Monty qualified for a leg brace after a most thorough exam. He did not have a torn cruciate ligament. Instead it had broken completely in two. Surgery was out of the question. Next Monday he goes to be measured for it and then it takes a week to complete. We really hope this works. For anyone who’s interested when all is said and done the total will be close to $2000.00. I am so happy we are in a position to do this. Neither Joan or Imare ready to see him go.

The festival, also known as Ashwini Purnima, marks the conclusion of the three-month-long seclusion of monks in monasteries for self-edification and atonement.

 

The release of sky lanterns commemorates an event in the life of Buddha, when he once clipped some strands of hair from his head and said that if he were qualified to attain supreme wisdom and enlightenment, the hair would go up instead of falling down. The strands of hair eventually went up.

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

hey friends!

I've been through a tough week, I'm tired of exams ..

I'm disappointed and so very mad !!

I hate some of my teachers ,some of them are

non-qualified to give a lecture ..

One of them ,is a new to college and she is teaching us "Speaking skills " , I always take A+ in that subject ..

However, everything has changed when she started to teach us ..

I took 14 out of 25 !! she says it's ok you can

do better in the next presentation and you can pass !!!!

( I wanna take A not just pass) !! :@:@

she said once to the whole class , that no one have the right to take a full mark in speaking because you are not a native speaker and your prononciation is not that good .. oh please!! she pronounced "Women" as "Vemen"!!! :O

Another major point , when I talk , I use the American prononciation, it's a lot easier and it can easily be understood ,but she says the perfect prononciation is british and you'll lose marks if you didn't use it :O:O

I'M GOING CRAZY!!

Why some people are making everything hard ?? :(:(

 

---------

 

about the picture :)

The model is my sister Farah ..

 

---------

 

© Fatima Al-Madhi

  

Copyright for this gallery photo belongs solely to Fatima Al-Madhi Images may not be copied, downloaded, or used in any way without the expressed, written permission of the photographer.

Portrait of a student undergoing Qualified Pilot Instructor (QFI) training at RAF Cranwell prior to a training flight with 115(R) Squadron.

 

This image was a runner up in the RAF Photographic Competition 2012.

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

© Crown Copyright 2013

Photographer: Matt Reid

Image 45155659.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk

  

Use of this image is subject to the terms and conditions of the MoD News Licence at www.defenceimagery.mod.uk/fotoweb/20121001_Crown_copyrigh...

 

For latest news visit www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-defence

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Photos Taken by Edwin Ladd - Mr Ladd Media The Official Photographer for Birmingham Law Society - Newly Qualified Celebration 2022. This event took place on the 25th November 2022 held at No5 in Birmingham.

 

Birmingham Law Society - Legal Awards celebrates Birmingham and the West Midlands region as a centre of legal excellence second to none.

 

www.birminghamlawsociety.co.uk

 

#MrLaddMedia

Want Edwin Ladd - Mr Ladd Media at your next event?

 

Contact: Edwin Ladd

Mob:07828 475 591

Email: info@mrladd.co.uk

www.mrladd.co.uk/albums

This homeless man qualified as a Katrina's refugee victimized by disaster capitalism. Photograph featured in the article "LA Will Convert Motel Units to 500 Apartments for Homeless Vets" written by Los Angeles Times Gale Holland and published on May 28. 2016.

www.goodnewsnetwork.org/la-will-convert-motel-units-500-a...

 

Also published in Infowars on June 13th, 2016 to illustrate an article by William L. Anderson: "The Keynesian Blessing: Americans are broke"

www.infowars.com/the-keynesian-blessing-americans-are-broke/

 

Published again on August 3rd, 2016 in Infowars to illustrate an article by Carmen Elena Dorobat "Waiting for Growth".

www.infowars.com/waiting-for-growth/

 

Published on April 29th 2019 in Infowars to illustrate the article "Wealthy Elitists Freak Out as Hordes of Homeless People Take Over Their Neighborhoods All Over the West Coast"

 

www.infowars.com/wealthy-elitists-freak-out-as-hordes-of-...

Reassembled from seven pieces, and a large part of the right side restored with plaster, the stele is divided into two panels. The smaller panel at the top is crowned by a horizontal cornice with engraved stylized amtefix fronts and an akroterion at the center. Three relief figures are depicted in a recessed panel at the center. The kosmetes Aurelius Dositheos, depicted frontally in the middle, is wrapped in his himation and has a bundle of scrolls at his side. He is crowned by an ephebe at his left wearing a chlamys and holding a palm branch in his left hand. At his right another ephebe, facing right with a himation hanging over his left shoulder and holding a palm branch in his left hand, extends his right hand in which he holds a wreath, to the kosmetes. To right and left of the representation are two relief olive wreaths and inscriptions. At the left: οἰ ἔφηβοι (the ephebes) and in the wreath ὀ κοσμητής (the kosmetes), both in nominative case. At the right: τὀν κοσμητήν (the kosmetes), and in the wreath τοὐς ἐφήβους (the ephebes), in accusative case.

Assembling the inscriptions we read:

 

οἱ ἔφηβοι τὸν κοσμητήν - Ephebes honor the kosmetest [their teacher[

 

ὁ κοσμητής τοὺς ἐφήβους - The kosmetes honors the ephebes, [winner od navalia context]

 

The lower larger panel is bordered by two Corinthian columns executed in very low relief, and crowned by an epistyle with the inscription: ἀγαθῆι τύχηι (for good fortune).

The larger part of the stele lower surface is covered by a long list including the names of the Gymnasium Officials and ephebes arranged by tribe. The beginning of the long inscription helps to clarify the scene described above. The mature man at the center of the scene is the kosmetes Αύρ(ήλιος) Δωσίθεος ὁ καὶ Θαλῆς Δωσιθέου Παμβωτάδης - Aurelius Dositheos called also Thaletes of the demos of Pambotadai. He belonged to tribe Erechtheis. The "volumina" at his feet qualify Aurelius as a cultured and authoritative person.

The inscription and the relief engraved in the bottom of the stele clarify definitively the scene carved in the superior panel. The preserved bass-relief showing two ships, each with two oarsmen, symbolizes the victory won by the ephebes pupils of Aurelius Dositheos in a naval battle contest, [να]υ[μαχ]ήσαντε[ς], in which the two sons of the kosmetes had taken part. The inscription engraved just above each vessel, report the names of the winners, both qualified in the same inscription as belonging to demos of Pambotadai:

 

“Αὐρ(ήλιος) Δωσίθεος Θαλῆτος” and “Αὐρ(ήλιος) Ἡρακλείδης Θ[αλῆτος]”

 

The names and the fact that they belong to the same demos of Aurelius Dositheos, identify the ephebes winner of the contest as sons of the kosmetes.

 

Source: IG II² 2208; Guarducci M., “Epigrafia Greca – Vol. II”; Kaltsas N., “Sculpture in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens”

 

Pentelic marble stele

Height 149 cm; width 69 cm

AD 212/213

From Athens, near Agios Dimitrios Katiphoris church, site of the Gymnasium of Diogenes,

Athens, National Archaeological Museum - Inv. No. 1465

  

Don Pedro Reservoir, also known as Lake Don Pedro, is a reservoir formed by the construction of the New Don Pedro Dam across the Tuolumne River in Tuolumne County, California, United States.

 

The California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment has issued a safety advisory for any fish caught in Don Pedro Reservoir due to elevated levels of mercury and PCBs.

 

The reservoir is located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Communities located nearby are Moccasin and La Grange. It is the sixth-largest reservoir in California.

 

Also referenced as Don Pedro Lake when the name is qualified, the first projects in 1923 are generally referred to as the Old Don Pedro Dam and reservoir, and the 1971 upgrades are the New Don Pedro Dam and reservoir. Don Pedro Reservoir takes its name from Don Pedros Bar. Pierre ("Don Pedro") Sainsevain was one of the first prospectors after the discovery of gold in 1848 that began the California Gold Rush.

 

When full, the reservoir's shoreline is approximately 160 mi (260 km). The reservoir submerges some 26 mi (42 km) of Tuolumne River bed, and has a surface area of about 13,000 acres (5,300 ha). The 2,030,000 acre⋅ft (2.50 km3) stored here comes from a watershed of over 1,500 sq mi (3,900 km2), and is used by the Modesto Irrigation District (MID) and the Turlock Irrigation District (TID) for the irrigation of several hundred square miles of San Joaquin Valley farm land.

 

Some of the water is treated by the MID and used as drinking water in Modesto. The two irrigation districts and the BLM control the land 15 feet (4.6 m) above the high lake level.

 

The Don Pedro Recreation Area is operated in and around the lake by the Don Pedro Lake Recreation Agency. There are drive-in and boat-in campgrounds, houseboat areas, fishing, water skiing, and mountain biking and hiking trails.

 

There are three public boat ramps on the shoreline, in the Blue Oaks Area, Moccasin Point Area, and Fleming Meadows Area.

