an operator, but then remembered Air Greenland – a very good fit, and the current livery would make the L300 a colorful bird, too.

 

The basis is Roden’s C-141B kit, AFAIK the only affordable IP kit of this aircraft when I had the idea for this build a while ago; A&A Models released in the meantime a C-141A in June 2021, but it is prohibitively expensive, and Anigrand does a C-141A resin kit. The Roden kit is a sound offering. The parts fit well, even though the seams along the long fuselage and the wing roots need attention and PSR, and at the small 1:144 scale the (engraved) surface details are just fine. It’s not a stellar model, but a sturdy representation with surprisingly massive parts, esp. the fuselage: its walls are almost 3mm thick!

 

However, I did not want to build the stretched USAF version. The original civil L300 had the same fuselage as the C-141A, and I found this option to be more plausible for the haul of singular heavy equipment than the stretched version, and the decision to shorten the C-141B also had logistic reasons, because I’d have to store the model somewhere once finished… And, finally, I think that the original, short C-141 is just looking good. ;-)

 

So, I simply “de-plugged” the fuselage. In real life, the C-141B had two extensions: a 160” plug in front and another 120” insert behind its wings. This translated into 2.8 and 2.1 cm long sections on the model that were simply sawed off from the completed fuselage. Thanks to the massive fuselage walls, gluing the parts back together was an easy task, resulting in a very stable connection. The seams were hidden under some PSR, as well as two windows. The C-141B’s fairing for the refueling receptive was also sanded away. The front plug was easily hidden, but the rear plug called for some body sculpting, because the fuselage has a subtle bulge around the cargo door and its ramp – the shapes in front and behind it don’t differ much, though.

 

Another change for a more fictional civil variant: the engines. This was a lucky coincidence, because I had a complete set of four CFM56 turbofan nacelles left over from my shortened Minicraft DC-8 build a while ago, and the StarLifter lent itself to take these different/more modern engines, esp. for the civilian market. The swap was not as easy as expected, though, because the C-141’s nacelles are much different, have longer pylons and their attachment points in the wings were OOB not compatible at all with the CFM56 pods. I eventually filled the attachment slots in the wings and glued the complete CFM56 nacelles with their short DC-8 pylons directly under the wings, blending these areas with PRS. The engines’ position is now markedly different (higher/closer to the wings and further forward), but the engines’ bigger diameter IMHO justifies this change – and it turned out well.

 

The rest of the Roden model was left OOB, I just added a ventral display adapter for the flight scenes.

  

Painting and markings:

As mentioned above, I was looking for a “bush pilot” operator of suitable size in the Northern hemisphere, and Greenland Air was chosen because of its exoticism and the airline’s distinctive and simple livery. Does anyone know this rather small airline at all? Potential freight for the US Army as well as for private mining companies with lots of heavy equipment made the StarLifter’s operation plausible.

 

To make the plan work I was lucky that Draw Decal does an 1:144 sheet for the airline‘s (sole) Boeing 757, and its simple post-2002 all-red paint scheme was easily adapted to the StarLifter. The fuselage and the nacelles were painted with brushes in Humbrol 19 (Gloss Red, it comes IMHO close to the rich real-world tone), while the wings and the engine pylons became Humbrol 40 (Glossy Light Gull Grey). For some variety I added a medium grey (Humbrol 126, FS 36270) Corroguard panel to the wings’ upper surface, later framed with OOB decals. The white door markings came from a generic PAS decals sheet. All decals were very thin, esp. the Draw Decals sheet, which had to be handled with much care, but they also dried up perfectly and the white print inks turned out to have very good opacity. Adapting the Boeing 757 decals to the very different C-141 hull was also easier than expected, even though the "Air Greenland" tag on the nose ended up quite far forward and the emblem on the fin lots its uppermost white circle.

 

The cockpit, which comes with no interior, was painted in black, while the landing gear wells and struts were painted in a very light grey (Humbrol 196, RAL 7035) with white rims.

 

Panel lines were emphasized with a little black ink, and the cockpit glazing turned out to be a bit foggy - which became only apparent after I added the red around it. In order to hide this flaw I just laid out the window panels with Tamiya "Smoke".

 

Finally the model finally received an overall coat of gloss acrylic varnish from a rattle can.

  

A colorful result, even though the bright red C-141 looks unusual, if not odd. The different engines work well; with the shorter fuselage, the new, wider nacelles change the StarLifter’s look considerably. It looks more modern (at least to me), like a juiced-up Bae 146 or a C-17 on a diet?

 

Once again, MondayNoodle has appeared on the B.net weekly update! Its great to see Bungie looking at the Lego Halo community's work! Here's a link: www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=31323

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Prop-Making Magic

A prop is any object used by actors or as set decoration on a film. By the time production ended in 2011, the Harry Potter Prop Department had filled five large warehouses with thousands of items (made specifically for the films or purchased from a variety of specialty shops) including 5,000 pieces of furniture, 12,000 handmade books and 40,000 Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products and packages.

 

People the world-over have been enchanted by the Harry Potter films for nearly a decade. The wonderful special effects and amazing creatures have made this iconic series beloved to both young and old - and now, for the first time, the doors are going to be opened for everyone at the studio where it first began. You'll have the chance to go behind-the-scenes and see many things the camera never showed. From breathtakingly detailed sets to stunning costumes, props and animatronics, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London provides a unique showcase of the extraordinary British artistry, technology and talent that went into making the most successful film series of all time. Secrets will be revealed.

 

Warner Bros. Studio Tour London provides an amazing new opportunity to explore the magic of the Harry Potter films - the most successful film series of all time. This unique walking tour takes you behind-the-scenes and showcases a huge array of beautiful sets, costumes and props. It also reveals some closely guarded secrets, including facts about the special effects and animatronics that made these films so hugely popular all over the world.

 

Here are just some of the things you can expect to see and do:

- Step inside and discover the actual Great Hall.

- Explore Dumbledore’s office and discover never-before-seen treasures.

- Step onto the famous cobbles of Diagon Alley, featuring the shop fronts of Ollivanders wand shop, Flourish and Blotts, the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, Gringotts Wizarding Bank and Eeylops Owl Emporium.

- See iconic props from the films, including Harry’s Nimbus 2000 and Hagrid’s motorcycle.

- Learn how creatures were brought to life with green screen effects, animatronics and life-sized models.

- Rediscover other memorable sets from the film series, including the Gryffindor common room, the boys’ dormitory, Hagrid’s hut, Potion’s classroom and Professor Umbridge’s office at the Ministry of Magic.

 

Located just 20 miles from the heart of London at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, the very place where it all began and where all eight of the Harry Potter films were brought to life. The Studio Tour is accessible to everyone and promises to be a truly memorable experience - whether you’re an avid Harry Potter fan, an all-round movie buff or you just want to try something that’s a little bit different.

 

The tour is estimated to take approximately three hours (I was in there for 5 hours!), however, as the tour is mostly self guided, you are free to explore the attraction at your own pace. During this time you will be able to see many of the best-loved sets and exhibits from the films. Unique and precious items from the films will also be on display, alongside some exciting hands-on interactive exhibits that will make you feel like you’re actually there.

 

The magic also continues in the Gift Shop, which is full of exciting souvenirs and official merchandise, designed to create an everlasting memory of your day at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London.

 

Hogwarts Castle Model - Get a 360 degree view of the incredible, hand sculpted 1:24 scale construction that features within the Studio Tour. The Hogwarts castle model is the jewel of the Art Department having been built for the first film, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. It took 86 artists and crew members to construct the first version which was then rebuilt and altered many times over for the next seven films. The work was so extensive that if one was to add all the man hours that have gone into building and reworking the model, it would come to over 74 years. The model was used for aerial photography, and was digitally scanned for CGI scenes.

 

The model, which sits at nearly 50 feet in diameter, has over 2,500 fibre optic lights that simulate lanterns and torches and even gave the illusion of students passing through hallways in the films. To show off the lighting to full effect a day-to-night cycle will take place every four minutes so you can experience its full beauty.

 

An amazing amount of detail went into the making of the model: all the doors are hinged, real plants are used for landscaping and miniature birds are housed in the Owlery. To make the model appear even more realistic, artists rebuilt miniature versions of the courtyards from Alnwick Castle and Durham Cathedral, where scenes from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone were shot.

Gargoyle is a mouth for ejected words of sweeping Lucifer this took other angels that had the seed of desire planted within them, for it is selfish desires that fuel the ego. He was expelled from the higher regions because he no longer had the Christic virtues but had the ego crystallized instead. Since we assert that selfish desires and interests strengthen the egos hold on us, it is also true that altruistic, compassionate service vivify the Christic force within us that stirs us to self-sacrifice for humanity (The hanged man). Can 'Lucifer' be the Hanged Man #12 card ? Here are a few depictions of the card for reference first: The Hanged Man...also known as Perspective....now also known as "Lucifer"....here's why I think this is an awesome pictorial for the meaning. What is the central meaning for the Hanged Man?

Letting go...as in accepting God's Will (give me a chance to explain...just a little more)

Giving up control

Accepting what is

Putting others first

NOW WAIT A MINUTE, ERIC !! You said this would all make sense....Lucifer isn't this way!

...TRUE.....and that's my point. He is the card's "shadow side" (or Reversed). The shadow side of every card is the not-so-well known or publicized meanings that are just as much true as the upright meanings...just from a different 'perspective' (like how i tied that all in...LOL)

Lucifer...Satan....the Devil....whoever you may call him....he IS the Hanged Man's other half to complete the whole story.

Let's look at the original card again...upside down or Shadow side: This way what does the card suggest? The man is now grounded again, able to walk on his OWN TWO FEET, under his OWN power. What about his head? It's still a-glow with enlightenment ! But wait....I thought the man got his enlightenment while hanging upside and submitting? He did....but he also CAN on his own...

...just like Lucifer did !

Remember the first card above said "New Vision"? The figure was 'standing tall' with wings spread, leaving the corpse on the ground that was a slave to the 'old ways'. Keeping these images in mind lets see the meanings of the Hanged Man again...as it's 'True' other "Shadow"

Reversing...turning the world around...overturning old priorities

Seeing things from a new angle or perspective

Up-Ending the old order...doing an about-face

Living in the moment...for the NOW !

Defiance

Self-assertion

Sound more like the Lucifer you know? Let's look again: What we are witnessing is the moment Lucifer made his choice to rebel...and just BE HIMSELF ! On the left...heaven...his appointment there, where he was told what to do and had limited choice. On the right, FREEDOM as not a PLACE, but an IDEA....where he stretches his hand out in acceptance (notice the other is more closed with a "shackle of light" restricting it's movement).

Notice, also, the color of his wings: white on left from that of God's control, dark on right to show expansive freedom like that of space. In-between there is a struggle for control, for power, and for self-enlightenment. Both God and now Lucifer know this....the time for a new perspective has come...and Lucifer chose FREE WILL.

Whether I believe in Lucifer or not is unimportant...only the symbolism here to help see the relationship of the meanings of both Light and Shadow...neither one more important than the other....both necessary to the True meaning of the Hanged Man card.

Which side are you? Do you submit to what others tell you is right...or do you find you listen to what your heart tells you? You may have more in common with this card than you previously thought ! Cheers !

Eric "MoonLightTrucker"

“Esoterically, the Hanged Man is the human spirit which is suspended from heaven by a single thread. Wisdom, not death, is reward for this voluntary sacrifice during which the human soul, suspended above the world of illusion, and meditating upon its unreality, is rewarded by the achievement of self-realization.” – Manly P. Hall, The Secret Teachings of All Ages.

In the Tarot with the twelfth (12th) card called ‘The Hanged Man”or in French, “Le Pendu.” The Hanged Man (XII) is the twelfth trump or Major Arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks.

 

This card portrays a young man hanging upside down by his left leg from a horizontal beam, the latter supported by two tree trunks from each of which six branches have been removed. The right leg of the youth is crossed in back of the left and his arms are folded behind his back in such a way as to form a cross surmounting a downward pointing triangle. According to Elphias Levi, the Hanged Man thus forms an inverted symbol of sulphur. Elphias Levi had stated in his book, Transcendental Magic; ” It is also implied fantastically that the Roman alphabet is related to Tarot cards, but whereas the Hebrew Mem answers to the card of Death the Roman M is referred to the Hanged Man, Resh to the Judgement card but R to the Blazing Star.” Levi likens the hanged man to the legend of Prometheus, the titan who gave fire to mankind and in turn suffered the wrath of Zeus by becoming the eternal sufferer, not just by being bound to a rock, but to also have his liver fed upon by an eagle each day. the Egyptian Tarot the hanged man is hung upside down between two palm trees, which is said to signify the Sun God who dies perennially for his world. In some Tarot decks, the figure in the 12th card carries under each arm a money bag from which coins are escaping. Some people have said that this latter card is that of Judas Iscariot who is said to have gone forth and hanged himself, the money bags representing the payment he received for his crime. The Hanged Man is a form of Pittura infamante;

 

(Italian for “defaming portrait”; plural pitture infamanti) is a genre of defamatory painting and relief, common in Renaissance Italy. It came to be regarded as a form of art rather than effigy; the power of the genre derived from a feudal-based code of honor, where shame was one of the most significant social punishments. Common themes of pittura infamante—which were meant to be humiliating—include depicting the subject as wearing a mitre or hanging upside down, being in the presence of unclean animals such as pigs or donkeys or those deemed evil like snakes; pittura infamante would also contain captions listing the offenses of the subject.Pittura infamante could originate as more favorable depictions, only to be transformed after the subject had fallen out of favor.

Chittorgarh Fort (Hindi/Rajasthani: चित्तौड दुर्ग Chittorgarh Durg) is the largest fort in India and the grandest in the state of Rajasthan. It is a World Heritage Site. The fort, plainly known as Chittor, was the capital of Mewar and is today situated several kilometres south of Bhilwara. It was initially ruled by Guhilot and later by Sisodias, the Suryavanshi clans of Chattari Rajputs, from the 7th century, until it was finally abandoned in 1568 after the siege by Emperor Akbar in 1567. It sprawls majestically over a hill 180 m in height spread over an area of 280 ha above the plains of the valley drained by the Berach River. The fort precinct with an evocative history is studded with a series of historical palaces, gates, temples and two prominent commemoration towers. These monumental ruins have inspired the imagination of tourists and writers for centuries.

 

The fort was sacked three times between the 15th and 16th centuries; in 1303 Allauddin Khilji defeated Rana Ratan Singh, in 1535 Bahadur Shah, the Sultan of Gujarat defeated Bikramjeet Singh and in 1567 Emperor Akbar defeated Maharana Udai Singh II who left the fort and founded Udaipur. Each time the men fought bravely rushing out of the fort walls charging the enemy but lost every time. Following these defeats, Jauhar was committed thrice by more than 13,000 ladies and children of the Rajput heroes who laid their lives in battles at Chittorgarh Fort, first led by Rani Padmini wife of Rana Rattan Singh who was killed in the battle in 1303, and later by Rani Karnavati in 1537 AD.

 

Thus, the fort represents the quintessence of tribute to the nationalism, courage, medieval chivalry and sacrifice exhibited by the Mewar rulers of Sisodia and their kinsmen and women and children, between the 7th and 16th centuries. The rulers, their soldiers, the women folk of royalty and the commoners considered death as a better option than dishonor in the face of surrender to the foreign invading armies.

 

GEOGRAPHY

Chittorgarh, located in the southern part of the state of Rajasthan, 233 km from Ajmer, midway between Delhi and Mumbai on the National Highway 8 (India) in the road network of Golden Quadrilateral. Chittorgarh is situated where National Highways No. 76 & 79 intersect.

 

The fort rises abruptly above the surrounding plains and is spread over an area of 2.8 km2. The highest elevation at the fort is 1,075 m. It is situated on the left bank of the Berach river (a tributary of the Banas River) and is linked to the new town of Chittorgarh (known as the 'Lower Town') developed in the plains after 1568 AD when the fort was deserted in light of introduction of artillery in the 16th century, and therefore the capital was shifted to more secure Udaipur, located on the eastern flank of Aravalli hill range. Mughal Emperor Akbar attacked and sacked this fort which was but one of the 84 forts of Mewar,but the capital was shifted to Aravalli hills where heavy artillery & cavalry were not effective. A winding hill road of more than 1 km length from the new town leads to the west end main gate, called Ram Pol, of the fort. Within the fort, a circular road provides access to all the gates and monuments located within the fort walls.

 

The fort that once boasted of 84 water bodies has only 22 of them now. These water bodies are fed by natural catchment and rainfall, and have a combined storage of 4 billion litres that could meet the water needs of an army of 50,000. The supply could last for four years. These water bodies are in the form of ponds, wells and step wells.

 

HISTORY

Chittorgarh Fort is considered to be the largest fort of India in terms of area. It is stated that the fort was constructed by the Mauryans during the 7th century AD and hence derives its name after the Mauryan ruler, Chitrangada Mori, as inscribed on coins of the period. Historical records show Chittorgarh fort as the capital of Mewar for 834 years. It was established in 734 AD by Bappa Rawal, founder ruler in the hierarchy of the Sisodia rulers of Mewar. It is also said that the fort was gifted to Bappa Rawal as part of Solanki princess’s dowry in the 8th century. The fort was looted and destroyed at the hands of Emperor Akbar in 1568 AD and subsequently never resettled but only refurbished in 1905 AD. Three important battles were fought for control of the fort; in 1303, Ala-ud-din Khilji besieged the fort; in 1535, Sultan of Gujarat Bahadur Shah besieged the fort; and in 1568, Mughal Emperor Akbar attacked the fort. Not that there were only defeats at the fort. Excluding the periods of siege, the fort had always remained in possession of the Sisodias of the Guhilot (or Gehlot/Guhila) clan of Rajputs, who descended from Bappa Rawal. There were also success stories of establishment of the fort and its reconstruction after every siege, before it was finally abandoned in 1568, all of which are narrated.

 

Chittor is cited in the Mahabharat epic. It is said that Bhima, the second of the Pandava brothers of Epic Mahabaharata fame, known for his mighty strength gave a powerful hit with his fist to the ground that resulted in water springing up to form a large reservoir. It is called Bhimlat kund, an artificial tank named after Bhima. Folk legend also mentions that Bhima started building the fort.

 

BAPPA RAWAL

The earliest history linked to the Bappa Rawal's fort is that of the Huna Kingdom of Sialkot (of Mihir Kula 515-540 AD) that was destroyed by Yashodharman. This was subsequently seized by a new dynasty of kshatriyas called Tak or Taxaka. According to historians, the Taxak Mori were the lords of Chittor from a very early period. After a few generations, the Guhilots supplanted them. From 725 to 735 AD, there were numerous defenders who appear to have considered the cause of Chittor their own, the Tak from Asirgarh. This race appears to have retained possession of Asirgarh for at least two centuries after this event and one of its chieftain Bappa Rawal was the most conspicuous leader in the lineage of Prithvi Raj. In the poems of Chandar he is called the "Standard, bearer, Tak of Asir."

 

SIEGE OF 1303

Ala ud din Khilji, Sultan of Delhi, rallied his forces against Mewar, in 1303 AD. The Chittorgarh fort was till then considered impregnable and grand, atop a natural hill. But his immediate reason for invading the fort was his obsessive desire to capture Rani Padmini, the unrivalled beautiful queen of Rana Ratan Singh and take her into his harem. The Rana, out of politeness, allowed the Khilji to view Padmini through a set of mirrors. But this viewing of Padmini further fired Khilji’s desire to possess her. After the viewing, as a gesture of courtesy, when the Rana accompanied the Sultan to the outer gate, he was treacherously captured. Khilji conveyed to the queen that the Rana would be released only if she agreed to join his harem. But the queen had other plans. She agreed to go to his camp if permitted to go in a Royal style with an entourage, in strict secrecy. Instead of her going, she sent 700 well armed soldiers disguised in litters and they rescued the Rana and took him to the fort. But Khilji chased them to the fort where a fierce battle ensued at the outer gate of the fort in which the Rajput soldiers were overpowered and the Rana was killed. Khilji won the battle on August 26, 1303. Soon thereafter, instead of surrendering to the Sultan, the royal Rajput ladies led by Rani Padmini preferred to die through the Rajput’s ultimate tragic rite of Jauhar (self immolation on a pyre). In revenge, Khilji killed thirty thousand Hindus. He entrusted the fort to his son Khizr Khan to rule and renamed the fort as 'Khizrabad'. He also showered gifts on his son by way of

 

a red canopy, a robe embroidered with gold and two standards one green and the other black and threw upon him rubies and emeralds.

 

He returned to Delhi after the fierce battle at the fort.

 

RANA HAMMIR & SUCCESSORS

Khizr Khan’s rule at the fort lasted till 1311 AD and due to the pressure of Rajputs he was forced to entrust power to the Sonigra chief Maldeva who held the fort for 7 years. Hammir Singh, usurped control of the fort from Maldeva by “treachery and intrigue” and Chittor once again regained its past glory. Hammir, before his death in 1364 AD, had converted Mewar into a fairly large and prosperous kingdom. The dynasty (and clan) fathered by him came to be known by the name Sisodia after the village where he was born. His son Ketra Singh succeeded him and ruled with honour and power. Ketra Singh’s son Lakha who ascended the throne in 1382 AD also won several wars. His famous grandson Rana Kumbha came to the throne in 1433 AD and by that time the Muslim rulers of Malwa and Gujarat had acquired considerable clout and were keen to usurp the powerful Mewar state.

 

RANA KUMBHA & CLAN

There was resurgence during the reign of Rana Kumbha in the 15th century. Rana Kumbha, also known as Maharana Kumbhakarna, son of Rana Mokal, ruled Mewar between 1433 AD and 1468 AD. He is credited with building up the Mewar kingdom assiduously as a force to reckon with. He built 32 forts (84 fortresses formed the defense of Mewar) including one in his own name, called Kumbalgarh. But his end came in 1468 AD at the hands of his own son Rana Udaysimha (Uday Singh I) who assassinated him to gain the throne of Mewar. This patricide was not appreciated by the people of Mewar and consequently his brother Rana Raimal assumed the reins of power in 1473. After his death in May 1509, Sangram Singh (also known as Rana Sanga), his youngest son, became the ruler of Mewar, which brought in a new phase in the history of Mewar. Rana Sanga, with support from Medini Rai (a Rajput chief of Alwar), fought a valiant battle against Mughal emperor Babar at Khanwa in 1527. He ushered in a period of prestige to Chittor by defeating the rulers of Gujarat and also effectively interfered in the matters of Idar. He also won small areas of the Delhi territory. In the ensuing battle with Ibrahim Lodi, Rana won and acquired some districts of Malwa. He also defeated the combined might of Sultan Muzaffar of Gujarat and the Sultan of Malwa. By 1525 AD, Rana Sanga had developed Chittor and Mewar, by virtue of great intellect, valour and his sword, into a formidable military state. But in a decisive battle that was fought against Babar on March 16, 1527, the Rajput army of Rana Sanga suffered a terrible defeat and Sanga escaped to one of his fortresses. But soon thereafter in another attack on the Chanderi fort the valiant Rana Sanga died and with his death the Rajput confederacy collapsed.

 

SIEGE OF 1534

Bahadur Shah who came to the throne in 1526 AD as the Sultan of Gujarat besieged the Chittorgarh fort in 1534. The fort was sacked and, once again the medieval dictates of chivalry determined the outcome. Following the defeat of the Rana, it is said 13,000 Rajput women committed jauhar (self immolation on the funeral pyre) and 3,200 Rajput warriors rushed out of the fort to fight and die.

 

SIEGE OF 1567

The final Siege of Chittorgarh came 33 years later, in 1567, when the Mughal Emperor Akbar invaded the fort. Akbar wanted to conquer Mewar, which was being ably ruled by Rana Uday Singh II, a fine prince of Mewar. To establish himself as the supreme lord of Northern India, he wanted to capture the renowned fortress of Chittor, as a precursor to conquering the whole of India. Shakti Singh, son of the Rana who had quarreled with his father, had run away and approached Akbar when the later had camped at Dholpur preparing to attack Malwa. During one of these meetings, in August 1567, Shakti Singh came to know from a remark made in jest by emperor Akbar that he was intending to wage war against Chittor. Akbar had told Shakti Singh in jest that since his father had not submitted himself before him like other princes and chieftains of the region he would attack him. Startled by this revelation, Shakti Singh quietly rushed back to Chittor and informed his father of the impending invasion by Akbar. Akbar was furious with the departure of Shakti Singh and decided to attack Mewar to humble the arrogance of the Ranas. In September 1567, the emperor left for Chittor, and on October 20, 1567, camped in the vast plains outside the fort. In the meantime, Rana Udai Singh, on the advice of his council of advisors, decided to go away from Chittor to the hills of Udaipur. Jaimal and Patta, two brave army chieftains of Mewar, were left behind to defend the fort along with 8,000 Rajput warriors under their command. Akbar laid siege to the fortress. The Rajput army fought valiantly and Akbar himself had narrowly escaped death. In this grave situation, Akbar had prayed for divine help for achieving victory and vowed to visit the shrine of the sufi saint Khwaja at Ajmer. The battle continued till February 23, 1568. On that day Jaymal was seriously wounded but he continued to fight with support from Patta. Jayamal ordered jauhar to be performed when many beautiful princesses of Mewar and noble matrons committed self-immolation at the funeral pyre. Next day the gates of the fort were opened and Rajput soldiers rushed out bravely to fight the enemies. Jayamal and Patta who fought bravely were at last killed in action. One figure estimates that 30,000 soldiers were killed in action. Akbar immediately repaired himself to Ajmer to perform his religious vow.

 

RETURN OF THE FORT TO MEWAR

But in 1616, Jehangir returned Chittor fort to the Rajputs, when Maharana Amar Singh was the chief of Mewar. However, the fort was not resettled though it was refurbished several centuries later in 1905 during British Raj.

 

PRECINCTS

The fort which is roughly in the shape of a fish has a circumference of 13 km with a maximum width of 3 km and it covers an area of 700 acres. The fort is approached through a zig zag and difficult ascent of more than 1 km from the plains, after crossing over a bridge made in limestone. The bridge spans the Gambhiri River and is supported by ten arches (one has a curved shape while the balance have pointed arches). Apart from the two tall towers, which dominate the majestic fortifications, the sprawling fort has a plethora of palaces and temples (many of them in ruins) within its precincts.

 

The 305 hectares component site, with a buffer zone of 427 hectares, encompasses the fortified stronghold of Chittorgarh, a spacious fort located on an isolated rocky plateau of approximately 2 km length and 155m width.

 

It is surrounded by a perimeter wall 4.5 kilometres long, beyond which a 45° hill slope makes it almost inaccessible to enemies. The ascent to the fort passes through seven gateways built by the Mewar ruler Rana Kumbha (1433- 1468) of the Sisodia clan. These gates are called, from the base to the hill top, the Paidal Pol, Bhairon Pol, Hanuman Pol, Ganesh Pol, Jorla Pol, Laxman Pol, and Ram Pol, the final and main gate.