 

While Don Pedro Reservoir is not part of the Hetch Hetchy Aqueduct, the project's tunnels cross under the upper end of the reservoir. The reservoir could easily be tied into the Hetch Hetchy Project in the future, and the efforts of the Restore Hetch Hetchy group to drain the reservoir in the Hetch Hetchy Valley depend largely on that possibility. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC), of which Hetch Hetchy Water and Power is a division, provided about 45% of the funds for construction of the 1971 New Don Pedro Dam and so has the right to store 570,000 acre-feet (700,000,000 m3) of water in the reservoir. Each year, San Francisco takes about 230,000 acre-feet (280,000,000 m3). The rights of the MID and the TID are senior to those of SFPUC, however, so in dry years MID and TID can draw down the reservoir to meet their own needs before providing water to San Francisco's Hetch Hetchy Water and Power.

 

California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2 million residents across a total area of approximately 163,696 square miles (423,970 km2), it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the most populated subnational entity in North America and the 34th most populous in the world. The Greater Los Angeles area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nation's second and fifth most populous urban regions respectively, with the former having more than 18.7 million residents and the latter having over 9.6 million. Sacramento is the state's capital, while Los Angeles is the most populous city in the state and the second most populous city in the country. San Francisco is the second most densely populated major city in the country. Los Angeles County is the country's most populous, while San Bernardino County is the largest county by area in the country. California borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, the Mexican state of Baja California to the south; and has a coastline along the Pacific Ocean to the west.

 

The economy of the state of California is the largest in the United States, with a $3.4 trillion gross state product (GSP) as of 2022. It is the largest sub-national economy in the world. If California were a sovereign nation, it would rank as the world's fifth-largest economy as of 2022, behind Germany and ahead of India, as well as the 37th most populous. The Greater Los Angeles area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nation's second- and third-largest urban economies ($1.0 trillion and $0.5 trillion respectively as of 2020). The San Francisco Bay Area Combined Statistical Area had the nation's highest gross domestic product per capita ($106,757) among large primary statistical areas in 2018, and is home to five of the world's ten largest companies by market capitalization and four of the world's ten richest people.

 

Prior to European colonization, California was one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse areas in pre-Columbian North America and contained the highest Native American population density north of what is now Mexico. European exploration in the 16th and 17th centuries led to the colonization of California by the Spanish Empire. In 1804, it was included in Alta California province within the Viceroyalty of New Spain. The area became a part of Mexico in 1821, following its successful war for independence, but was ceded to the United States in 1848 after the Mexican–American War. The California Gold Rush started in 1848 and led to dramatic social and demographic changes, including large-scale immigration into California, a worldwide economic boom, and the California genocide of indigenous people. The western portion of Alta California was then organized and admitted as the 31st state on September 9, 1850, following the Compromise of 1850.

 

Notable contributions to popular culture, for example in entertainment and sports, have their origins in California. The state also has made noteworthy contributions in the fields of communication, information, innovation, environmentalism, economics, and politics. It is the home of Hollywood, the oldest and one of the largest film industries in the world, which has had a profound influence upon global entertainment. It is considered the origin of the hippie counterculture, beach and car culture, and the personal computer, among other innovations. The San Francisco Bay Area and the Greater Los Angeles Area are widely seen as the centers of the global technology and film industries, respectively. California's economy is very diverse: 58% of it is based on finance, government, real estate services, technology, and professional, scientific, and technical business services. Although it accounts for only 1.5% of the state's economy, California's agriculture industry has the highest output of any U.S. state. California's ports and harbors handle about a third of all U.S. imports, most originating in Pacific Rim international trade.

 

The state's extremely diverse geography ranges from the Pacific Coast and metropolitan areas in the west to the Sierra Nevada mountains in the east, and from the redwood and Douglas fir forests in the northwest to the Mojave Desert in the southeast. The Central Valley, a major agricultural area, dominates the state's center. California is well known for its warm Mediterranean climate and monsoon seasonal weather. The large size of the state results in climates that vary from moist temperate rainforest in the north to arid desert in the interior, as well as snowy alpine in the mountains.

 

Settled by successive waves of arrivals during at least the last 13,000 years, California was one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse areas in pre-Columbian North America. Various estimates of the native population have ranged from 100,000 to 300,000. The indigenous peoples of California included more than 70 distinct ethnic groups, inhabiting environments from mountains and deserts to islands and redwood forests. These groups were also diverse in their political organization, with bands, tribes, villages, and on the resource-rich coasts, large chiefdoms, such as the Chumash, Pomo and Salinan. Trade, intermarriage and military alliances fostered social and economic relationships between many groups.

 

The first Europeans to explore the coast of California were the members of a Spanish maritime expedition led by Portuguese captain Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in 1542. Cabrillo was commissioned by Antonio de Mendoza, the Viceroy of New Spain, to lead an expedition up the Pacific coast in search of trade opportunities; they entered San Diego Bay on September 28, 1542, and reached at least as far north as San Miguel Island. Privateer and explorer Francis Drake explored and claimed an undefined portion of the California coast in 1579, landing north of the future city of San Francisco. Sebastián Vizcaíno explored and mapped the coast of California in 1602 for New Spain, putting ashore in Monterey. Despite the on-the-ground explorations of California in the 16th century, Rodríguez's idea of California as an island persisted. Such depictions appeared on many European maps well into the 18th century.

 

The Portolá expedition of 1769-70 was a pivotal event in the Spanish colonization of California, resulting in the establishment of numerous missions, presidios, and pueblos. The military and civil contingent of the expedition was led by Gaspar de Portolá, who traveled over land from Sonora into California, while the religious component was headed by Junípero Serra, who came by sea from Baja California. In 1769, Portolá and Serra established Mission San Diego de Alcalá and the Presidio of San Diego, the first religious and military settlements founded by the Spanish in California. By the end of the expedition in 1770, they would establish the Presidio of Monterey and Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo on Monterey Bay.

 

After the Portolà expedition, Spanish missionaries led by Father-President Serra set out to establish 21 Spanish missions of California along El Camino Real ("The Royal Road") and along the Californian coast, 16 sites of which having been chosen during the Portolá expedition. Numerous major cities in California grew out of missions, including San Francisco (Mission San Francisco de Asís), San Diego (Mission San Diego de Alcalá), Ventura (Mission San Buenaventura), or Santa Barbara (Mission Santa Barbara), among others.

 

Juan Bautista de Anza led a similarly important expedition throughout California in 1775–76, which would extend deeper into the interior and north of California. The Anza expedition selected numerous sites for missions, presidios, and pueblos, which subsequently would be established by settlers. Gabriel Moraga, a member of the expedition, would also christen many of California's prominent rivers with their names in 1775–1776, such as the Sacramento River and the San Joaquin River. After the expedition, Gabriel's son, José Joaquín Moraga, would found the pueblo of San Jose in 1777, making it the first civilian-established city in California.

  

The Spanish founded Mission San Juan Capistrano in 1776, the third to be established of the Californian missions.

During this same period, sailors from the Russian Empire explored along the northern coast of California. In 1812, the Russian-American Company established a trading post and small fortification at Fort Ross on the North Coast. Fort Ross was primarily used to supply Russia's Alaskan colonies with food supplies. The settlement did not meet much success, failing to attract settlers or establish long term trade viability, and was abandoned by 1841.

 

During the War of Mexican Independence, Alta California was largely unaffected and uninvolved in the revolution, though many Californios supported independence from Spain, which many believed had neglected California and limited its development. Spain's trade monopoly on California had limited the trade prospects of Californians. Following Mexican independence, Californian ports were freely able to trade with foreign merchants. Governor Pablo Vicente de Solá presided over the transition from Spanish colonial rule to independent.

 

In 1821, the Mexican War of Independence gave the Mexican Empire (which included California) independence from Spain. For the next 25 years, Alta California remained a remote, sparsely populated, northwestern administrative district of the newly independent country of Mexico, which shortly after independence became a republic. The missions, which controlled most of the best land in the state, were secularized by 1834 and became the property of the Mexican government. The governor granted many square leagues of land to others with political influence. These huge ranchos or cattle ranches emerged as the dominant institutions of Mexican California. The ranchos developed under ownership by Californios (Hispanics native of California) who traded cowhides and tallow with Boston merchants. Beef did not become a commodity until the 1849 California Gold Rush.

 

From the 1820s, trappers and settlers from the United States and Canada began to arrive in Northern California. These new arrivals used the Siskiyou Trail, California Trail, Oregon Trail and Old Spanish Trail to cross the rugged mountains and harsh deserts in and surrounding California. The early government of the newly independent Mexico was highly unstable, and in a reflection of this, from 1831 onwards, California also experienced a series of armed disputes, both internal and with the central Mexican government. During this tumultuous political period Juan Bautista Alvarado was able to secure the governorship during 1836–1842. The military action which first brought Alvarado to power had momentarily declared California to be an independent state, and had been aided by Anglo-American residents of California, including Isaac Graham. In 1840, one hundred of those residents who did not have passports were arrested, leading to the Graham Affair, which was resolved in part with the intercession of Royal Navy officials.