 

The fort complex comprises 65 historic built structures, among them 4 palace complexes, 19 main temples, 4 memorials and 20 functional water bodies. These can be divided into two major construction phases. The first hill fort with one main entrance was established in the 5th century and successively fortified until the 12th century. Its remains are mostly visible on the western edges of the plateau. The second, more significant defence structure was constructed in the 15th century during the reign of the Sisodia Rajputs, when the royal entrance was relocated and fortified with seven gates, and the medieval fortification wall was built on an earlier wall construction from the 13th century.

 

Besides the palace complex, located on the highest and most secure terrain in the west of the fort, many of the other significant structures, such as the Kumbha Shyam Temple, the Mira Bai Temple, the Adi Varah Temple, the Shringar Chauri Temple, and the Vijay Stambh memorial were constructed in this second phase. Compared to the later additions of Sisodian rulers during the 19th and 20th centuries, the predominant construction phase illustrates a comparatively pure Rajput style combined with minimal eclecticism, such as the vaulted substructures which were borrowed from Sultanate architecture. The 4.5 km walls with integrated circular enforcements are constructed from dressed stone masonry in lime mortar and rise 500m above the plain. With the help of the seven massive stone gates, partly flanked by hexagonal or octagonal towers, the access to the fort is restricted to a narrow pathway which climbs up the steep hill through successive, ever narrower defence passages. The seventh and final gate leads directly into the palace area, which integrates a variety of residential and official structures. Rana Kumbha Mahal, the palace of Rana Kumbha, is a large Rajput domestic structure and now incorporates the Kanwar Pade Ka Mahal (the palace of the heir) and the later palace of the poetess Mira Bai (1498-1546). The palace area was further expanded in later centuries, when additional structures, such as the Ratan Singh Palace (1528–31) or the Fateh Prakash, also named Badal Mahal (1885-1930), were added. Although the majority of temple structures represent the Hindu faith, most prominently the Kalikamata Temple (8th century), the Kshemankari Temple (825-850) the Kumbha Shyam Temple (1448) or the Adbuthnath Temple (15th- 16th century), the hill fort also contains Jain temples, such as Shringar Chauri (1448) and Sat Bis Devri (mid-15th century) Also the two tower memorials, Kirti Stambh (13th-14th century) and Vijay Stambha (1433-1468), are Jain monuments. They stand out with their respective heights of 24m and 37m, which ensure their visibility from most locations of the fort complex. Finally, the fort compound is home to a contemporary municipal ward of approximately 3,000 inhabitants, which is located near Ratan Singh Tank at the northern end of the property.

 

GATES

The fort has total seven gates (in local language, gate is called Pol), namely the Padan Pol, Bhairon Pol, Hanuman Pol, Ganesh Pol, Jodla Pol, Laxman Pol and the main gate named the Ram Pol (Lord Rama's Gate). All the gateways to the fort have been built as massive stone structures with secure fortifications for military defense. The doors of the gates with pointed arches are reinforced to fend off elephants and cannon shots. The top of the gates have notched parapets for archers to shoot at the enemy army. A circular road within the fort links all the gates and provides access to the numerous monuments (ruined palaces and 130 temples) in the fort.

 

During the second siege, Prince Bagh Singh died at the Padan Pol in 1535 AD. Prince Jaimal of Badnore and his clansman Kalla were killed by Akbar at a location between the Bhairon Pol and Hanuman Pol in the last siege of the fort in 1567 (Kalla carried the wounded Jaimal out to fight). Chhatris, with the roof supported by corbeled arches, have been built to commemorate the spots of their sacrifice. Their statues have also been erected, at the orders of Emperor Akbar, to commemorate their valiant deaths. At each gate, cenotaphs of Jaimal (in the form of a statue of a Rajput warrior on horseback) and Patta have also been constructed. At Ram Pol, the entrance gate to the fort, a Chaatri was built in memory of the 15 year old Patta of Kelwa, who had lost his father in battle, and saw the sword yielding mother and wife on the battle field who fought valiantly and died at this gate. He led the saffron robed Rajput warriors, who all died fighting for Mewar’s honour. Suraj Pol (Sun Gate) provides entry to the eastern wall of the fort. On the right of Suraj Pol is the Darikhana or Sabha (council chamber) behind which lie a Ganesha temple and the zenana (living quarters for women). A massive water reservoir is located towards the left of Suraj Pol. There is also a peculiar gate, called the Jorla Pol (Joined Gate), which consists of two gates joined together. The upper arch of Jorla Pol is connected to the base of Lakshman Pol. It is said that this feature has not been noticed anywhere else in India. The Lokota Bari is the gate at the fort’s northern tip, while a small opening that was used to hurl criminals into the abyss is seen at the southern end.

 

VIJAY STAMBHA

The Vijay Stambha (Tower of Victory) or Jaya Stambha, called the symbol of Chittor and a particularly bold expression of triumph, was erected by Rana Kumbha between 1458 and 1468 to commemorate his victory over Mahmud Shah I Khalji, the Sultan of Malwa, in 1440 AD. Built over a period of ten years, it raises 37.2 metres over a 4.4 m2 base in nine stories accessed through a narrow circular staircase of 157 steps (the interior is also carved) up to the 8th floor, from where there is good view of the plains and the new town of Chittor. The dome, which was a later addition, was damaged by lightning and repaired during the 19th century. The Stamba is now illuminated during the evenings and gives a beautiful view of Chittor from the top.

 

KIRTI STAMBHA

Kirti Stambha (Tower of Fame) is a 22 metres high tower built on a 9.1 m base with 4.6 m at the top, is adorned with Jain sculptures on the outside and is older (probably 12th century) and smaller than the Victory Tower. Built by a Bagherwal Jain merchant Jijaji Rathod, it is dedicated to Adinath, the first Jain tirthankar (revered Jain teacher). In the lowest floor of the tower, figures of the various tirthankars of the Jain pantheon are seen in special niches formed to house them. These are digambara monuments. A narrow stairway with 54 steps leads through the six storeys to the top. The top pavilion that was added in the 15th century has 12 columns.

 

RANA KUMBHA PALACE

At the entrance gate near the Vijaya Stamba, Rana Kumbha's palace (in ruins), the oldest monument, is located. The palace included elephant and horse stables and a temple to Lord Shiva. Maharana Udai Singh, the founder of Udaipur, was born here; the popular folk lore linked to his birth is that his maid Panna DaiPanna Dhai saved him by substituting her son in his place as a decoy, which resulted in her son getting killed by Banbir. The prince was spirited away in a fruit basket. The palace is built with plastered stone. The remarkable feature of the palace is its splendid series of canopied balconies. Entry to the palace is through Suraj Pol that leads into a courtyard. Rani Meera, the famous poetess saint, also lived in this palace. This is also the palace where Rani Padmini, consigned herself to the funeral pyre in one of the underground cellars, as an act of jauhar along with many other women. The Nau Lakha Bandar (literal meaning: nine lakh treasury) building, the royal treasury of Chittor was also located close by. Now, across from the palace is a museum and archeological office. The Singa Chowri temple is also nearby.

 

FATEH PRAKASH PALACE

Located near Rana Khumba palace, built by Rana Fateh Singh, the precincts have modern houses and a small museum. A school for local children (about 5,000 villagers live within the fort) is also nearby.

 

GAUMUKH RESERVOIR

A spring feeds the tank from a carved cow’s mouth in the cliff. This pool was the main source of water at the fort during the numerous sieges.

 

PADMINI´S PALACE

Padmini's Palace or Rani Padmini's Palace is a white building and a three storied structure (a 19th-century reconstruction of the original). It is located in the southern part of the fort. Chhatris (pavilions) crown the palace roofs and a water moat surrounds the palace. This style of palace became the forerunner of other palaces built in the state with the concept of Jal Mahal (palace surrounded by water). It is at this Palace where Alauddin was permitted to glimpse the mirror image of Rani Padmini, wife of Maharana Rattan Singh. It is widely believed that this glimpse of Padmini's beauty besotted him and convinced him to destroy Chittor in order to possess her. Maharana Rattan Singh was killed and Rani Padmini committed Jauhar. Rani Padmini's beauty has been compared to that of Cleopatra and her life story is an eternal legend in the history of Chittor. The bronze gates to this pavilion were removed and transported to Agra by Akbar.

 

OTHER SIGHTS

Close to Kirti Sthamba is the Meera Temple, or the Meerabai Temple. Rana Khumba built it in an ornate Indo–Aryan architectural style. It is associated with the mystic saint-poet Mirabai who was an ardent devotee of Lord Krishna and dedicated her entire life to His worship. She composed and sang lyrical bhajans called Meera Bhajans. The popular legend associated with her is that with blessings of Krishna, she survived after consuming poison sent to her by her evil brother-in-law. The larger temple in the same compound is the Kumbha Shyam Temple (Varaha Temple). The pinnacle of the temple is in pyramid shape. A picture of Meerabai praying before Krishna has now been installed in the temple.

 

Across from Padmini’s Palace is the Kalika Mata Temple. Originally, a Sun Temple dated to the 8th century dedicated to Surya (the Sun God) was destroyed in the 14th century. It was rebuilt as a Kali temple.

 

Another temple on the west side of the fort is the ancient Goddess Tulja Bhavani Temple built to worship Goddess Tulja Bhavani is considered sacred. The Tope Khana (cannon foundry) is located next to this temple in a courtyard, where a few old cannons are still seen.

 

JAUHAR MELA

The fort and the city of Chittorgarh host the biggest Rajput festival called the "Jauhar Mela". It takes place annually on the anniversary of one of the jauhars, but no specific name has been given to it. It is generally believed that it commemorates Padmini’s jauhar, which is most famous. This festival is held primarily to commemorate the bravery of Rajput ancestors and all three jauhars which happened at Chittorgarh Fort. A huge number of Rajputs, which include the descendants of most of the princely families, hold a procession to celebrate the Jauhar. It has also become a forum to air one's views on the current political situation in the country.

The Chancellor Rishi Sunak is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg for BBC News in Westminster

Agrotourism Kalpic is located in a rural area near the Krka National Park (home to some amazing waterfalls), and is only 10 miles from the city of Šibenik.

 

It consists of 3 traditional Croatian stone cottages, a larger stone house and an authentic Dalmatian tavern.

 

Each room has a different character and is decorated in an authentic style, with everything you need for a very comfortable stay.

 

In the traditional Dalmatian tavern, the friendly, welcoming hosts serve a wide range of home-made wines and liquors, such as the Rakija (a very nice walnut brandy), alongside delicious traditional home-cooked Dalmatian meals (mostly prepared using ingredients grown or produced on-site, including their own prize-winning Pršut (smoked ham)).

 

View Agrotourism Kalpic's website

 

View Agrotourism Kalpic on TripAdvisor

 

www.booking.com/hotel/hr/agrotourism-kalpic.en-gb.html?ai...;

 

Kinson is one of the old settlements that existed in and around the Stour Valley long before Bournemouth was officially founded in 1810.

This stretch of Wimborne Rd lies at what would have been the heart of Kinson but most of the 'old Kinson' has long since disappeared although some older properties still stand including St Andrews Church, Pelhams and Gullivers Tavern, plus the odd old gate post or two, in the centre of Kinson.

Others such as the Dower House and the former St Andrews Vicarage, now the Toby Carvery, in what was the neighbouring village of Ensbury, which is now known as Northbourne, and thatched cottages in East Howe Lane, including the former Thatched House pub plus a few other bits and bobs also still survive in the vicinity.

Years ago Kinson used to cover a wider area than we may think of as Kinson today and covered land that is part of neighbouring Poole which is why the Kinson Pottery Industrial Estate out on Ringwood Rd in Poole is so named because the large Kinson Pottery works stood here into the 1960s

Kinson as we know it became part of Bournemouth in 1931, including East Howe, West Howe and on up to what is now the town boundary at Wallisdown Rd. Even at this time there was still a fairly rural aspect to the area as it would have been before the construction of large areas of council properties and other residential homes in the 50s and 60s.

The site of The Hub, which is the subject of this small series of images has most notably been occupied by a Victorian school until the 1950s, then a prefab library in the 1960s, and finally a more permanent library building from 1970 until 2008, when work to construct The Hub began.

The Hub incorporates a library and various other community outreach services and was officially opened by the television wildlife personality Chris Packham in 2010.

 

www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/8337021.Bournemouth_counci...

  

Further reading.

Old Kinson by SJ Lands - a Bournemouth Local Studies Publication. 1980 ISBN 0 906406 08 0

is dark and gritty and red

  

I've always been the kind of girl

That hid my face

So afraid to tell the world

What I've got to say

But I have this dream

Right inside of me

I'm gonna let it show, it's time

To let you know

To let you know

 

This is real, this is me

I'm exactly where I'm suppose to be, now

Gonna let the light, shine on me

Now I've found, who I am

There's no way to hold it in

No more hiding who I want to be

This is me

 

Do you know what it's like

To feel so in the dark

To dream about a life

Where you're the shining star

Even though it seems

Like it's too far away

I have to believe in myself

It's the only way

 

This is real, This is me

I'm exactly where I'm suppose to be, now

Gonna let the light, shine on me

Now I've found, who I am

There's no way to hold it in

No more hiding who I want to be

This is me

 

You're the voice I hear inside my head

The reason that I'm singing

I need to find you, I gotta find you

You're the missing piece I need

The song inside of me

I need to find you, I gotta find you

 

This is real, this is me

I'm exactly where I'm suppose to be, now

Gonna let the light, shine on me

Now I've found, who I am

There's no way to hold it in

No more hiding who I want to be

This is me

You're the missing piece I need

The song inside of me (this is me)

You're the voice I hear inside my head

The reason that I'm singing

Now I've found, who I am

There's no way to hold it in

No more hiding who I want to be

This is me

 

k ai yêu ta như chính ta yêu bản thân mình :)

có BN nè :">

ngoài lề

àh zk zyn tó ơi nếu lần sau có dịp show wc nữa a sẽ đột kích dìm em nhé :))

ai nào biết trong thế giới của em đã từng hiện hữu hình bóng của A :)

this is an image from earlier in the summer I just retouched it a touch and tried a slightly different process.