 

One of the largest ranchers in California was John Marsh. After failing to obtain justice against squatters on his land from the Mexican courts, he determined that California should become part of the United States. Marsh conducted a letter-writing campaign espousing the California climate, the soil, and other reasons to settle there, as well as the best route to follow, which became known as "Marsh's route". His letters were read, reread, passed around, and printed in newspapers throughout the country, and started the first wagon trains rolling to California. He invited immigrants to stay on his ranch until they could get settled, and assisted in their obtaining passports.

 

After ushering in the period of organized emigration to California, Marsh became involved in a military battle between the much-hated Mexican general, Manuel Micheltorena and the California governor he had replaced, Juan Bautista Alvarado. The armies of each met at the Battle of Providencia near Los Angeles. Marsh had been forced against his will to join Micheltorena's army. Ignoring his superiors, during the battle, he signaled the other side for a parley. There were many settlers from the United States fighting on both sides. He convinced these men that they had no reason to be fighting each other. As a result of Marsh's actions, they abandoned the fight, Micheltorena was defeated, and California-born Pio Pico was returned to the governorship. This paved the way to California's ultimate acquisition by the United States.

 

In 1846, a group of American settlers in and around Sonoma rebelled against Mexican rule during the Bear Flag Revolt. Afterward, rebels raised the Bear Flag (featuring a bear, a star, a red stripe and the words "California Republic") at Sonoma. The Republic's only president was William B. Ide,[65] who played a pivotal role during the Bear Flag Revolt. This revolt by American settlers served as a prelude to the later American military invasion of California and was closely coordinated with nearby American military commanders.

 

The California Republic was short-lived; the same year marked the outbreak of the Mexican–American War (1846–48).

 

Commodore John D. Sloat of the United States Navy sailed into Monterey Bay in 1846 and began the U.S. military invasion of California, with Northern California capitulating in less than a month to the United States forces. In Southern California, Californios continued to resist American forces. Notable military engagements of the conquest include the Battle of San Pasqual and the Battle of Dominguez Rancho in Southern California, as well as the Battle of Olómpali and the Battle of Santa Clara in Northern California. After a series of defensive battles in the south, the Treaty of Cahuenga was signed by the Californios on January 13, 1847, securing a censure and establishing de facto American control in California.

 

Following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (February 2, 1848) that ended the war, the westernmost portion of the annexed Mexican territory of Alta California soon became the American state of California, and the remainder of the old territory was then subdivided into the new American Territories of Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Utah. The even more lightly populated and arid lower region of old Baja California remained as a part of Mexico. In 1846, the total settler population of the western part of the old Alta California had been estimated to be no more than 8,000, plus about 100,000 Native Americans, down from about 300,000 before Hispanic settlement in 1769.

 

In 1848, only one week before the official American annexation of the area, gold was discovered in California, this being an event which was to forever alter both the state's demographics and its finances. Soon afterward, a massive influx of immigration into the area resulted, as prospectors and miners arrived by the thousands. The population burgeoned with United States citizens, Europeans, Chinese and other immigrants during the great California Gold Rush. By the time of California's application for statehood in 1850, the settler population of California had multiplied to 100,000. By 1854, more than 300,000 settlers had come. Between 1847 and 1870, the population of San Francisco increased from 500 to 150,000.

 

The seat of government for California under Spanish and later Mexican rule had been located in Monterey from 1777 until 1845. Pio Pico, the last Mexican governor of Alta California, had briefly moved the capital to Los Angeles in 1845. The United States consulate had also been located in Monterey, under consul Thomas O. Larkin.

 

In 1849, a state Constitutional Convention was first held in Monterey. Among the first tasks of the convention was a decision on a location for the new state capital. The first full legislative sessions were held in San Jose (1850–1851). Subsequent locations included Vallejo (1852–1853), and nearby Benicia (1853–1854); these locations eventually proved to be inadequate as well. The capital has been located in Sacramento since 1854 with only a short break in 1862 when legislative sessions were held in San Francisco due to flooding in Sacramento. Once the state's Constitutional Convention had finalized its state constitution, it applied to the U.S. Congress for admission to statehood. On September 9, 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850, California became a free state and September 9 a state holiday.

 

During the American Civil War (1861–1865), California sent gold shipments eastward to Washington in support of the Union. However, due to the existence of a large contingent of pro-South sympathizers within the state, the state was not able to muster any full military regiments to send eastwards to officially serve in the Union war effort. Still, several smaller military units within the Union army were unofficially associated with the state of California, such as the "California 100 Company", due to a majority of their members being from California.

 

At the time of California's admission into the Union, travel between California and the rest of the continental United States had been a time-consuming and dangerous feat. Nineteen years later, and seven years after it was greenlighted by President Lincoln, the First transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869. California was then reachable from the eastern States in a week's time.

 

Much of the state was extremely well suited to fruit cultivation and agriculture in general. Vast expanses of wheat, other cereal crops, vegetable crops, cotton, and nut and fruit trees were grown (including oranges in Southern California), and the foundation was laid for the state's prodigious agricultural production in the Central Valley and elsewhere.

 

In the nineteenth century, a large number of migrants from China traveled to the state as part of the Gold Rush or to seek work. Even though the Chinese proved indispensable in building the transcontinental railroad from California to Utah, perceived job competition with the Chinese led to anti-Chinese riots in the state, and eventually the US ended migration from China partially as a response to pressure from California with the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act.

 

Under earlier Spanish and Mexican rule, California's original native population had precipitously declined, above all, from Eurasian diseases to which the indigenous people of California had not yet developed a natural immunity. Under its new American administration, California's harsh governmental policies towards its own indigenous people did not improve. As in other American states, many of the native inhabitants were soon forcibly removed from their lands by incoming American settlers such as miners, ranchers, and farmers. Although California had entered the American union as a free state, the "loitering or orphaned Indians" were de facto enslaved by their new Anglo-American masters under the 1853 Act for the Government and Protection of Indians. There were also massacres in which hundreds of indigenous people were killed.

 

Between 1850 and 1860, the California state government paid around 1.5 million dollars (some 250,000 of which was reimbursed by the federal government) to hire militias whose purpose was to protect settlers from the indigenous populations. In later decades, the native population was placed in reservations and rancherias, which were often small and isolated and without enough natural resources or funding from the government to sustain the populations living on them. As a result, the rise of California was a calamity for the native inhabitants. Several scholars and Native American activists, including Benjamin Madley and Ed Castillo, have described the actions of the California government as a genocide.

 

In the twentieth century, thousands of Japanese people migrated to the US and California specifically to attempt to purchase and own land in the state. However, the state in 1913 passed the Alien Land Act, excluding Asian immigrants from owning land. During World War II, Japanese Americans in California were interned in concentration camps such as at Tule Lake and Manzanar. In 2020, California officially apologized for this internment.

 

Migration to California accelerated during the early 20th century with the completion of major transcontinental highways like the Lincoln Highway and Route 66. In the period from 1900 to 1965, the population grew from fewer than one million to the greatest in the Union. In 1940, the Census Bureau reported California's population as 6.0% Hispanic, 2.4% Asian, and 89.5% non-Hispanic white.

 

To meet the population's needs, major engineering feats like the California and Los Angeles Aqueducts; the Oroville and Shasta Dams; and the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges were built across the state. The state government also adopted the California Master Plan for Higher Education in 1960 to develop a highly efficient system of public education.

 

Meanwhile, attracted to the mild Mediterranean climate, cheap land, and the state's wide variety of geography, filmmakers established the studio system in Hollywood in the 1920s. California manufactured 8.7 percent of total United States military armaments produced during World War II, ranking third (behind New York and Michigan) among the 48 states. California however easily ranked first in production of military ships during the war (transport, cargo, [merchant ships] such as Liberty ships, Victory ships, and warships) at drydock facilities in San Diego, Los Angeles, and the San Francisco Bay Area. After World War II, California's economy greatly expanded due to strong aerospace and defense industries, whose size decreased following the end of the Cold War. Stanford University and its Dean of Engineering Frederick Terman began encouraging faculty and graduates to stay in California instead of leaving the state, and develop a high-tech region in the area now known as Silicon Valley. As a result of these efforts, California is regarded as a world center of the entertainment and music industries, of technology, engineering, and the aerospace industry, and as the United States center of agricultural production. Just before the Dot Com Bust, California had the fifth-largest economy in the world among nations.

 

In the mid and late twentieth century, a number of race-related incidents occurred in the state. Tensions between police and African Americans, combined with unemployment and poverty in inner cities, led to violent riots, such as the 1965 Watts riots and 1992 Rodney King riots. California was also the hub of the Black Panther Party, a group known for arming African Americans to defend against racial injustice and for organizing free breakfast programs for schoolchildren. Additionally, Mexican, Filipino, and other migrant farm workers rallied in the state around Cesar Chavez for better pay in the 1960s and 1970s.

 

During the 20th century, two great disasters happened in California. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake and 1928 St. Francis Dam flood remain the deadliest in U.S. history.

 

Although air pollution problems have been reduced, health problems associated with pollution have continued. The brown haze known as "smog" has been substantially abated after the passage of federal and state restrictions on automobile exhaust.

 

An energy crisis in 2001 led to rolling blackouts, soaring power rates, and the importation of electricity from neighboring states. Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas and Electric Company came under heavy criticism.

 

Housing prices in urban areas continued to increase; a modest home which in the 1960s cost $25,000 would cost half a million dollars or more in urban areas by 2005. More people commuted longer hours to afford a home in more rural areas while earning larger salaries in the urban areas. Speculators bought houses they never intended to live in, expecting to make a huge profit in a matter of months, then rolling it over by buying more properties. Mortgage companies were compliant, as everyone assumed the prices would keep rising. The bubble burst in 2007–8 as housing prices began to crash and the boom years ended. Hundreds of billions in property values vanished and foreclosures soared as many financial institutions and investors were badly hurt.

 

In the twenty-first century, droughts and frequent wildfires attributed to climate change have occurred in the state. From 2011 to 2017, a persistent drought was the worst in its recorded history. The 2018 wildfire season was the state's deadliest and most destructive, most notably Camp Fire.

 

Although air pollution problems have been reduced, health problems associated with pollution have continued. The brown haze that is known as "smog" has been substantially abated thanks to federal and state restrictions on automobile exhaust.

 

One of the first confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States that occurred in California was first of which was confirmed on January 26, 2020. Meaning, all of the early confirmed cases were persons who had recently travelled to China in Asia, as testing was restricted to this group. On this January 29, 2020, as disease containment protocols were still being developed, the U.S. Department of State evacuated 195 persons from Wuhan, China aboard a chartered flight to March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County, and in this process, it may have granted and conferred to escalated within the land and the US at cosmic. On February 5, 2020, the U.S. evacuated 345 more citizens from Hubei Province to two military bases in California, Travis Air Force Base in Solano County and Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, San Diego, where they were quarantined for 14 days. A state of emergency was largely declared in this state of the nation on March 4, 2020, and as of February 24, 2021, remains in effect. A mandatory statewide stay-at-home order was issued on March 19, 2020, due to increase, which was ended on January 25, 2021, allowing citizens to return to normal life. On April 6, 2021, the state announced plans to fully reopen the economy by June 15, 2021.

  

Carolin (42) is not really a model. She is a qualified merchant and self-employed.

Bellis perennis草坪雛菊La margarita

Bellis perennis, la margarita, es una especie europea de la familia Asteraceae, a menudo considerada la especie arquetípica del nombre margarita. Para distinguir esta especie de otras plantas conocidas como margaritas, a veces se la califica como margarita común, margarita de césped o margarita inglesa.

草坪雛菊，別名長命菊、延命菊，（學名：Bellis perennis）是菊科雛菊屬的一種，原產於歐洲，原種被視為叢生的雜草，開花期在春季。是菊科的歐洲物種，通常被認為是雛菊名稱的原型物種。 為了將該物種與其他稱為雛菊的植物區分開來，有時將其稱為普通雛菊、或英國雛菊。

Bellis perennis ,the daisy, is a European species of the family Asteraceae, often considered the archetypal species of the name daisy. To distinguish this species from other plants known as daisies, it is sometimes qualified as common daisy, lawn daisy or English daisy.

 

Dedicated to rachelj1958 (Rachel Joyce) in tribute to her presence and kind comments

 

The plant is qualified as "never seen before"! In the next days more photos of it will be posted!

 

- Le mystère de la plante sera... déployé

 

La plante est qualifiée comme "jamais vue auparavant"! Dans les prochains jours d'autres photos seront postées!

Next phase of the Georgia Central-- GP38-2s a plenty. These had begun showing up a few months prior and mixing with the briefly present SD45Rs and then those behemoths found their way over to the Meridian & Bigbee.

 

Rewind to my marked out NS B32-8 leading L782 a couple of weeks ago and here's a previous version-- FURX 5568. Returned to First Union by NS due to their high lease rate and replaced with NS' own 5600/5800 series rebuilds performed in house, these 5500s found their way into a variety of leases (and still do today). I can't recall how many NS "bandits" there were on GC but I'm thinking two or three. At any rate, I immediately thought "Sigh...so this is how it's going to be." Turns out the GP38-2 era wouldn't be that long, either...

 

At any rate, this is the International Paper woodchip shuttle Y115, which makes a daily run out to Faulkville for woodchip loads to take to IP's Savannah paper mill. The haul is all of about 10 miles from the chip loadout to mill but keeps a lot of trucks off of busy and congested US 80 going into Savannah. A Class 1 wouldn't touch this traffic with a 10-foot pole.

 

Y115 has come west to the siding in Meldrim to run around their train and head back to Savannah. Operations on this train vary between a Meldrim run-around and double-ending the power to avoid the run-around. It just seems to vary by the day and probably whether there are two qualified engineers on the train any given day.

Created in 2000, this monument is a tribute the Famous Five: Irene Parlby, Louise McKinney, Nellie McClung, Emily Murphy and Henrietta Muir Edwards, all from Alberta.

 

The Famous Five brought a case before the highest court in the British Empire to appeal a 1928 decision by the Supreme Court of Canada. That court had ruled that women could not be appointed to the Senate, because they were not "qualified persons." On October 18, 1929, the Privy Council reversed this decision. This sculpture was also featured on the back of the $50 bill.

 

This sculpture has been relocated due to ongoing construction on Parliament Hill. It can now be seen on the Plaza Bridge near the Senate of Canada.

Many Thanks to the +10,770,000 visitors of my photographic stream!

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© Ioan C. Bacivarov

 

All the photos on this gallery are protected by the international laws of copyright and they are not for being used on any site, blog or forum, transmitted or manipulated without the explicit written permission of the author. Thank you in advance

 

Please view my most interesting photos on flickriver stream: www.flickriver.com/photos/ioan_bacivarov/

Many thanks for yours visits and comments.

Photos Taken by Edwin Ladd - Mr Ladd Media The Official Photographer for Birmingham Law Society - Newly Qualified Solicitor & Barrister Celebration 2020 / 21. This event took place on the 11th November 2021 at St Philips Chambers

 

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castleford watermill

  

The history of Allinson

The story begins with a Victorian doctor named Thomas Richard Allinson. Born in 1858 near Manchester, he qualified in medicine at the age of just 21.

 

From the start he took a keen interest in nutrition and, only a few years into his career, adopted Naturopathy. This form of medicine avoids drugs and encourages the consumption of natural foods. His ideas also became known as ‘hygienic’ or ‘Allinsonian’ medicine.

 

Dr Allinson went on to establish a practice in London, through which he promoted healthy eating. He placed particular emphasis on vegetarianism and the benefits of wholemeal flour in bread.

 

However, in those days such views were extremely radical and were to set him on a collision course with the medical establishment. The Royal College of Physicians doubted his theories and resented his publicising them. In 1892 matters came to a head and he was struck off the medical register. But he wouldn’t let that stop him pursuing his interest. After all, he didn’t need to be a doctor to make bread.

 

Ever since the industrial revolution nearly all flour was produced using roller mills. This refined the flour to such a degree that valuable nutrients and fibre were lost. Convinced of the value of whole wheat, Allinson purchased his own stone-grinding flour mill in Bethnal Green, London. He then set up The Natural Food Company under the slogan ‘Health without medicine’, and began baking bread his way.

 

The Allinson brand

The nutritional value of wholemeal bread was finally accepted by the Government during the First World War, when Allinson was in his 50s. He was even offered reinstatement to the General Medical Council. However he turned it down. After all, he’d found a new outlet for his ideas on nutrition.

 

With official acceptance that wholemeal was good for the nation’s health, demand for Allinson’s flours increased dramatically, and his company continued to expand after his death in 1918. Further Allinson flour mills were soon opened in Newport, Monmouthshire and Castleford, Yorkshire.

 

His legacy, the Allinson brand, became a byword for wholesome high-quality flour, which in turn produces wholesome, tasty and nutritious bread. This still remains so to this day.From The Times

August 2, 2008

Kevin McCloud’s big town plan for Castleford

Kevin McCloud’s latest grand design is to inject new life into the town of Castleford. Our correspondents assesses the results

Tom Dyckhoff

 

We thought ’old on, they’ll come with their TV cameras and MDF messing the place up. Well no, you’re not, and that’s that.” Rheta Davison wasn’t, at first, looking forward to the arrival of Kevin McCloud. Reality TV hasn’t had the best press, so when Channel 4 and Talkback, the makers of McCloud’s hit TV series Grand Designs, turned up in 2003 to film the regeneration of Davison’s home town of Castleford, West Yorkshire, a run-down former coal-mining town, you could forgive locals for being a tad sceptical.