 

12 exposures all run through DxO

3 sets of 3 exposures (9 exposures) fused and tone compressed in photomatix (one set shifted down, one set straight one set shifted up)

3 exposures with a 580 on top, 430 CR and a 430CL. (one set shifted down, one set straight one set shifted up)

 

These were photomerged to 3 (roughly square pano) layers which were mixed to taste in PS4

 

Camera: Canon 5d mkII

Lens: Canon 17mm TS-E

Lights: Canon 580 exII and 2 x 430ex

 

www.FirstPointProperty.com

This is how my life has been lately. Very one track minded, but I'm all over the place with no time for anything! I have been relatively uninspired and I apologize for the clunker photos lately.

 

This week has been especially busy.

 

Monday night had a fantastic time with Iram, we crushed some coffee at 2 am and stayed up laughing and watching some reality tv until 430 ish. Those are good moments.

 

Tuesday was a drinking fest with a couple buddies from work. Our new colleague picked up the tab, and we weren't shy ;) Then to Dunn's for smoked meat sandwich and poutine at about 3:30 am.

 

Wednesday night was TV...obviously pretty exhausted from the previous two nights.

 

Thursday was drama night. A good friend, who may or may not have appeared in my stream broke up with his significant other. He's going through a tough time so Iram and I are trying to be there for him. Everyone's been there at some point in their life, but no amount of reassurance helps. Just McDonalds. Which I did not partake in...for the record.

 

Friday was a chill night...once I get home from work about 20 minutes before midnight, I posted a crap photo and played some NHL against a buddy. I destroyed him. If you happen to play NHL11 online with a PS3, let me know. Let's get it on.

 

Saturday morning, worked at 10 am. Took this photo on my way to work that morning. Then we went out with friends to a Mexican restaurant called Itacate. It's on Beaubien St in Montreal. 67 I think. 67 rue Beaubien. Go there...amazing food...and tequila. I definitely participated here. We then headed out to go bowling, but because of UFC fights, we had to pay a cover charge or whatever, so we bailed (gf doesn't dig watching UFC) and played pool. Then went to the best place on earth.

 

It's called Andrews Pub...it's on rue Guy in downtown Montreal. This is the dirtiest, most disgusting bar ever. And I loved it. We had a great time, good laughs.

 

Today we woke up a little later than normal...heading downtown to do some shopping, gonna grab some tacos for supper, then off to "Sans Limits" with Bradley Cooper.

 

That's Limitless for the English world.

Metrobus route 22 is affected by the latest review of bus services by Surrey CC, with changes from 29th August 2015.

 

The Metrobus Saturday service is withdrawn - the last Saturday of operation thus being 22nd August 2015, therefore making it one of the first of the many changes to take place.

 

A morning service is being retained on Saturdays, but this will be run by Buses 4U using a minibus (to a fixed timetable). During the afternoon, the Buses 4U dial-a-ride service will be available.

 

While all points the Metrobus-run 22 currently serves will continue to see Metrobus 'proper' buses, journeys on the current Saturday service run to/from Newdigate four times, whereas on weekdays, the Metrobus 22 only reaches the village on one early evening journey. The withdrawal of the Saturday service therefore means it will be much more difficult to snap a Metrobus at Newdigate.

 

In a change of plan, I was able to go to Newdigate and snap the 22 there on this, the last Saturday of operation.

 

Mini Pointer Dart 6289 (SN03 YCT) was doing the honours on the last day. Here's an interior shot at Dorking rail station.

 

I rode it to Newdigate which was a very interesting journey. As can be seen, it wasn't very busy! It trundled its way around the country lanes south of the A25, most of which I'd never been to before, taking in Leigh before reaching Newdigate. Many single track roads, and we did meet a motorhome at one point which was tricky!

 

Station Approach, Dorking rail station, Dorking, Surrey.

The Cornerstone Gallery is set at the grand entrance of Liverpool Hope's Cornerstone Campus, 10 minutes from the city centre. The Gallery exists as an autonomous space within the building with a prime aim of assisting and promoting new and emerging artists within the North West, along with creating access to contemporary art within education and the local community.

 

'The Cornerstone is an increasingly significant (and desirable) gallery space' - Joe Riley, Liverpool Echo, 14th February 2006.

Current Exhibition

 

Pre_paid_Logo_1.jpgPrivate Viewing - Thursday 4th December, 6-8pm

 

Exhibition Open - Friday 5th to Friday 12th December.

 

Auction - Friday 12th December, 5.30-8pm

 

The Cornerstone Gallery is proud to present 'Pre-paid', an exhibition and auction of postcard works donated by artists and celebrities who contribute to Liverpool’s prestigious cultural life and continuing development. The contributor’s names will be withheld until the preview night on Thursday 4th December 6 - 8pm and the postcards subsequently exhibited for one week only. Names will not be matched to the cards.

 

On Friday 12th December, 5.30 - 8pm a blind auction, hosted by Liverpool's very own and not-to-be-missed Paul O'Keefe, will provide the opportunity for all to bid for those works they are interested in.

 

This will be a very exciting event, one not to be missed and a great opportunity to acquire a piece of work by a prominent artist or celebrity of our time.

 

‘Can you work out whose work is which?'

List of Contributing Artists and Celebrities

 

Richard Ashworth, Jon Barraclough, Colin Beckett, Anna Benson, David Bixter, Sir Peter Blake RA, Derek Boak, Jess Bowstead, Lucy Byrne, Margaret Cahill, Peter Collins, Richard Cooke, Eileen Cooper RA, Peter Corbett, Derek Culley, Anne Desmet, Peter Dover, Phil Dowling, Terry Duffy, Janice Egerton, Lisa Jane Forrester, Lizabeth Gatley, Steve Gatley, Stephen Graham, Martin Greenland, Robin Hartwell, Rebecca Hill, Lin Holland, Axel Höpter, Ghislaine Howard, Jane E. Hughes, Roisin Hyland, Ian Jackson, Minako Jackson, Holly Johnson,Barbara Jones, Jason Jones, Michelle Jones-Hughes, Selwyn Jones-Hughes, Evonne Keeler,Jeanne-Marie Kenny, Anna Ketskemety, Tony Knox, John C. Maloney, Mike McCartney,Joanna McGreggor, Richard Meaghan, Geoff Molyneux, John Monaghan, Tabitha Moses,Anthony O’Connell, Paul O’Grady, Christine O’Reilly Wilson, Mark Owen,Charlotte Owens, Nathan Pendlebury, Ruth Piper, Alan Powell, Stephen Pratt, Roozbeh Rajaie,Sarah Richards, Alice Roberts, Arthur Roberts, Doug Robinson, Jacqueline Scholes, Margaretha Schoning, Colin Serjent, Tony Smith, Constantine Soteriou, David Stanley, Steve Strode,Adam Vaughan, Fiona Ward, Alan Whittaker, Wendy Williams, Elizabeth Willow, Alex Wolkowicz, Iain Yell

  

Cornerstone Gallery

 

On that date, between 5.30 - 8pm a blind auction will be hosted by Paul O'Keeffe providing an exceptional opportunity to bid for these works. The proceeds will be donated to The Artists’ Benevolent Institution.

Bonnie Jeanne Dunbar (born March 3, 1949) is a former NASA astronaut. She retired from NASA in September 2005 then served as president and CEO of The Museum of Flight until April 2010. From January 2013 - December 2015, Dr. Dunbar lead the University of Houston's STEM Center (science, technology, engineering and math) and was a faculty member in the Cullen College of Engineering.[1] Currently, she is a professor of aerospace engineering at Texas A&M University and serves as Director of the Institute for Engineering Education and Innovation (IEEI), a joint entity in the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) and the Dwight Look College of Engineering at Texas A&M University.

Contents

 

1 Early life

2 NASA career

3 Spaceflight experience

4 Education

5 Organizations

6 Awards and honors

7 References

 

Early life

 

Dunbar was born in Sunnyside, Washington. In 1967, she graduated from Sunnyside High School, Sunnyside, Washington. Following graduation in 1971 from the University of Washington, Dunbar worked for Boeing Computer Services for two years as a systems analyst. From 1973 to 1975, she conducted research for her master's thesis in the field of mechanisms and kinetics of ionic diffusion in sodium beta-alumina. She is a member of Kappa Delta sorority.

 

In 1975, she was invited to participate in research at the Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Harwell near Oxford, England, as a visiting scientist. Her work there involved the wetting behavior of liquids on solid substrates. Following her work in England, she accepted a senior research engineer position with Rockwell International Space Division in Downey, California. Her responsibilities there included developing equipment and processes for the manufacture of the Space Shuttle thermal protection system in Palmdale, California. She also represented Rockwell International as a member of the Dr. Kraft Ehricke evaluation committee on prospective space industrialization concepts. Dunbar completed her doctorate at the University of Houston in Houston, Texas. Her multi-disciplinary dissertation (materials science and physiology) involved evaluating the effects of simulated space flight on bone strength and fracture toughness. These results were correlated to alterations in hormonal and metabolic activity. Dr. Dunbar has served as an adjunct assistant professor in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Houston.

 

Dunbar is a private pilot with over 200 hours in single engine land aircraft, has logged more than 700 hours flying time in T-38 jets as a back-seater, and has over 100 hours as co-pilot in a Cessna Citation jet. She was married to fellow astronaut Ronald M. Sega.[2]

NASA career

 

Dunbar accepted a position as a payload officer/flight controller at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in 1978. She served as a guidance and navigation officer/flight controller for the Skylab reentry mission in 1979 and was subsequently designated project officer/payload officer for the integration of several Space Shuttle payloads.[3][4]

 

Dunbar became a NASA astronaut in August 1981. Her technical assignments have included assisting in the verification of Shuttle flight software at the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory (SAIL), serving as a member of the Flight Crew Equipment Control Board, participation as a member of the Astronaut Office Science Support Group, supporting operational development of the remote manipulator system (RMS). She has served as chief of the Mission Development Branch, as the Astronaut Office interface for "secondary" payloads, and as lead for the Science Support Group. In 1993, Dr. Dunbar served as Deputy Associate Administrator, Office of Life and Microgravity Sciences, NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. In February 1994, she traveled to Star City, Russia, where she spent 13-months training as a back-up crew member for a 3-month flight on the Russian Space Station, Mir. In March 1995, she was certified by the Russian Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center as qualified to fly on long duration Mir Space Station flights. From October 1995 to November 1996, she was detailed to the NASA JSC Mission Operations Directorate as Assistant Director where she was responsible for chairing the International Space Station Training Readiness Reviews, and facilitating Russian/American operations and training strategies.

 

A veteran of five space flights, Dunbar has logged more than 1,208 hours (50 days) in space. She served as a mission specialist on STS-61-A in 1985, STS-32 in 1990, and STS-71 in 1995, and was the Payload Commander on STS-50 in 1992, and STS-89 in 1998.

Spaceflight experience

 

STS-61-A Challenger (October 30-November 6, 1985), was the West German D-1 Spacelab mission. It was the first to carry eight crew members, the largest to fly in space, and was also the first in which payload activities were controlled from outside the United States. More than 75 scientific experiments were completed in the areas of physiological sciences, materials science, biology, and navigation. During the flight, Dunbar was responsible for operating Spacelab and its subsystems and performing a variety of experiments. Her mission training included six months of experiment training in Germany, France, Switzerland, and The Netherlands. STS-61-A launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and returned to land at Edwards Air Force Base, California. Mission duration was 7 days, 44 minutes 51 seconds, traveling 2.5 million miles in 111 orbits of the Earth.

 

STS-32 Columbia (January 9–20, 1990), launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and returned to a night landing at Edwards Air Base in California. During the flight, the crew successfully deployed the Syncom IV-F5 satellite, and retrieved the 21,400-pound Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) using the RMS. They also operated a variety of middeck experiments including the Microgravity Disturbance Experiment (MDE) using the Fluids Experiment Apparatus (FEA), Protein Crystal Growth (PCG), American Flight Echocardiograph (AFE), Latitude/Longitude Locator (L3), Mesoscale Lightning Experiment (MLE), Characterization of Neurospora Circadian Rhythms (CNCR), and the IMAX Camera. Dunbar was principal investigator for the MDE/FEA Experiment. Additionally, numerous medical test objectives, including in-flight lower body negative pressure (LBNP), in-flight aerobic exercise and muscle performance were conducted to evaluate human adaptation to extended duration missions. Mission duration was 10 days, 21 hours, 01 minute, 38 seconds, traveling 4.5 million miles in 173 orbits of the Earth.

 

STS-50 Columbia (June 25 to July 9, 1992). Dunbar was the Payload Commander on STS-50, the United States Microgravity Lab-1 mission which was dedicated to microgravity fluid physics and materials science. Over 30 experiments sponsored by over 100 investigators were housed in the Spacelab in the Shuttle's Payload Bay. A payload crew of four operated around-the-clock for 13 days performing experiments in scientific disciplines such as protein crystal growth, electronic and infrared detector crystal growth, surface tension physics, zeolite crystal growth, and human physiology. Mission duration was 13 days, 19 hours, 30 minutes and 4 seconds, traveling 5.7 million miles in 221 orbits of the Earth.

 

STS-71 Atlantis (June 27 to July 7, 1995), was the first Space Shuttle mission to dock with the Russian Space Station Mir, and involved an exchange of crews. The Atlantis was modified to carry a docking system compatible with the Russian Mir Space Station. Dunbar served as MS-3 on this flight which also carried a Spacelab module in the payload bay in which the crew performed medical evaluations on the returning Mir crew. These evaluations included ascertaining the effects of weightlessness on the cardio/vascular system, the bone/muscle system, the immune system, and the cardio/pulmonary system. Mission duration was 9 days, 19 hours, 23 minutes and 8 seconds, traveling 4.1 million miles in 153 orbits of the earth.

 

STS-89 Endeavour (January 22–31, 1998), was the eighth Shuttle-Mir docking mission during which the crew transferred more than 9,000 pounds of scientific equipment, logistical hardware and water from Space Shuttle Endeavour to Mir. In the fifth and last exchange of a U.S. astronaut, STS-89 delivered Andy Thomas to Mir and returned with David Wolf. Mission duration was 8 days, 19 hours and 47 seconds, traveling 3.6 million miles in 138 orbits of the Earth. Dunbar was the Payload Commander, responsible for all payload activities including the conduct of 23 technology and science experiments.

Education

 

1971: B.S. Ceramic Engineering, University of Washington

1975: M.S. Ceramic Engineering, University of Washington

1983: Ph.D. Mechanical/Biomedical Engineering, University of Houston

 

Organizations

 

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

The American Ceramic Society (ACerS)

National Institute of Ceramic Engineers (NICE)

Keramos Honorary

Society of Biomedical Engineering

American Association for the Advancement of Science

Tau Beta Pi

Materials Research Society (MRS)

Board of Directors, Arnold Air Society and Angel Flight

Board of Trustees Silver Wings (service organization) (SW)

International Academy of Astronautics (IAF)

Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA)

Society of Women Engineers (SWE)

Association of Space Explorers (ASE)

 

Awards and honors

 

Honorary Doctorate from Heritage University in 2016

Kappa Delta sorority

Honorary Doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 2000 [5]

The American Ceramic Society (ACerS) James I. Mueller Award, Cocoa Beach, Florida (2000)

Inducted into the Women in Technology International Hall of Fame (2000), one of five women in the world so honored annually

Selected as one of the top 20 women in technology in Houston, Texas (2000)

NASA Space Flight Medals (1985, 1990, 1992, 1995 and 1998)

NASA Superior Accomplishment Award (1997)

Member, National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Advisory Board, 1993–present

NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal (1996)

NASA Outstanding Leadership Award (1993)

Fellow of American Ceramic Society (1993)

Design News Engineering Achievement Award (1993)

IEEE Judith A. Resnik Award (1993)[6]

Society of Women Engineers Resnik Challenger Medal (1993)

Museum of Flight Pathfinder Award (1992)

AAES National Engineering Award (1992)

NASA Exceptional Service Award (1991)

University of Houston Distinguished Engineering Alumna (1991)

M.R.S. President's Award (1990)

The American Ceramic Society (ACerS) Schwaltzwalder P.A.C.E. Award (1990)

University of Washington Engineering Alumni Achievement (1989)

NASA Exceptional Service Medal (1988)

The American Ceramic Society (ACerS) Life Membership (1986)

General Jimmy Doolittle Fellow of the Aerospace Education Foundation (1986)

Evergreen Safety Council Public Service in Space Award (1986)

The American Ceramic Society (ACerS) Greaves-Walker Award (1985)

Rockwell International Engineer of the Year (1978)

Graduated Cum Laude from the University of Washington in 1975

This is the treehouse Robin had read about. It's a six-story wooden structure built about 20 years ago but the Ithaca High School Class of 2000, and it's called TreeTops. (You can tell this was a late '90s/early millennium thing because of the capitalization structure of the name. I used to make fun of that all the time.) You can climb up here and get a pretty nice view of the forest canopy 60 feet in the air. School kids probably love it.

Guarujá is a municipality in the São Paulo state of Brazil. The population in 2006 was 305.171, the population density is 1,969.47/km² and the area is 143 km². This place name comes from the Tupi language. The population is highly urbanized.

Geography

Guarujá is located in Santo Amaro island, situated in São Paulo shore. Its main economic sources are seasonal tourism and port related activities..

Guarujá is a popular weekend destination for families from São Paulo, which can get there driving in less than an hour (through the Imigrantes highway). Traffic gets heavy during the evening in holidays. Guarujá also has relics from history such as the Barra Grande Fortress, built by the colonizers in 1584, the Forte Velho just 8 km from the centre. It accessed by the Santa Cruz dos Navegantes road, or by boat, from the Ponte dos Práticos (Pilot’s Bridge), and the Armação das Baleias, the first industrial plant set up in the state for the extraction of whale oil.

Armistice Day (which overlaps with Remembrance Day and Veterans Day) is celebrated every year on 11 November to commemorate the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I, which took effect at eleven o'clock in the morning—the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" of 1918. While this official date to mark the end of the war reflects the ceasefire on the Western Front, hostilities continued in other regions, especially across the former Russian Empire and in parts of the old Ottoman Empire.

The date was declared a national holiday in many allied nations, to commemorate those members of the armed forces who were killed during war. An exception is Italy, where the end of the war is commemorated on 4 November, the day of the Armistice of Villa Giusti.

The Initial or Very First Armistice Day was held at Buckingham Palace commencing with King George V hosting a "Banquet in Honour of The President of the French Republic" during the evening hours of November 10 1919. The First Official Armistice Day was subsequently held on the Grounds of Buckingham Palace on the Morning of November 11th 1919. This would set the trend for a day of Remembrance for decades to come.

Most countries changed the name of the holiday after World War II, to honour veterans of that and subsequent conflicts. Most member states of the Commonwealth of Nations adopted the name Remembrance Day, while the United States chose All Veterans Day (later shortened to 'Veterans Day') to explicitly honour veterans of all conflicts. "Armistice Day" remains the name of the holiday in France, Belgium and New Zealand; and it has been a statutory holiday in Serbia since 2012.

In the U.S., the function of Veterans Day is subtly different from that of other 11 November holidays. Unlike the situation in other countries, where that calendar date is set aside specifically for honouring those who died in action, Veterans Day honors all American veterans, whether living, dead in action, or deceased from other causes. The official national remembrance of war dead is instead Memorial Day, originally called 'Decoration Day', from the practice of decorating the graves of soldiers, which originated in the years immediately following the American Civil War.

In many parts of the world, people observe two consecutive minutes moment of silence at 11:00 a.m. local time as a sign of respect in the first minute for the roughly 20 million people who died in the war, and in the second minute dedicated to the living left behind, generally understood to be wives, children and families left behind but deeply affected by the conflict. This gesture of respect was suggested by Edward George Honey in a letter to a British newspaper, although Wellesley Tudor Pole had established two ceremonial periods of remembrance based on events in 1917.

From the outset, many veterans in many countries have also used silence to pay homage to departed comrades. The toast of "Fallen" or "Absent Comrades" has always been honoured in silence at New Zealand veteran functions, while the news of a member’s death has similarly been observed in silence at meetings.

Similar ceremonies developed in other countries during the inter-war period. In South Africa, for example, the Memorable Order of Tin Hats had by the late 1920s developed a ceremony whereby the toast of "Fallen Comrades" was observed not only in silence but darkness, all except for the "Light of Remembrance", with the ceremony ending with the Order’s anthem "Old Soldiers Never Die". In Australia, meanwhile, the South Australian State Branch of the Returned Sailors & Soldiers' Imperial League of Australia similarly developed during the interwar period a simple ceremony of silence for departed comrades at 9 p.m., presumably to coincide with the traditional 11 a.m. time for Armistice ceremonies taking place in Europe (due to the ten-hour time difference between Eastern Australia and Europe).

In the United Kingdom, beginning in 1939, the two-minute silence was moved to the Sunday nearest to 11 November in order not to interfere with wartime production should 11 November fall on a weekday. After the end of World War II, most Armistice Day events were moved to the nearest Sunday and began to commemorate both World Wars. The change was made in many Commonwealth countries, as well as the United Kingdom, and the new commemoration was named Remembrance Sunday or Remembrance Day. Both Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday are now commemorated formally in the UK. In recent years Armistice Day has become increasingly recognised, and many people now attend the 11am ceremony at the Cenotaph in London - an event organised by The Western Front Association, a UK charity dedicated to perpetuating the memory of those who served in the First World War.

  

LIVERPOOL ST. GEORGES HALL NOVEMBER 2013

  

See where this picture was taken. [?]

I have a lot of shots to post. I have been very busy, and then there are the photos I helped escape the house-clearance people from Mum's.

 

So, back to the matter in hand: Ospringe.

 

Ospringe is one of the most easily identifiable churches in Kent, with its unusual saddleback tower, but it is well seen, as you can see the tower before the turn off to Faversham. It looks fabulous.

 

Ospringe was a small village, but now is part of the urban sprawl of Faversham as it spreads to the south of the old A2.

 

You turn down a tight junction, then along a narrow road with cars parked on either side, until you break into open country, and the church is on a bend in the road.

 

I was last here on winter about a decade ago, it was a bitterly cold day and the planned Christmas Tree festival had been delayed a week due to bad weather the weekend before.

 

I cam here on the off-chance, and I was met by a volunteer come to clean the church, but no one with a key.

 

The vicar arrived, and after explaining again about the project, he reluctantly let me in, but warned he would not be here long.

 

Last time here, i took 7 shots, and none of details, so I made busy with the nifty fifty.....

 

John Vigar says this is a church hard to gain access too, maybe I have been lucky, but worth seeking out if you're passing.

 

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A pretty church whose thirteenth century origins seem lost beneath a Victorian veneer – yet inside all become clear. The north wall is thickened to take the rood loft staircase (see also Challock) but there is a medieval stair in the south side too, just to confuse. The font is a lovely twelfth century piece supported by the familiar five columns. Much of the glass is by Thomas Willement and displays his signature TW, which can also be seen in the Alpha emblem in the top of the striking east window. The chancel is a riot of Victoriana of grand design – constructed in several campaigns, the reredos and flooring definitely by different hands. Old photos show that the whole church was once stencilled, but now that the nave is relatively plain, the chancel is once more the focus of attention. The south chapel has a rather nice 19th century roof structure and must once have been a grand family chapel. All in all a lovely church full of interest and one which should be more accessible and better known.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Ospringe

 

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OSPRINGE

LIES the next parish north westward from Sheldwich. It is usually written in antient records Ospringes, and takes its name from the spring or fresh stream which rises in it.

 

The town of Ospringe, as it is called, is a franchise separate from the hundred of Faversham, having a constable of its own, but the rest of the parish is within the jurisdiction of that hundred.

 

The borough of Chetham, in this parish, was given to the abbey of Faversham by Richard de Lucy, and confirmed to it by king Henry II. king John, and king Henry III. (fn. 1) It still continues an appendage to the manor of Faversham, at which a borsholder is chosen yearly for this borough, and extends over Beacon farm on the south side of the London road, at the 45th mile stone in Ospringe and Stone, and very little besides. There is another small borough in this parish, called the borough of Brimstone, for which a borsholder is elected annually at the same manor. It extends over the Red Lion inn, in Ospringe-street, and some land, an house and oast behind the bowling-green, northward of it.

 

The parish of Ospringe is of large extent, being near five miles from north to south, though it is not much more than two miles in breadth. The village, or town of Ospringe, as it was formerly called, and now usually Ospringe-street, stands on the high London road, between the 46th and 47th mile-stone, but the north side of the street, as well as of that road, from the summit of Judde hill, as far eastward as the 47th mile stone, is within Faversham parish, the liberties of which town begin from the rivulet in Ospringe, and extend eastward, including the late Mr. Lypeatt's new-built house. Thus that parish intervenes, and entirely separates from the rest of it that part of Ospringe parish, at the northern boundaries of it, in which are the storekeeper's house, part of the offices, &c. and some of the royal powder mills, and in the town of Faversham, that parish again intervening, there is a small part of Weststreet within this parish. The grand valley, called Newnham bottom, through which the high road leads to Maidstone, lies at the western boundary of the parish, on the summit of the hill eastward of it is Juddehouse, built after a design of Inigo Jones, a fine situation, having a most beautiful prospect eastward, over a most fertile extent of country, to the Boughton hills, and the channel north eastward of it, but the large tract of woodland, of many hundred acres, which reach up close to the gardens at the back of it, render it rather an unhealthy situation. About a quarter of a mile eastward of Ospringe-street is a good house, called from the antient oratory or chapel formerly adjoining to it, but pulled down within these few years, chapelhouse. This oratory was dedicated to St. Nicholas, and erected for a priest to say mass in it, for the safety and good success of passengers, who left their acknowledgments for his pains in it. It belonged lately to Mr. John Simmons, whose son sold it to Isaac Rutton, esq. and he alienated the house to Mr. Neame, the present owner; but on a part of the land adjoining he built an elegant villa, naming it Ospringe Place, in which he now resides.