 

Davison, a no-nonsense, call-a-spade-a-spade lady of the kind only Yorkshire produces, has lived here all her life. She now runs her estate’s community group. “You’ve got to remember Cas has been promised things time and again,” she explains. “We’ve all been through times. My husband was made redundant, which is why we ended up here [on the council estate] with four kids to bring up. The place is full of scars, bad scars an’ all. We all just thought they’d do some cheap makeover, make us northerners out to be idiots and disappear and that would be that.”

 

How wrong she was. This was no instant makeover. “The Castleford Project” became a joke in TV circles. Heard the one about the channel that thought it could film eight building projects from scratch in, er, two years? Have they never watched Grand Designs?

 

“I think I was the only one to say, you know it takes two years just to design and build a house,” says McCloud. “And you want to regenerate a town? Mad, just mad. TV people think that if they say two years real life will just fit in.”

 

Five years on, though, and the project is not only finished but ready for broadcast. The idea is simple, says McCloud: “Can design save a failing town?” Talkback “interviewed” many contenders left behind by Britain’s so-called urban renaissance, but selected Castleford for its community spirit. The town may have above-average stats for teenage pregnancy and below-average ones for educational attainment, but, says McCloud “the locals really had drive”.

 

“There is a version of events that nothing was happening here till Channel 4 turned up with their magic dust,” says Wakefield Council’s leader, Peter Box, “but that’s nonsense.” Two decades on, Glasshoughton colliery has been replaced by the giant Xscape indoor dry ski slope, employing more people than the pit – many of them new arrivals, mind you – and surrounded by retail sheds, a multiplex, a new Asda and rising new suburban homes. At the junction of the M62 and M1, Castleford is rebranding itself as a commuter ’burb for émigrés from Leeds. But its existing residents weren’t without ideas either.

 

All Davison and her community group wanted was a play area. “Children have a right to be heard in a community,” she says. “They’re no less clever here than anywhere else. It’s just that they’ve got no aspirations. They’re born into families with no jobs.” Talkback selected Cutsyke’s “playforest”, and seven other projects, large and small: a new underpass to the town centre replacing a grotty alley beneath the railway; a new “village green” in the former pit village of New Fryston; a newly landscaped market area; a new town centre gallery; a new pedestrian bridge across the Aire, and improvements such as new bollards and traffic calming around Wilson Street. These were partnered with eight teams of designers, with all decisions to be made by the locals and community champions, and let the cameras roll.

 

Five years later, the physical results are impressive. Talkback attracted serious talent. On the steering committees are leading lights such as Roger Zogolovitch, one of Britain’s most influential, design-led developers, and Peter Rogers, brother of Richard and the founding CEO of developers Stanhope. Architects included rising stars such as DSDHA and Hudson Architects, plus international luminaries including Martha Schwartz.

 

Schwartz’s new village green gleams – even if its avant-garde angles and artfully rusted bollards by Antony Gormley seem grandiose for the edge of town. Renato Benedetti’s £4.8 million footbridge is an astonishing tour de force, its steel, serpentine curves daintily tiptoeing across the torrent of the Aire. Locals swarm across day and night, says its community champion, Wendy Rayner. “When you get to the middle of the bridge, you’re not in Castleford, you are somewhere else. You meet your friends. They’ve started having picnics on it. Nobody ever had picnics here before. We’ve got kingfishers, cormorants, mallard ducks and water-hens. They’re pulling pike out the river. It’s a living museum. Kids his age,” she nods to her grandson, Thomas, “they don’t even know what a lump of coal is.”

 

The smaller projects are just as influential. The new underpass beneath Tickle Cott Bridge cost only a couple of hundred thousand pounds, but for that, DSDHA delivered a piece of sophisticated concrete geometry, which, says the architect Deborah Saunt, “is about cheering up those spots planning usually forgets about”. And the impact on all participants is palpable. But there are, of course, naysayers. As I gawp at Benedetti’s bridge, a man comes up and literally spits on it – “Bloody waste of money” – before hurtling off. “Ah, you always get ’em. Bloody moaners,” Davison says. “Don’t put the effort in. Where would you rather the money went? Wakefield

 

I once mentioned that I trained and qualified as a navigator. Or have I mentioned that more than once? Anyway, once upon a time I qualified as a navigator in the days when we calculated our position around the world’s oceans by the Sun and the stars. This proved absolutely useless for finding my way in grey northern Britain where we can sometimes go days without seeing anything other than clouds. So it is handy that I have the directional instincts of a pigeon and can always work out where there is available food. But in southern Croatia, I had no worries. The Sun was strong, and with this separated part of Croatia, just a sliver of land hemmed in between the Adriatic sea on one side and the mountains of Bosnia Herzogovina on the other, and a short border with Montenegro to the south, we were never likely to get lost. But we took the Citroen C3 hire car off past the airport and allowed it’s wayward steering to lead us off in the vague direction of Sokol Grad. When we found it the towering white walls of the castle, visible through the hedgehog spikey stands of cypress trees, it wasn’t the sort of sight my fellow C3 occupants were interested in, so, as driver, I pressed on upwards on the two lane road higher into the foothills. I started to notice that bushes were straggling out across the road, sticks lay in the carriageway, and the odd fist sized rock sat on the tarmac. And the road surface became littered with cowpats. There was no other traffic. No houses. No sign of living life. My passengers became concerned. Where were we going? I admitted, I had no idea, but I’m an adventurer……I always want to see what is around the next corner. We went further and higher and my flippancy about not caring where we were going got to the other occupants before we reached a destination. In voices that sounded like they didn’t think it was funny anymore, they forced me to do a three point turn and go back long before I would have conceded defeat to the road to nowhere. And so we got back down past the castle that still didn’t interest them and I suggested turning right at the next junction instead of left and back the way we originally came. Ignoring their demands to go left I went right, and suffered a barrage of protests. Asked (in a tone I did not like) where I was taking them now, I said, “I’ve no idea, but I’m looking forward to finding out!”

 

Now, at this point, I wish to say, why does everyone expect me to know where I am going, when they have no idea where they are themselves? Why am I always the one expected to know what he is doing? It’s too much responsibility for me, especially when much of my attitude to life is, ”I don’t give a f-<% “. Anyhow, I ignored the rising concerns in the rest of the car and carried on enjoying driving through the small hamlets and fields without a care in the world. And just when tempers were getting really, really frayed I chose to raise the heat with some antagonistic comments. The reaction only enhanced my pleasure even more greatly as the car weaved loosely along the little sunny lanes. I suspect I wasn’t far off the point of actual physical abuse when I deflected attention from the back of my head as I spotted some old stone buildings and waterworks. I had a funny feeling this was somewhere supposedly a bit special I had heard about. Somewhere very pretty. Somewhere called Konavoski Dvori. Yes, this was it. A restaurant in a truly picturesque setting . See www.esculaprestaurants.com/restaurant-konavoski-dvori/ We had arrived! And once they saw the place I was forgiven. The raging arguments had been worth it! No pain, no gain, haha!

 

You see, for all I said about navigation, on this occasion I had never really been lost at all. I had been using my pigeon instincts all the time!

 

(This is my version of Monet's "The Luncheon", which is very appropriate as we had lunch at this restaurant).

Newly qualified pilots receiving their wings during a parade at the Central Flying School, Dunnotar, Tvl. held in the winter of 1948.

The shadows of a flight of nine Harvards doing a fly- past can be seen between the wings of the three Dakotas.

Photo; George Wiehahn via Conrad Wiehahn.

Buy images here: ourdream.smugmug.com/Aerial-Photography/2022-Bilston-and-...

Qualified: 1st (pole). Race: DNF-tyre lap 1.

 

Image from the 1980 British Grand Prix weekend at Brands Hatch. Transparancy taken with Fujica ST605N and Soligor 75-260mm zoom and now scanned with an Epson V200.

 

1980GP-038a

 

All Rights Reserved © 1980 Frederick Roll ~ fjroll.com

Please do not use this image without prior permission

Pavel Srníček (10 March 1968 – 29 December 2015) was a Czech football coach and former professional player who played as a goalkeeper.

 

In a career that lasted from 1990 to 2007, he notably played in the Premier League mainly for Newcastle United. In addition, he represented Sheffield Wednesday, Portsmouth and West Ham United in England's top flight, and also played in Serie A for Brescia, Serie B with Cosenza, in Portugal for Beira-Mar, and in his native country for Baník Ostrava. After retiring, he worked as a goalkeeping coach for his own private school and for AC Sparta Prague.

 

Srníček played internationally for the Czech Republic from 1994 to 2001, earning a total of 49 caps. He was part of their squad that came runners-up at UEFA Euro 96, and was their first-choice goalkeeper when they came third at the 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup and contested UEFA Euro 2000.