 

In Ospringe-street there is a tolerable inn, and the remains of the Maison Dieu on each side of the high road close to the small rivulet which crosses the street. This stream rises at Westbrook, at a small distance southward of the hamlet of Whitehill, at the back of which it runs, and at about a mile and an half distance, passing by Ospringe church, and the mansion of Queen-court, now a respectable farm-house, it turns a mill, erected some years ago for the manufacturing of madder, though now used for the grinding corn, and having crossed Ospringe-street, it turns a gunpowder mill not far from it, occupied by government, but belonging to St. John's college, in Cambridge, and having supplied the storekeeper's gardens, it afterwards turns a corn-mill, close to the west side of Faversham town, after which it supplies the rest of the government mills and works, and runs from thence into Faversham creek, to which it is a very necessary and beneficial back water. There is a nailbourne, or temporary land spring, such as are not unusual in the parts of this county eastward of Sittingborne, which run but once perhaps in several years, their failing and continuance having no certain periods, the breaking forth of them being held by the common people to be a forerunner of scarcity and dearness of corn and victuals. This at Ospringe, when it breaks out, rises about half a mile southward of Whitehill, near Kennaways, in the road to Stalisfield, and joining the above-mentioned rivulet, which it considerably increases, flows with it into Faversham creek. In February, 1674, it began to run, but stopped before Michaelmas. It broke forth in February, 1712, and run with such violence along the high road, that trenches were cut through the lands adjoining to carry the water off, but it stopped again before Michaelmas. It had continued dry till it broke out afresh in 1753, and continued to run till summer 1778, when it stopped, and has continued dry ever since.

 

About a mile southward of Ospringe-street is the hamlet of Whitehill, mentioned before, situated in the vale through which the rivulet takes its course. There are two houses of some account in it, formerly owned by the family of Drayton, who had resided in this parish for many years. Robert Drayton resided here anno 7 Edward IV. in which year he died, and was buried in the church-yard of Ospringe, being then possessed, as appears by his will, of a house called Smythes, with its lands and appurtenances, at Whitehill. After this family had become extinct here, one of these houses came into the possession of Ruck, and escheated, for want of lawful heirs, to the lord of the manor, and now as such belongs to the earl of Guildford, but Mr. James Foord resides in it. The other, after the Draytons were become extinct here, came into the name of Wreight, one of whom, Henry Wreight, gent. died possessed of it in 1695, and was buried in Faversham church. His son of the same name resided here, and died in 1773, and his grandson Henry Wreight, gent. of Faversham, sold it to John Montresor of Belmont, esq. who now owns it, but John Smith esq. resides in it. About a mile westward on the hill, near Hanslets Fostall and the parsonage, is a new-erected house, called the Oaks, built not many years since, on the scite of an antient one, called Nicholas, formerly belonging to the Draytons, by Mr. John Toker, who resides in it; the woodgrounds in the upland parts of this parish are very extensive, and contain many hundred acres. The soil of this parish, from its large extent, is various, to the north and north-east of the church the lands are level and very fertile, being a fine rich loam, but as they extend southward to the uplands, the soil becomes more and more barren, much of it chalky, and the rest a cludgy red earth, stiff tillage land, and very stony. A fair is held in Ospringe-street on the 29th of May.

 

¶Much has already been said in the former parts of these volumes, of the different opinions of learned men where the Roman station, called in the second iter of Antonine Durolevum, ought to be placed. Most of the copies of Antonine make the distance from the last station Durobrovis, which is allowed by all to be Rochester, to the station of Durolevum, to be xiii or xvi miles, though the Peutongerian tables make it only vii. If the number xvi is right, no place bids so fair for it as Judde-hill, in this parish, which then would have every probable circumstance in favor of it. The Romans undoubtedly had some strong military post on this hill, on the summit of which there are the remains of a very deep and broad ditch, the south and east sides are still entire, as is a small part of the north side at the eastern corners of it, the remaining part of the north side was filled up not many years since. The west side has nothing left of it; close within the southern part of it is a high mount of earth thrown up to a considerable height above the ground round it, the scite of Judde house, and the gardens are contained within it. The form of it seems to have been a square, with the corners rounded, and to have contained between three and four acres of ground within its area, the common people call it king Stephen's castle, but it is certainly of a much older date. At a small distance from it, on the opposite, or north side of the high road, there are several breast works cast up across the field facing the west. At the bottom of the hill, in the next field to this, are the ruins of Stone chapel, in which numbers of Roman bricks are interspersed among the flints, and in the midst of the south wall of it, there is a separate piece of a Roman building, about a rod in length, and near three feet high, composed of two rows of Roman tiles, of about fourteen inches square each, and on them are laid small stones hewed, but of no regular size or shape, for about a foot high, and then tiles again, and so on alternately.

  

THIS PARISH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Ospringe

 

The church stands within the jurisdiction of the town of Ospringe, about half a mile southward from Ospringe-street. It is dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul. It is an antient building, consisting of three isles and a chancel. The steeple was formerly at the west end, and was built circular of flints, supposed to be Danish, with a shingled spire on it, of upwards of fifty feet high, in which were four bells; but in ringing them on Oct. 11, 1695, on king William's return from Flanders, it suddenly fell to the ground, providentially no one was hurt by it. There are no remains left of any painted glass in the windows of this church, though there was formerly much in most of them; particularly, in the window of the north isle was once the figure of a mitred bishop, on the rack, with a knife on the table by him, and of another person tied to a tree, and wounded with arrows. In another was a label to the memory of Robert Seton, and of a woman kneeling; and there was not many years ago remaining in the east window, at the end of the south isle, forming a kind of chancel, the effigies of a knight in his tabard of arms, with spurs on his heels, in a kneeling posture, looking up to a crucisix, painted just above him, of which there remained only the lower part. The knight's arms, Azure, three harts heads, caboshed, or, were thrown under him, and at a little distance some part of his crest, An hart's head, attired full, or, with a crown about his neck, azure, and underneath, Pray for the soul of Thomas Hart. This Sir Thomas Hart was possessed of an estate in this parish, which he purchased of Norwood. The Greenstreets, of Selling, lately claimed this chancel, and several of them lie buried in it. There was a chapel, dedicated to St. Thomas, in this church.

 

In the east part of the church-yard there was once a chapel, said to have been built by Sir John Denton, of Denton, in this parish and Easling, the foundations of which are still visible.

 

It appears by the Testa de Nevil, taken in the reign of king Henry III. that the church of Ospringe was in the king's gift, and was afterwards given by king John to John de Burgo, who then held it, and that it was worth forty marcs. After which, in the 8th year of Richard II. anno 1384, it was become appropriated to the abbot of Pontiniac, and was valued at 13l. 6s. 8d. at which time there was a vicarage here of his patronage likewise. It afterwards became part of the possessions of the hospital or Maison Dieu, in Ospringestreet, but by what means, or when, I have not found, and it continued so till the escheat of the hospital anno 20 Edward IV. after which, the parsonage appropriate of this church of Ospringe, together with the advowson of the vicarage, was by means of Fisher, bishop of Rochester, obtained of Henry VIII. in manner as has been already mentioned, for St. John's college, in Cambridge, the master and fellows of which are at this time entitled to them, the parsonage being let by them on a beneficial lease; but the advowson of the vicarage they retain in their own hands.

 

The lessee of this parsonage, in the reign of queen Elizabeth, was Robert Streynsham, esq. who rebuilt the house and offices belonging to it, and afterwards resided in it. He had been fellow of All Souls college, LL. B. and secretary to the earl of Pembroke. He lies buried in this church, and bore for his arms, Or, a pale dancette, gules. He left two daughters and coheirs, of whom, Audrey, the eldest, carried her interest in it in marriage to Edward Master, esq. eldest son of James Master, esq. of East Langdon, who was first of Sandwich, and afterwards built a seat for himself and his posterity at East Langdon. He was twice married, and had fourteen children; at length worn out with age, he betook himself hither to his eldest son Edward, and dying in 1631, æt. 84, was buried in this church. Edward Master, the son, resided here, and was afterwards knighted, and on his father's death in 1631 removed to that seat, in whose descendants it continued till it was at length alienated to Buller, of Cornwall, whose son sold his interest in to Markham, as he did to Mr. Robert Lyddel, merchant, of London, brother of Sir Henry Lyddel, who in 1751 assigned his interest in it to Ralph Terrey, yeoman, of Knolton, whose son Mr. Michael Terrey, of Ospringe, devised it to his only daughter and heir Olive, who married Nathaniel Marsh, esq. of Boughton Blean, and the heirs of his son Terrey Marsh, esq. late of that parish, are the present lessees of it.

 

The vicarage of Ospringe is valued in the king's books at ten pounds, and the yearly tenths at one pound.

 

In 1640 it was valued at sixty pounds, when there were communicants here 226.

 

The vicarage is endowed with all vicarial tithes, woad only excepted, and also with those of hay, saintfoin, clover, and coppice woods. There are about twenty-seven acres of glebe-land belonging to it. The vicarage-house is situated in the valley, at a small distance eastward from the church, and the parsonagehouse near a mile southward of that.

 

Ospringe was formerly the head of a rural deanry, of which institution it will be necessary to give some account here.

 

The office of rural dean was not unknown to our Saxon ancestors, as appears by the laws of king Edward the Confessor; they were called both Archipresbiteri and Decani Temporarii, to distinguish them from the deans of cathedrals, who were Decani Perpetui. Besides these, there were in the greater monasteries, especially those of the Benedictine order, such officers called deans, and there are deans still remaining in several of the colleges of the universities, who take care of the studies and exercises of the youth, and are a check on the morals and behaviour of such as are members under them.

 

¶The antient exercise of jurisdiction in the church seems to have been instituted in conformity to like subordinations in the state. Thus the dioceses within this realm seem to have been divided into archdeaconries and rural deanries, to make them correspond to the like division of the kingdom into counties and hundreds; hence the former, whose courts were to answer those of the county, had the county usually for their district, and took their title from thence, and the names of the latter from the hundred, or chief place of it, wherein they acted; and as in the state every hundred was at first divided into ten tithings or fribourghs, and every tithing was made up of ten families, both which kept their original names, notwithstanding the increase of villages and people; so in the church the name of deanry continued, notwithstanding the increase of persons and churches, and the districts of them were contracted and enlarged from time to time, at the discretion of the bishop, the rural dean of Ospringe having jurisdiction over the whole deanry of it, consisting of twenty-six parishes. He had a seal of office, which being temporary, it had only the name of the office, and not, as other seals of jurisdiction, the name of the person also, engraved on it. The seal belonging to this deanry had on it, the Virgin Mary crowned, with the sceptre in her left hand, and her child, with a glory round his head, in her right, and round the margin, Sigillu Decani Decanatus de Ospreng. He was in antient times called the dean of the bishop, because appointed by him, and had alone the inspection of the lives and manners of the clergy and people within the district under him, and was to report the same to the bishop; to which end, that he might have a thorough knowledge of the state and condition of his respective deanry, he had a power to convene rural chapters, which were made up of the instituted clergy, or their curates as proxies of them, and the dean as president of them, where the clergy brought information of all irregularities committed within their respective parishes. Those upon ordinary occasions were held at first every three weeks, in imitation of the courts of manors, held from three weeks to three weeks, and afterwards each month, and from thence were called Kalendæ, but their more solemn and principal chapters were assembled once a quarter, where maters of greater import were transacted, and a fuller attendance given. They were at first held in any one church within the district, where the minister of the place was to procure and provide entertainment and procurations for the dean and his immediate officers, and they were afterwards held only in the larger or more eminent parishes. The part of their office of inspecting and reporting the manners of the clergy and people, rendered them necessary attendants on the episcopal synod or general visitation, in which they were the standing representatives of the rest of the clergy within their division, and they were there to deliver information of abuses committed within their knowledge, and consult for the reformation of them; for which they were to have their expences, called from hence synodals, allowed them by those whom they represented, according to the time of their attendance. That part of their office, of being convened to provincial and episcopal synods, was transferred to two proctors, or representatives of the parochial clergy in each diocese; and that of information of scandals and offences, has devolved on the churchwardens of the respective parishes. Besides this another principal part of the duty of a rural dean was to execute all processes of the bishop, or of the officers and ministers under his authority; but by the constitution of the pope's legate, Otho, the archdeacon, in the reign of Henry III. was required to be frequently present at them, who being superior to the rural dean, did in effect take the presidency out of his hands; and these chapters were afterwards often held by the archdeacon's officials, from which may be dated the decay of rural deanries, for the rural dean was not only discouraged by this, but the archdeacon and his official, as might naturally be supposed he would, drew the business usually transacted there to his own visitation, or chapter, as it might be termed. By which intersering of the archdeacon and his officials, it happened that in the age next before the reformation, the jurisdiction of rural deans declined almost to nothing, and at the reformation nothing was done for their restoration by the legislative power, so that they became extinct in most deanries, nor did this of Ospringe survive the earliest decline of them. (fn. 16) Where they still continue, they have only the name and shadow left, and what little remains of this dignity and jurisdiction, de pends greatly on the custom of places, and the pleasure of diocesans.

 

In the 31st year of Edward I. Richard Christian, dean of Ospringe, being sent to execute some citations of the archbishop at Selling, was set upon by the people there, who placed him with his face to his horse's tail, which they made him hold in his hand for a bridle, in which posture they led him through the village, with songs, shouts, and dances, and afterwards having cut off the tail, ears, and lips of the beast, they threw the dean into the dirt, to his great disgrace; for which, the king directed his writ to the sheriff, to make enquiry by inquisition of a jury concerning it.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol6/pp499-531

This is the third tome I have visited St Vncent: first time I found it locked, or more likely did not push the door hard enough, second time I did go inside but only took a handful of shots. So this time, it means a lot of snapping.

 

Both this and Wingham were among the first churches I visited in this project, and with years of accumulated knowledge a return is always good to see what you missed the first, and second time.

 

As it turned out, I could not find the church. It is signposted off the main road, then nothing. We were two miles in the country before I found a place to turn round, but a check of the county map and we turned back to the village and found it on Church lane, of course.

 

Littlebourne is another village and church on the banks of the Nailbourne, a winterbourne, that flows through here to Bridge, eventually to Barham. Downstream it turns quickly into the Little Stour which in turn flows into the Great Stour at Plucks Gutter.

 

The view from the south is limited due to mature trees, but from the north reveals several periods of buildings with rooflines at different angles and heights.

 

A simple church inside, with a wall painting of St Christopher clearly visible on the north wall as you walk in through the porch. Some fine glass too, but there is also signs of damp too.

 

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The villages 13th century church, St Vincent of Saragossa, is thought to have been founded by the monks of St Augustine's Abbey in Canterbury and contains an ancient wall painting depicting Saint Christopher, patron saint of travellers. The church also has what is reckoned to be one of the finest collection of stained glass windows designed by Nathaniel Westlake in the country. Nathaniel Westlake was a leading designer of the Gothic Revival movement in England.

 

Work done in 1995 by experts from the V&A Museum established that he designed each of the windows over the long period of his work with the Company, thus giving an outstanding example of the development of his style.

 

The Church has a six-bell peal, the oldest bell dating back to 1597, the newest 1899.

 

www.littlebournebenefice.org.uk/littlebournechurchhistory...

 

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LOCATION: Situated at about 40 feet above O.D. on Head brickearth (over Upper Chalk). A little to the west of the river Little Stour. Littlebourne Court, originally belonging to St. Augustine’s Abbey, lies immediately to the north-west. Wickhambreaux and Ickham churches are not far away to the north and east.

 

DESCRIPTION: As with many North-East Kent churches, this church points south-east, and it is first documented in Domesday Book, with the eastern three-quarters of the nave of the present church presumably being, in part, of an early Norman date. The only visible evidence for the earliest structure, however, is outside the south-west corner of the nave. Here one can see reused Roman bricks, and the original steep slope of the very early 13th century south aisle (continuing the line of the nave roof). The nave must be earlier than this, so is at least 12th century in date. It is also worth noting the very rare dedication, to St Vincent.

The whole of the south arcade for the south aisle still survives in its very early 13th century form, with four pointed arches (that on the west is smaller). The arches have continuous flat

the piers themselves. All the dressings are in Caen stone.

Later in the 13th century a large new chancel was built, probably at about the time (c. 1245) when St Augustine’s Abbey were endowing the new vicarage there, after the appropriation. The chancel has four tall lancets on either side, and an eastern triplet which has internal shafting on the jambs, and deeply moulded rere-arches and hood-moulds. All the other lancets have plain rere-arches, and all the chancel windows sit internally on a filleted roll-moulding which steps up at the east end and runs under the triplet. There is a piscina on the south-east with a pointed arch (with hood) over it, and bar-stopped chamfers on the sides. On the north-west side of the chancel is a small doorway, which was restored in the 19th century. The chancel was fairly heavily restored on the outside in the 19th century (‘1865’ on one of the rain-water hoppers), but much of its original coursed whole flints are still visible, as well as some of the rows of putlog holes. The chancel also has a separate roof, with a west gable, but this was rebuilt completely in c. 1865.

At about the same time as the chancel was being rebuilt in the early to mid-15th century, a very plain tower was added at the west end (It is similar to the neighbouring tower at Ickham). This has a tall simple pointed arch (with flat chamfers and abaci) into the nave, and on the west is a simple pointed doorway with flat chamfers and a tall lancet above it. The tower is unbuttressed, and has four more wide restored lancets (one in each face) in the top (belfry) stage. Externally the tower has the remains of its original plastering over coursed flint with side-alternate Caenstone quoins. On top of the tower is a later medieval (14th/15th century) brooch spire (now covered in slates).

The tower was restored in 1899, and the bells were rehung in a new timber and cast iron frame. There are now six bells, dated 1597,1610, 1650 and three of 1899 (said to have been recast from two late medieval ones). Glynne tells us that there was an organ in a west gallery under the tower, but this was removed during the restoration. A shed (now 2 cloakrooms) was also added to the north side of the tower in c. 1899.

A small Lady Chapel may have been added to the north-east side of the nave in the later 13th century as shown by its two light trefoil-headed (with circular opening above) east window (it has an internal rere-arch). All other evidence for this above ground was removed by the early 14th and early 19th century re-buildings (see below). The Lady Chapel is first documented in the late 15th century, but most churches acquired a separate Lady Chapel in N.W. Kent in the 13th century.

In the early 14th century both the south and north aisles had their outer walls rebuilt. On the south this was a continuous heightening and rebuild for the full length of the nave (with the evidence for the earlier lean-to aisle surviving in the west wall, as shown above). There is however still a later 13th century lancet in the centre of the south wall, with a probable later 13th century south doorway next to it (though completely rebuilt externally in the 19th century). The other aisle windows are all, however, 2 - light early 14th century traceried windows, and the gables and separate pitched roof over the aisle is also perhaps 14th century (it is still hidden under a flat plaster ceiling). In the south aisle wall are some reused Reigate stone fragments, and the large later south buttress has Ragstone quoins and reused Reigate And Caenstone fragments (and heavy 19th century knapped flintwork). Some Purbeck marble is reused in the wall west of the south porch. This aisle also has a small square-topped piscina in its south-east corner, and a very small stoup just inside the door on the east.

Hasted tells us that ‘a few years ago the north isle fell down, when there were some curious paintings discovered by the breaking of the plaster from the walls. This aisle was immediately rebuilt’. It is however, clear from the present remains (and from the Petrie water-colour view), that the church was again rebuilt in the early 19th century, with the present flatish 4-bay crown/king post nave roof and lath and plaster ceiling. The two dormers on the south side of the nave roof are presumably of the same date as is the shallow-pitched shed-roof over the north aisle, and the wooden post and two semi-circular arches into the north aisle. On the north-west side of the nave one can see an infilled pointed arch (? of chalk) with abaci, suggesting that there was originally a 13th century 3-bay north aisle (and Lady Chapel). The scar for the south-west corner of this aisle which did not continue to the west end of the nave, is just visible, and the late 18th century collapse was clearly at the west end of this aisle, which was not rebuilt (the other aisle-wall window being reset in the nave wall). The north wall of the north aisle must have been rebuilt in the early 14th century with buttresses and new two-light traceried windows. There may have been a north door here.

Only the chancel was heavily restored in the later 19th century (1865) with a new south porch in 1896, replacing a brick one, according to Glynne. A porch is documented from at least 1505.

 

BUILDING MATERIALS: (Incl. old plaster, paintings, glass, tiles etc.):

The main local material is flint, and whole flints, in courses, are used for all the early work with dressings of Caenstone. Some Reigate stone is then used in the 13th century, with Kent Rag for the quoins in the early 14th century. There is also some reused Purbeck marble in the walls, and Bathstone is used for the late 19th century restorations. Hasted mentions ‘the remains of good painted glass’ in the chancel side lancets and ‘seven sacraments, etc. handsomely done, with rich borders’ in the eastern lancets, ‘but they have been some few years since removed’ (op. cit. below, p.155). Also he mentions armorial glass in the S.E. window of the south aisle, and other now-vanished glass is known from the church - see C.R. Councer (below).

 

EXCEPTIONAL MONUMENTS IN CHURCH: None, but remains of medieval wall-painting on the north side of the nave, at the west end. Also a leger slab, with a small brass inscription in it, dated 1585, in front of the chancel arch. Also some early 19th century Benefaction boards on the west wall of the south aisle. Most of the furnishings in the church date from the restoration of 1864-4, or later.

 

CHURCHYARD AND ENVIRONS:

Size & Shape: Large north-south rectangular area around church, with large extensions to north (20th century) and south (19th century).

 

Condition: Good

 

Building in churchyard or on boundary: Lych Gate of timber (1892) to the south. Very large c. early 14th century great barn of Littlebourne Court (172ft long) runs along west boundary of the churchyard.

 

Ecological potential: ? Yes. The burial under a ‘great palm’ (ie. Yew Tree) in the churchyard is mentioned in a will of 1542, and there are still some quite large Yews north of the church.

 

Late med. Status: Vicarage endowed in 1245 with a house, some tithes, etc. A chaplain had to be found to celebrate weekly in Garrington Chapel.

 

Patron: St. Augstine’s Abbey, Canterbury (and alienated to the Italian monastery of Monte Mirteto in Italy, 1224). In 1538 it went to the crown, and then on to the Dean and Chapter of Canterbury in 1541.

 

Other documentary sources: Hasted IX (1800) , 155-8. There is much documentation in Thorne’s Chronicle and the ‘Black Book’ of St Augustine’s. Testamenta Cantiana (E. Kent, 1907), 196-8 mentions burial in the churchyard from 1473, the church porch (1501), various ‘lights’, the altar of Our Lady (1499+), reparation of the altars of St James and St Nicholas (1473), for paving between the chancel and the west door (1419).

 

SURVIVAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL DEPOSITS:

Inside present church: ? Good.

 

Outside present church: ? Good, though there is a large soil build-up around the church, and a brick-lined drainage gulley (up to 2ft deep) has been made all around the church.

 

RECENT DISTURBANCES/ALTERATIONS:

To structure: None, but chancel stalls brought from St Johns, Herne Bay in 1974, and organ in north aisle from Holy Cross, Canterbury in 1972.

 

To floors: Brick floor relaid at east end of S. aisle - Oct 1991.

 

Quinquennial inspection (date/architect): Feb. 1990 Maureen O’Connor.

 

ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT:

A Norman nave was given a lean-to south aisle and perhaps extended to the west in the very early 13th century, with a plain west tower being added soon after. The chancel was rebuilt (and greatly enlarged) in the mid 13th century, and there was probably also a Lady Chapel and nave north aisle by the later 13th century. The outer walls of the aisles were rebuilt in the early 14th century. A timber spire was also built. In the late 18th century the west end of the north aisle collapsed and this was rebuilt along with the nave roof, etc. again in the early 19th century. Chancel restored in 1865, and west tower in 1899 (with rehung bells). A new south porch was built in 1896.

 

The wider context: One of a group of churches belonging to St Augustine’s Abbey, Canterbury with major rebuildings in the 13th and early 14th centuries.

 

REFERENCES: S.R. Glynne, Notes of the Churches of Kent (1877), 167-8. (He visited in 1851). C.R. Councer, Lost Glass from Kent Churches ) (1980), 77-8.

 

Guide Book: None available in church, but see St Vincent’s Church, Littlebourne by Elizabeth Jeffries (1984) - very poor for architectural history.

 

Plans & drawings: Petrie early 19th cent. view from N.E., with continuous roof slope over nave and N. aisle.

 

DATES VISITED: 19th December 1996 REPORT BY: Tim Tatton-Brown

 

www.kentarchaeology.org.uk/01/03/LIT.htm

 

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LITTLEBORNE

LIES the next parish south-eastward from Stodmarsh, taking its name from its situation close to the stream which bounds the eastern part of it, and at the same time to distinguish it from the other parishes of the name of Borne in the near neighbourhood of it.

 

There is but one borough in this parish, called the borough of Littleborne.

 

Littleborne extends to the skirt of the beautiful and healthy parts of East Kent, and verging farther from the large levels of marsh land which lie near the Stour, quits that gloomy aspect of ill health so prevalent near them, and here begins to assume one more cheerful, pleasant and healthy; and Twyne tells us, (fn. 1) that it was allotted by the abbot and convent of St. Augustine's, who possessed the manor, for the plantation of vines. The village is built on the high road leading from Canterbury to Sandwich and Deal, at the eastern boundary of the parish, adjoinining to the Little Stour, and consists of about forty houses. The church stands at a small distance from it, having the courtlodge close to it, with the parsonage at a small distance. This parish extends northward as far as the Stour, opposite to Westbere, in which part of it however, there is but a small quantity of marsh-land, near which is an estate called Higham, which antiently was owned by a family of that name. Above the hill, south-eastward from hence, there is a great deal of woodland, and among it a tract of heathy rough land, belonging to the archbishop, called Fishpool-downs, through which the road leads to Wickham. At the bottom of Fishpool hill is the valley called the Ponds, now entirely covered with wood, part of which is in this parish. The ponds were supplied from a spring called Arrianes well, probably for Adrian's well, and were of a considerable size and depth, made for the supply of the convent of St. Augustine, the owners of them, with fish for their refectory, the sides of them now equally thick with coppice wood, were antiently a vineyard. These woods continue from hence adjoining the high road towards the village in great quantities, much of which belongs to the archbishop, and are intermixed with a great deal of rough bushy ground. The lands in this parish are in general very poor and gravelly, but towards Wickham they are much more fertile both for corn and hops, of which there are several plantations. This parish extends across the river eastward towards the hill, and takes in great part of Lower Garwinton, and part of the house, and some little land of Upper Garwinton within it, which is entirely separated from the rest of it by the parish of Adisham intervening.

 

Polygonatum scalacæci, Solomon's seal; grows plentifully on Fishpool-hill in this parish.

 

A fair is held here on the 5th of July, for toys and pedlary.

 

In the year 690, Widred, king of Kent, gave to the monastery of St. Augustine, in pure and perpetual alms, five plough-lands called Litleborne, on condition of their remembring of him in their prayers and solemn masses. And in the year 1047, king Edward the Consessor gave another plough-land here, which consisted of the estates of Bourne, Dene, and Wiliyington, to archbishop Eadsin, free from all service, except. the trinoda necessitas, and he bestowed it on that monastery. After which the manor of Little borne continued in the possession of the abbey to the time of taking the survey of Domesday, in which it is thus entered under the general title of the land of the church of St. Augustine:

 

In Dunamesfort hundred, the abbot himself holds, Liteburne, which is taxed at seven sulings. The arable land is twelve carucates. In demesne there are three carucates, and thirty-five villeins, with fourteen cottagers having six and an half. There is a church, and thirtyeight acres of meadow. Wood for the pannage of four hogs. In the time of king Edward the Consessor it was worth twenty-five pounds, afterwards twenty pounds, now thirty-two pounds. Of this manor the bishop of Baieux has in his park, as much as is worth sixty shillings.