 

Srníček made 30 appearances in the Czechoslovak First League for Baník Ostrava spanning the 1989–90 and 1990–91 seasons. He was signed for English side Newcastle United in January 1991 by manager Jim Smith for a fee of £350,000, being one of 23 players signed by Smith in a 2+1⁄2-year period as manager. Smith left just two months after Srníček's arrival. Under manager Ossie Ardiles, Srníček established himself as Newcastle's first-choice goalkeeper ahead of John Burridge and Tommy Wright. Srníček experienced difficulty in the first 15 games of the 1991–92 season, conceding 32 goals in that period including six in a single match against Tranmere Rovers. Ardiles replaced Srníček as goalkeeper with Wright and by February 1992, the club was merely one place from last in the Second Division. This led to Kevin Keegan replacing Ardiles as manager, with the club winning seven of their remaining 16 games, only managing to confirm their future status in the division with an away win against Leicester City on the last day of the season. The club started the 1992–93 season in the new Football League First Division, winning all of their first 11 matches. Wright lost his place as goalkeeper to Srníček after 14 games of the season. At the end of the season, Keegan's first full one as manager, the club was promoted to the Premier League with 96 points. 1993 saw the arrival of Mike Hooper from Liverpool, who competed with Srníček for the position of goalkeeper.

 

Srníček marked the opening of the 1994–95 season, a 3–1 away victory against Leicester City, by being sent off. A "terrible error" by Srníček in a September 1994 match against Liverpool resulted in a goal for Liverpool striker Ian Rush, ending Newcastle's perfect start to the season and leading Glenn Moore of The Independent to question how much longer the goalkeeper would remain in the first team.

 

During Srníček's league suspension in 1995, former Reading man Shaka Hislop assumed position as the team's goalkeeper. Later an injury to Hislop enabled Srníček to return to the first team, upon which he entered into an impressive run of form. He was named man of the match in a December 1995 match against Everton, his team winning 1–0. During the 1990s, Srníček became the longest-serving foreign Newcastle player, passing the time spent at the club by Chilean brothers George and Ted Robledo.

 

Srníček played in the UEFA Cup, making a "vital save" from Amara Traoré and keeping a clean sheet as Newcastle beat Metz 2–0 in a December 1996 match in Newcastle, to qualify for the quarter finals of the competition.

 

Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the first level of the English football league system, as of the 2023–24 season. Since the formation of the club in 1892, when Newcastle East End absorbed the assets of Newcastle West End to become Newcastle United, the club has played its home matches at St James' Park. Located in the centre of Newcastle, it currently has a capacity of 52,305.

 

The club has been a member of the Premier League for all but three years of the competition's history, spending 91 seasons in the top flight as of May 2023, and has never dropped below English football's second tier since joining the Football League in 1893. Newcastle have won four League titles, six FA Cups and an FA Charity Shield, as well as the 1968–69 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the ninth-highest total of trophies won by an English club. The club's most successful period was between 1904 and 1910, when they won an FA Cup and three of their League titles. Their last major domestic trophy was in 1955. More recently the club have been League or FA Cup runners-up on four occasions in the 1990s. Newcastle were relegated in 2009, and again in 2016. The club won promotion at the first time of asking each time, returning to the Premier League, as Championship winners, in 2010 and 2017. In October 2021, a consortium led by the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, became majority owners of Newcastle United.

 

The team's traditional kit colours are black-and-white striped shirts, black shorts and black or white socks. Their crest has elements of the city coat of arms, which features two grey hippocamps. Before each home game, the team enters the field to "Going Home", with "Blaydon Races" also being sung during games. The 2005 film Goal! featured Newcastle United, and many signings mentioned the influence the film had on them.

 

The history of Newcastle United Football Club, an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England, covers the club's entire history from its formation to the present day. Formed by a merger between Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End to become 'United' in 1892, the club was elected to the Football League, which they entered in 1893.

 

Newcastle are England's 9th most successful club of all time. They have been English champions four times (in 1905, 1907, 1909, 1927) and FA Cup winners six times (in 1910, 1924, 1932, 1951, 1952, 1955). The club have also won the 1909 Charity Shield, the 1968–69 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, and the 2006 Intertoto Cup. Newcastle have reached the League Cup final twice, finishing runners-up in both years ( 1976 and 2023). They have played in England's top league from 1898–1934, 1948–61, 1965–78, 1984–89, 1993–2009, 2010–2016, and 2017–present, playing in the second tier at all other times.

 

The first record of football being played on Tyneside dates from 3 March 1877 at Elswick Rugby Club. Later that year, Newcastle's first association football club, Tyne Association, was formed. The origins of Newcastle United Football Club itself can be traced back to the formation of a football club by the Stanley Cricket Club of Byker in November 1881. They won their first match 5–0 against Elswick Leather Works 2nd XI. The team was renamed Newcastle East End F.C. in October 1882, to avoid confusion with the cricket club in Stanley, County Durham.

 

Shortly after this, another Byker side, Rosewood FC, merged with East End to form an even stronger side. Meanwhile, across the city, West End Cricket Club began to take an interest in football and in August 1882, they formed Newcastle West End F.C. West End played their early football on their cricket pitch, but in May 1886, the club moved into St James' Park. The two clubs became rivals in the Northern League. In 1889, Newcastle East End became a professional team, before becoming a limited company the following March.

 

West End soon became the city's premier club. East End were anxious not to be left behind and lured Tom Watson into becoming the club secretary/manager in the close season of 1888 and from that point, never looked back; Watson made several good signings, especially from Scotland, and the Heaton club went from strength to strength, while West End's fortunes slipped dramatically.

 

The region's first league competition was formed in 1889 and the FA Cup began to cause interest. Ambitious East End turned professional in 1889, a huge step for a local club, and in March 1890, they made an even more adventurous move by becoming a limited company with capital of 1,000 pounds in ten shilling notes. During the spring of 1892, in a season during which their results were at an all-time low, and in which they had lost to their bitter rivals, East End, five times, West End found themselves in serious trouble. They approached East End with a view to a take over, the directors having decided that the club could no longer continue.

 

What actually happened was that West End wound up, while some of its players and most of its backroom staff joined East End. East End also took over the lease on St. James' Park in May 1892.

 

With only one senior club in the city for fans to support, development of the club was much more rapid. Despite being refused entry to the Football League's First Division at the start of the 1892–93 season, they were invited to play in their new Second Division. However, with no big names playing in the Second Division, they turned down the offer and remained in the Northern League, stating "gates would not meet the heavy expenses incurred for travelling". In a bid to start drawing larger crowds, Newcastle East End decided to adopt a new name in recognition of the merger. Suggested names included Newcastle F.C., Newcastle Rangers, Newcastle City and City of Newcastle, but Newcastle United was decided upon on 9 December 1892, to signify the unification of the two teams. The name change was accepted by the Football Association on 22 December, but the club was not legally constituted as Newcastle United Football Club Co. Ltd. until 6 September 1895. At the start of the 1893–94 season, Newcastle United were once again refused entry to the First Division and so joined the Second Division, along with Liverpool and Woolwich Arsenal. They played their first competitive match in the division that September against Woolwich Arsenal, with a score of 2–2.

 

Turnstile numbers were still low, and the incensed club published a statement claiming "The Newcastle public do not deserve to be catered for as far as professional football is concerned". However, eventually figures picked up by 1895–96, when 14,000 fans watched the team play Bury. That season Frank Watt became secretary of the club, and he was instrumental in promotion to the First Division for the 1898–99 season. However, they lost their first game 4–2 at home to Wolves and finished their first season in thirteenth place.

 

In 1903–04, the club built up a promising squad of players, and went on to dominate English football for almost a decade, the team known for their "artistic play, combining team-work and quick, short passing". Newcastle started to purchase talented players, especially from Scotland, and soon had a squad to rival all of England. With players like Colin Veitch, Jackie Rutherford, Jimmy Lawrence and Albert Shepherd, Newcastle had a team of international talent. Bill McCracken, Jimmy Howie, Peter McWilliam and Andy Aitken were also household names in their day. Long after his retirement, defender Peter McWilliam said "The Newcastle team of the 1900s would give any modern side a two goal start and beat them, and further more, beat them at a trot".

 

Newcastle United went on to win the League on three occasions during the 1900s: in 1904–05, 1906–07 and 1908–09. Newcastle reached five FA Cup finals in the years leading up to World War I. In 1904–05, they nearly did the double, losing to Aston Villa in the 1905 FA Cup Final. They were beaten again the following year by Everton in the 1906 FA Cup Final. They reached the final again in 1908 where they lost to Wolves. In 1908 the team suffered a record 9–1 home defeat to local rivals Sunderland in the league but still won that season's league title. They finally won the FA Cup in 1910 when they beat Barnsley in the final. They lost again the following year in the final against Bradford City.

 

The team returned to the FA Cup final in 1924, in the second final held at the then new Wembley Stadium. They defeated Aston Villa, winning the club's second FA Cup.Three years later they won the First Division championship a fourth time in 1926–27. Record signing & Scottish international centre-forward Hughie Gallacher, one of the most prolific goal scorers in the club's history, captained the championship-winning team. Other key players in this period were Neil Harris, Stan Seymour and Frank Hudspeth. Seymour was to become an influential figure for the next 40 years as player, manager and director.

 

In 1930, Newcastle United came close to relegation, and at the end of the season Gallacher left the club for Chelsea, and at the same time Andy Cunningham became the club's first team manager. In 1931–32, the club won the FA Cup a third time in the infamous 'Over the Line' final. United won the game 2–1 after scoring a goal following a cross from Jimmy Richardson which appeared to be hit from out of play - over the line. There were no action replays then and the referee allowed the goal, a controversial talking point in FA Cup history.

 

Newcastle boasted master players like Sam Weaver and Jack Allen, as well as the first player-manager in the top division in Scottish international Andy Cunningham. But at the end of the 1933–34 season, the team were relegated to the Second Division after 32 seasons in the First. Cunningham left as manager and Tom Mather took over. Amazingly in the same season as they fell into the Second Division, United defeated Liverpool 9–2 and Everton 7–3 within the space of a week.

 

The club found it difficult to adjust to the Second Division and were nearly further relegated in the 1937–38 season, when they were spared on goal averages.

 

When World War II broke in 1939, Newcastle had a chance to regroup, and in the War period, they brought in Jackie Milburn, Tommy Walker and Bobby Cowell.

 

Newcastle United won no Wartime League trophies, but Jackie Milburn made his debut in 1943 in a "Stripes vs Blues" match. Milburn's side was losing at half-time 3–0, but following a switch from midfielder to centre forward, he scored 6 goals to help them win the match 9–3. Jackie went on to score 38 goals in the next 3 years of the league's life.

 

By the time peace was restored in 1945, Seymour was at the forefront of Newcastle's affairs, manager in all but name. He ensured that the Magpies possessed an entertaining eleven full of stars, a mix of home-grown talent like Jackie Milburn, Bobby Cowell and Ernie Taylor, as well as big signings in the shape of George Robledo, Bobby Mitchell, Joe Harvey, Len Shackleton and Frank Brennan.

 

Newcastle spent the first couple of years post-war in the Second Division. Crowds were extremely high after the return to football, and in 1946 Newcastle recorded the joint-highest victory in English League Football history, defeating Newport County 13–0. Len Shackleton, playing his debut in that match, scored 6 goals in the match, another record for Newcastle United.

 

Newcastle returned to the First Division in double of the time. Promotion was achieved in 1948 in front of vast crowds. An average of almost 57,000 at every home game saw United's fixtures that year, a national record for years to come. That was just the start of another period of success.

 

During the Fifties decade United lifted the FA Cup trophy on three occasions within a five-year period. In 1951 they defeated Blackpool 2–0, a year later Arsenal were beaten 1–0 and in 1955 United crushed Manchester City 3–1. The Magpies were known in every corner of the country, and so were their players; 'Wor Jackie' Milburn and Bobby 'Dazzler' Mitchell the pick of a side that was renowned the nation over. Other players of this time were Frank Brennan (like Mitchell a Scot), Ivor Broadis, Len White and Welshman Ivor Allchurch.

 

Despite having quality players throughout the era, stars like Allchurch, White and George Eastham during the latter years of the decade, United slipped from the First Division in 1961 under the controversial management of ex-Manchester United star, Charlie Mitten. It was a huge blow to the club.

 

An old war-horse returned to revitalise the Magpies in the shape of Joe Harvey, who had skippered the club to much of their post-war success. He teamed up with Stan Seymour to rebuild United and the Black'n'Whites returned to the elite as Second Division Champions in 1965. United then became very much an unpredictable side, always capable of defeating the best, but never quite realising their huge potential until very recently.

 

Joe Harvey's side qualified for Europe for the first time in 1968 and stunned everyone the following year by lifting the Inter Cities Fairs Cup; the forerunner of the UEFA Cup. United possessed a solid eleven and Newcastle's tradition of fielding a famous Number 9 at centre-forward since earliest years continued as big Welshman Wyn Davies was prominent along with the likes of Pop Robson, Bobby Moncur and Frank Clark.

 

In the years that followed European success, manager Harvey brought in a string of talented entertainers who thrilled the Gallowgate crowd. Pleasers like Jimmy Smith, Tony Green and Terry Hibbitt. And especially a new centre-forward by the name of Malcolm Macdonald.

 

Nicknamed 'Supermac', Macdonald was one of United's greatest hero figures. Brash, arrogant and devastating in front of goal, he led United's attack to Wembley in 1974, against Liverpool in the FA Cup. But the Magpies failed to bring the trophy back to Tyneside, and a complete lack of success in any of the competitions the next season resulted in Joe Harvey being sacked in mid-1975.

 

Blackburn manager Gordon Lee was appointed to replace Harvey, and despite a mediocre league campaign in 1975–76, led the club to its first League Cup final, which ended in defeat by Manchester City. Despite Macdonald controversially being sold to Arsenal for a cut price deal, the following season saw United's best League campaign for years, and by Christmas the club looked to have an outside chance of winning the title. However, Lee walked out on the club to take over at Everton at the start of 1977, and inexperienced coach Richard Dinnis was put in charge of the team after the players demanded that he be given the job. United's form initially remained quite consistent under Dinnis, and they secured 5th place and a UEFA Cup spot at the end of the season. However, the team totally fell apart the following season, and Dinnis was sacked after a run of ten straight League defeats and a thumping UEFA Cup exit at the hands of French team SC Bastia. Bill McGarry took over as manager, but was powerless to prevent United from being relegated in statistically their worst season ever. The only mercy they had was Leicester City's terrible goal difference preventing United from finishing bottom of the table.

 

McGarry remained in charge of the club, but only managed two midtable finishes before being sacked in the wake of an uninspiring start to the 1980–81 season, and it was his successor Arthur Cox who steered United back again to the First Division with ex England captain Kevin Keegan leading the attack, having joined the Magpies in a sensational deal in 1982.

 

The football inspired by Keegan captivated Tyneside and United stormed into the top division in a style only bettered by Kevin's own brand of football when he returned to the club as manager a decade later. Cox had also signed young winger Chris Waddle out of non-league football, as well as young striker Peter Beardsley, Liverpool midfielder Terry McDermott and former Manchester United midfielder David McCreery. The club was rocked however when Cox resigned after the board refused to offer him an improved contract in the aftermath of promotion, and, surprisingly, accepted an offer to take charge of Derby County - who had been relegated from the Second Division.

 

One of English footballs greatest talents, Paul Gascoigne or 'Gazza', emerged as an exciting 18-year-old midfielder in 1985-86, under Newcastle's next manager Jack Charlton, who left after only one season despite Newcastle achieving a secure mid-table finish on their return to the First Division. His successor was former player Willie McFaul. Newcastle consolidated their place in Division One but then a period of selling their best players (Beardsley to Liverpool, and Waddle and eventually Gascoigne both to Tottenham), rocked the club and led to supporter unrest, as did a share-war for control of the boardroom. The effect of this on the pitch soon proved evident, as McFaul was sacked after a dismal start to the 1988–89 season, and new boss Jim Smith was unable to turn Newcastle around, resulting in them finishing at the foot of the First Division in 1989 and dropping back into the Second Division.

 

Smith then signed Portsmouth striker Mick Quinn and Newcastle began the 1989–90 season on a high note, beating promotion favourites Leeds United 5–2 on the opening day with Quinn scoring four goals, and Newcastle appeared to be on the path to a revival. However, they missed out on automatic promotion by one place, before enduring a humiliating play-off exit at the hands of local rivals Sunderland. The intensifying boardroom battle soon took its toll on the club, and Smith resigned early in the following season with the side stuck in mid-table. Ossie Ardiles became the club's new manager, and despite being initially being the club's most popular manager since Joe Harvey, Newcastle dropped to the bottom of the Second Division in October 1991. Results failed to improve, despite the acquisition of a new striker in David Kelly and the efforts of promising young players including Steve Howey, Steve Watson and Gavin Peacock, and in February 1992 Ardiles was sacked. Despite being the best-supported side in the division and frequently still managing to pull in crowds of more than 20,000, Newcastle were also millions of pounds in debt and faced with the real prospect of third-tier football for the first time ever. A saviour was needed, and in came new chairman John Hall, who offered the manager's job to Kevin Keegan. Despite having vowed never to enter management following his retirement as a player, Keegan accepted the offer to manage Newcastle. His first task was to deliver Second Division survival.

 

Kevin Keegan returned as manager in the 1991–92 season, and survived relegation from the Second Division. The club's finances were transformed, with Hall aiming to put Newcastle among Europe's biggest clubs, and signings like Rob Lee and Andy Cole helped Newcastle to promotion the following season, 1992–93, as champions of the new First Division. The finish also secured qualification for the 1993–94 UEFA Cup upon return to the top flight in the 1993–94 Premier League season.

 

St James' Park was redeveloped during this time into an all-seated stadium with a capacity of 36,000. This increased to 52,000 in the late 1990s, after the rejection of Hall's proposal to build a larger stadium at Castle Leazes.