 

After this the abbot and convent's possessions here were increased by several gifts and purchases of different parcels of land. (fn. 2)

 

King Henry III. in his 54th year, granted to the abbot and convent free-warren in all their demesne lands of Littleborne, among others. In the 7th year of king Edward II.'s reign, anno 1313, in the iter of H. de Stanton and his sociates, justices itinerant, the abbot, upon a quo warranto, claimed and was allowed in this manor among others, free warren in all his demesne lands of it, and view of frank-pledge, and other liberties therein-mentioned, in like manner as has been already mentioned before, in the description of the manors of Sturry and Stodmarsh. (fn. 3) By a register of the monastery of about this time, it appears, that this manor had then in demesne the park of Trendesle. In the 10th year of king Edward III. Solomon de Ripple being custos, or bailiff of this manor, made many improvements here, and purchased more lands in it, all the buildings of it being in a manner wholly re-built and raised from the ground, with much cost, by him. In king Richard II.'s reign, the abbot's manor of Littleborne was valued at 23l. 8s. 6d. the admeasurement of the lands being 505 acres. After which this manor continued with the monastery till its dissolution, anno 30 Henry VIII. when it came into the king's hands, and remained in the crown till king Edward VI. in his 1st year, granted the manor and manor-house, with all lands and appurtenances, and a water-mill lately belonging to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine, to the archbishop, among other premises, in exchange for the manor of Mayfield, &c. parcel of the possessions of whose see it still remains, the archbishop being the present owner of it. The manor, with the profits of courts, royalties, &c. the archbishop keeps in his own hands; but the demesnes have been from time to time demised on a beneficial lease. The family of Denne have been for more than a century lessees of it, who now reside in the court-lodge.

 

On the abolition of episcopacy, after the death of king Charles I. this manor was sold by the state to Sir John Roberts and John Cogan, the latter of whom, by his will in 1657, gave his moiety of it to the mayor and aldermen of Canterbury, for the benefit of six poor ministers widows (for whose use he had at the same time demised his dwelling-house in Canterbury, now called Cogan's hospital. But the manor of Littleborne, on the restoration in 1660, returned again to the see of Canterbury.

 

The manor of Wolton, alias Walton, lies in the southern part of this parish, adjoining to the precinct of Well, and was antiently possessed by a family who took their name from it, one of whom, John, son of John de Wolton, held it at the latter end of king Henry III.'s reign. But this family became extinct here before the reign of king Edward III. in the 20th year of which, Roger de Garwinton held it by knight's service, (fn. 4) in whose descendants it continued till it passed into the family of Petit, of Shalmsford, who held it of the abbot of St. Augustine's by the like service, in which name and family it continued till it was at length alienated to Sir Henry Palmer, of Bekesborne, whose descendant of the same name passed it away by sale to Sir Robert Hales, of Bekesborne, in whose descendants it continued down to Sir Philip Hales, bart. of Howlets, who in 1787 alienated this manor to Isaac Baugh, esq. of Well, the present owner of it.

 

Wingate, alias Lower Garwington, in a manor, which lies on the other or eastern side of the river, adjoining to Ickham, taking the former of those names from a family, who were owners of it in Henry III.'s reign, and held it by knight's service of the abbot and convent of St. Augustine. In which reign Simon de Wingate held it as above-mentioned, but before the 20th year of King Edward III. this name was extinct here, and Thomas de Garwinton then held this estate, lying in Wingate, held of the abbot by the like tenure. (fn. 5) In the descendants of Thomas de Garwington, who resided at their mansion and manor, since called Upper Garwinton, adjoining to it, seems to have continued some time, and from them, as well as to distinguish it from that, to have taken the name of Wingate, alias Lower Garwinton. After this family had quitted the possession of it, the Clyffords appear from different records to have become owners of it, and after them the Sandfords, and it appears by the escheat rolls, that Humphrey Sandford died possessed of it in the 14th year of king Henry VII. and that Thomas Sandford was his son and heir. After which it came into the hands of the crown, for king Henry VIII. in his 30th year, granted the manors of Wingate and Garwinton to Sir Christopher Hales, then master of the rolls. He left three daughters his coheirs, who became jointly, entitled to it, and on the division of their estates it was allotted to the youngest daughter Mary, who entitled her husband Alexander Colepeper, esq. to it, in which name it continued till the 22d of queen Elizabeth, when it was passed away by sale to Thomas Fane, esq. whose son Francis, earl of Westmoreland, sold it to William Prude, alias Proude, esq. who being a lieutenant-colonel in the army, was slain at the siege of Maestricht in 1632, having devised this estate in tail male to his eldest surviving son Serles Prude, who died in 1642, leaving only two daughters his coheirs, upon which it came to his next brother William, who left an only daughter Dorothy, and she, the entail being barred, carried it first in marriage to Nethersole, by whom she had no issue, and secondly to Christopher May, esq. of Rawmere, in Suffex, whose only daughter and heir Anne, entitled her husband William Broadnax, esq. of Godmersham, to the possession of it. His son Thomas Changed his name, first to May and then to Knight, and died possessed of this manor in 1781, leaving an only son Thomas Knight, esq. of Godmersham, who in the year 1785 exchanged it for other lands in Crundal with Thomas Barret, esq. of Lee, the present owner of it.

 

Upper Garwinton is a manor, which lies adjoining to that last-described, southward, at the boundary of this parish, next to Adisham, in which parish part of the mansion of it stands, being written in the survery of Domesday, Warwintone, one of the many instances in that book of the mistakes of the Norman scribes. It was, after the conquest, parcel of those possessions with which the Conqueror enriched his half-brother Odo, the great bishop of Baieux and earl of Kent, and was exchanged by him for other lands with the abbot of St. Augustine's, accordingly it is thus entered in that record, under the general title of the land of the church of St. Augustine:

 

The abbot himself holds Warwintone, and the bishop of Baieux gave it to him in exchange of his park. It was taxed at half a suling and forty-two acres of land. The arable land is one carucate, and there is in demesne, with three cottagers, and sixteen acres of meadow. In the time of king Edward the Confessor it was worth four pounds, and afterwards forty shillings, now four pounds. This manor Edric de Sbern Biga held, and now Radulf holds it of the abbot.

 

Whether this description extended to the last-described manor of Wingate, is uncertain, though most probably, as both were held of the abbot by knight's service, it was comprehended in it. However that may be, this manor of Garwintone, called as above, erroneously, in Domesday, Warwintone, was held of the abbot by a family who took their surname from it; one of whom, Richard de Garwynton, resided here at the latter end of king Henry II.'s reign, and had a chapel at his mansion here; and in 1194, the abbot granted to him and his heirs, to have the divine office celebrated for three days in a week in this chapel by the priest of Littleborne. (fn. 6) His descendant Thomas Garwinton was possessed of this manor and several other estates in this part of the county, in the 20th year of king Edward III. whose great-grandson William Garwynton dying S. P. Joane his kinswoman, married to Richard Haut, was anno II Henry IV. found to be his heir not only to this manor, but to much other lands in these parts, and their son Richard Haut having an only daughter and heir Margery, she carried this manor in marriage to William Isaac, esq. of Patrixborne, whose descendant Edward Isaac, at his death, gave this manor to his two daughter by his second wife, viz. Mary, married to Thomas Appleton, esq. of Suffolk, and Margaret, to John Jermye, second son of Sir John Jermye, of the same county, and they seem to have shared this manor between them. Thomas Appleton sold his share afterwards to Anthony Parker, who with Isaac Jermye, eldest son of John above-mentioned, joined in the sale of the entire see of it to Sir Henry Palmer, of Howlets, and he by his will in 1611, devised it to his nephew John Goodwyn, whose heirs some time afterwards passed it away by sale to George Curteis, esq. afterwards knighted, and of Otterden, and he alienated it to Sir Robert Hales, of Bekesborne, in whose descendants it continued down to Sir Philip Hales, bart. of Howlets, who in 1787, passed it away by sale to Isaac Baugh, esq. the present owner of it.

 

Charities.

John Dorrante, of Bekesborne, yeoman, in 1560, gave by will, to discharge the poor from the assessments of the church, the overplus to be paid to the most antient poor of the parish, the sum of 3s, 6d. on Palm Sunday and the Monday before Penticost; and 21s. 6d. on Christmas-day yearly, out of the house and lands called Church-house, now vested in Mr. Peter Inge.

 

Henry Sloyden, of Wickhambreaux, in 1568, gave by will to the poor of this parish and of Wickham, six acres and a half of land, called Church-close, to be divided between them yearly, now of the annual produce of 3l. 9s. 9d.

 

Sir Henry Palmer, by his will in 1611, gave 10s. to be paid yearly out of his manor of Welle, for the use of the poor.

 

James Franklyn, by will in 1616, gave to the parishes of Littleborne, Chistlet, and Hoathe, in Reculver, 5l. each, to be employed in a stock for the poor. This 5l. is now increased to 11l. this interest of which being 8s. 93frac34;d. is distributed among the poor in general.

 

Valentine Norton, gent. by his will, was a benefactor to the poor; but there are no particulars further known of it.

 

The poor constantly relieved are about fifty, casually thirtyfive.

 

This parish is within the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Bridge.

 

The church, which is dedicated to St. Vincent, consists of three isles and a chancel, having at the west end a low pointed steeple, in which hang five bells. The church is kept very neat. It is a good sized building, and is handsomely ceiled. The chancel is lostly, and has four narrow lancet windows on each side, and three at the end; in the former are the remains of good painted glass, and in the latter some years ago were the seven sacraments, &c. very handsomely done, with rich borders, but they have been some few years since removed. In it is a memorial for George I'anns, curate, obt. 1699. In the middle isle are several memorials for the family of Denne, for many descents lessees of the court-lodge, and descended from those of Dennehill, in Kingston, In the south-east window of the south isle is a saint holding a shield of arms, in front, Gules, three cocks, argent, being the arms of Bunington, on the lest side a moon, on the right a sun, all very well done; and there were formerly in one of the windows, the arms of Higham, argent, a lion passant regardant, between six cross-croslets fitchee, sable, impaling Gallaway, ermine, three lozenges, gules. A few years ago the north isle fell down, when there were some curious paintings discovered, by the breaking of the plaister from the walls. This isle was immediately rebuilt. In the church-yard, at the north-west part of it, are several tombs and head stones of the family of Denne before- mentioned.

 

¶The church of Littleborne was antiently appendant to the manor, part of the possessions of the abbot and convent of St. Augustine, and continued so till the year 1224, when Robert de Bello being chosen abbot, and finding much difficulty in obtaining the pope's benediction, to facilitate it, gave this church to the monastery of St. Mary de Monte Mirteto, in Italy, to which the pope, in 1241, appropriated it. Immediately after which, this parsonage, so appropriated, was demised to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine, in perpetual ferme, at the clear yearly sum of thirty marcs. (fn. 7) Four years after which, anno 1245, archbishop Stratford endowed the vicarage of it, the advowson of which was reserved to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine, when he decreed, that the vicarage should be endowed with a mansion, the tithes of filva cæ dua, of hay, and in three acres of arable, one acre of meadow, and in the receipt of three marcs and an half in money from the religious yearly, and in the tithes of flax, hemp, ducks, calves, pigeons, bees, milk, milkmeats, mills, wool, pigs, and in all oblations and other small tithes belonging to the church; and that the vicar should serve the church in divine rites, and find one chaplain to celebrate weekly in the chapel of Garwyntone, and to find bread, wine, and tapers, for celebrating divine rites in the church. Which endowment was afterwards, in 1370, certified by inspeximus, by archbishop Wittlesey. In which state this church and advowson remained till the final dissolution of the abbey of St. Augustine, in the 30th year of Henry VIII. when they came into the king's hands, and the king, in his 33d year, settled both, by his dotation-charter, on his new-erected dean and chapter of Canterbury, with whom they continue at this time. The parsonage has been from time to time let on a beneficial lease, Mr. Thomas Holness being the present lessee of it, but the advowson of the vicarage the dean and chapter retain in their own hands.

 

The vicarage of Littleborne is valued in the king's books at 7l. 19s. 10d. but the yearly tenths taken are sixteen shillings, the sum total being erroneonsly cast up in the king's books at eight pounds. The antient pension of 3l. 17s. 4d. from the abbey of St. Augustine's, is yearly received by the vicar out of the exchequer; the demesne lands of the court-lodge pay no greattithes, and the archbishop's woods in his own occupation pay none. In 1588 here were one hundred and fifty communicants; in 1640 the same, when it was valued at thirty-five pounds. It has been augmented by the dean and chapter with fifty pounds per annum.

 

The chapel of Lukedale, in the precinct of Well, was once esteemed as within the bounds of this parish, of which more may be seen herefter, under Ickham, to which parish Well is now annexed.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol9/pp147-158

man is he adoooorable!! but i keep wishing for a tan cookie. In this tan. And the only ones around are FG cookies :/

Anyways, still thinking if he'll stay or if he'll go, while i keep trying to grow the money tree

 

NCDOT is building the state's first turbine interchange in north Charlotte where I-85 and I-485 will connect. Traffic on I-85 North is moving from the bottom to top of the photo. In the center are several bridges connecting the two interstates, and to the left is the final segment of I-485 currently under construction. Both projects should wrap up by the end of 2014.

This is from a pre-production version of the Sony NEX7 and a pre-production Zeiss 24mm f1.8.

ISO400, manual, concert lighting, not much of a photo but it was all I could get.

 

The camera software didn't record shutter speed or other useful info. Just aperture. This is a very early pre-production kit I was told.

 

You might enjoy my blog at thepicturedesk.blogspot.com/