 

Keegan stunned fans and critics alike in 1995 when prolific striker Andy Cole was sold to Manchester United in exchange for £6 million and midfielder Keith Gillespie, leaving many to blame the sale to have affected Newcastle's title chances for the 1994–95 season, in which they finished sixth. The club, however, continued to build up a reputation for playing attacking football under Keegan. In the 1995–96 season, high-profile foreign stars David Ginola and Faustino Asprilla, in addition to British players Peter Beardsley and striker Les Ferdinand, guided the team to a second-place finish. During the 1996–97 season, Keegan made one signing, securing the services of England striker Alan Shearer for a then-world record transfer fee of £15 million to produce a shrewd partnership with Les Ferdinand, and claim a 5–0 victory over title rivals Manchester United. whilst remaining in contention to win the league.

 

With the team having failed to win any trophies under his reign, Keegan resigned as manager on 8 January 1997, saying, "I feel that I have taken the club as far as I can."

 

Kenny Dalglish replaced Keegan as manager, and maintained the club's good form through to the end of the season, finishing second. In the 1997–98 season, Les Ferdinand and David Ginola both left the club, whilst Alan Shearer broke his ankle in a pre-season friendly, keeping him out for the first half of the season. Dalglish signed Ian Rush, John Barnes, Duncan Ferguson and Stuart Pearce to bolster the squad, and achieved a 3–2 victory over Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League through a Faustino Asprilla hat-trick, but Dalglish's cautious brand of football, as opposed to the attacking style played under Keegan, did not prove successful—the club failed to progress beyond the Champions League group stage, finished 13th in the Premier League, and lost the FA Cup final to Arsenal. Dalglish began the 1998–99 season signing Nolberto Solano and Dietmar Hamann, but was soon dismissed following the club's declining form.

 

Ruud Gullit replaced him, however the club again finished the league in 13th place and again lost in the FA Cup final, this time to Manchester United F.C. Gullit resigned early in the 1999–2000 season, having fallen out with several senior players, including Alan Shearer and captain Rob Lee. Keith Gillespie later blamed Gullit's arrogance for his failure as manager of the club.

 

Ex-England manager Bobby Robson was brought in to replace Gullit in September 1999. He ensured Newcastle's survival in the Premiership, but the club remained in the bottom half of the table, finishing 11th in 1999–2000 and 2000–01. Robson, however, built up an exciting young squad, and an unlikely top four challenge emerged in 2001–02 season—Newcastle finished in fourth place.

 

Playing in the Champions League in 2002–03, Newcastle progressed to the second group stage in unlikely circumstances, beating Italian squad Juventus 1–0 along the way. United finished the 2002–03 season third in the Premier League, but lost their Champions League qualifier and played in the 2003–04 UEFA Cup instead, reaching the semi-final. In 2003–04, Newcastle finished fifth in the Premiership, lower than in previous seasons, and outside of Champions League contention.

 

Robson was then sacked following a poor start to the 2004–05 season and alleged discontent in the dressing room. In his autobiography, Robson was critical of Shepherd, claiming that while manager he was denied information regarding the players' contracts and transfer negotiations. He had previously publicly criticised the club's highly financed offer for Wayne Rooney, which the club later claimed they could not afford, stating young players were making excessive demands without first proving themselves on the pitch. He also criticised Shepherd and the club's deputy chairman Douglas Hall for their focus on the first team and St James' Park, causing them to neglect less glamorous issues, such as the training ground, youth development and talent scouts.

 

Graeme Souness replaced Robson and finished the season 14th in the league. Souness' arrival, however, was met with mixed reactions, with many expecting Robson being a hard task to improve upon, despite insisting he was aware of Sir Bobby's admiration and was ready for the role. In the January transfer window, Souness caused controversy in securing an £8 million bid for France international Jean-Alain Boumsong, who had joined Rangers for free just months before, prior to which Sir Bobby had travelled to France to review Boumsong but declined to sign him. The Stevens inquiry in 2007 documented that in this purchase Souness was accused of lack of consistency and was reviewed over the large media speculation the transfer received, but was eventually exonerated from any illegal participations. Going into 2005–06 season, despite signing several new players, including the return of Nolberto Solano from Aston Villa as well as Albert Luque from Deportivo de La Coruña for £10 million, Souness struggled with the opening games. He later blamed the state of the club's training ground for injuries suffered to players. The signing of Michael Owen (for a club record £17 million from Real Madrid) and his strike partnership with Alan Shearer produced goals at the end of 2005, but an injury caused Owen to miss the rest of the season and following a poor start to the new year, Souness was sacked in February 2006. Robbie Elliiot and Shay Given announced regret over his exit in the club's Season Review DVD but acknowledged his seeming favouritism of players and the amounting pressure on him damaged morale, whilst Alan Shearer blamed the injury crisis to first-team players.

 

Caretaker manager Glenn Roeder was issued the role of temporary first-team manager, seeing his first game against Portsmouth secure Alan Shearer's 201st goal for Newcastle United, becoming the club's all-time highest-scoring player. Roeder guided Newcastle from 15th to seventh place securing 32 league points from a possible 45 by the end of 2005–06, as well as securing a place in the UEFA Intertoto Cup and was given a two-year contract by chairman Freddy Shepherd. His appointment caused controversy, as at the time he did not hold the necessary UEFA Pro Licence to manage in the UEFA leagues and cup tournaments His role, however, was approved by UEFA who acknowledged that Roeder's diagnosis with a brain tumour in 2003 prevented him from developing his career, whilst Chairman Freddy Shepherd also fulfilled UEFA's request that he gain backing from all 19 other Premier League clubs to appoint him as manager. Alan Shearer retired at the end of the 2005–06 season scoring a record 206 goals.

 

Roeder encountered a difficult 2006–07 season, losing many players to injury, in particular Michael Owen, who had severely damaged his ligaments during the 2006 FIFA World Cup seeing him only play the final two games of the season. Newcastle won the 2006 Intertoto Cup, but a 5–1 exit to Birmingham City in the FA Cup, a round of 16 exit in the UEFA Cup and poor league results seeing a 13th-place finish led Roeder to resign in May 2007.

 

As the 2007 season drew to a close, St James Holdings Limited, the bid vehicle of billionaire businessman Mike Ashley, was reported to be in the process of buying the club. Ashley successfully acquired Sir John Hall's majority stake in the club in May 2007, leaving many to believe chairman Freddie Shepherd was set to depart after stepping down as chairman, should Ashley acquire more than 50 percent, which would see Shepherd no longer in control of the club and Ashley able to replace the board. Shepherd dismissed all speculation and proceeded to appoint ex-Bolton Wanderers boss Sam Allardyce as Newcastle manager, but eventually met with Mike Ashley and the board on 29 May. On 7 June 2007, Shepherd ended his 11 years with the club after Mike Ashley accepted his bid to buy his shares and in his role as chairman of the board, also having Shepherd advise the remaining shareholders to sell to Ashley. Ashley then announced he would be delisting the club from the London Stock Exchange upon completion of the takeover. The club officially ceased trading on the Stock Exchange as of 8 am on 18 July 2007 at 5p a share. Ashley brought in lawyer Chris Mort as the new club "deputy chairman".

 

Despite signing and building a seemingly strong squad, Sam Allardyce soon became widely unpopular with fans and players alike, and was surprisingly sacked by Ashley halfway through his first season after underwhelming results and pressure from the fans. Ashley, however, defended his decision to sack Allardyce, stating he made a mistake in not appointing his own choice of manager before the season started.

 

Kevin Keegan then made a sensational surprise return as manager. His return had an instant impact on club ticket sales as he sat with the fans, Mike Ashley and Chris Mort for the FA Cup replay 4–1 win against Stoke City. Following his return, Keegan had a disappointing first ten games back, with the club not winning a single game until his decision to include strikers Obafemi Martins, Michael Owen and Mark Viduka into a 4–3–3 formation, which saw the club back on goal-scoring and winning form and eventually finishing 12th in 2007–08. In May Keegan met with Mike Ashley and Director of Football Dennis Wise after he had suggested Champions League qualification was out of Newcastle United's reach and expressed dissatisfaction with the board's financial backing. Ashley was battling reports that he had lost hundreds of millions of pounds in a disastrous attempt to rescue bank HBOS. The morning following, after the club's 3–0 defeat to Arsenal, rumours were circulating that Keegan had either been sacked or resigned as Newcastle boss, citing board interference and his lack of control over transfers. Keegan confirmed the reports the same week, and reportedly held unsuccessful resolution talks with Mike Ashley the following week, leading to fan fury and protests around St James' Park, and marring the club's home defeat to Hull City, with fans accusing Ashley and club executives Dennis Wise, Tony Jimenez and Derek Llambias of forcing Keegan out.

 

Following mass media coverage of Keegan's departure, the club struggled to find a replacement, with the majority of managers showing no interest in the role. Ashley released a statement to the club's fans that in fear of his and his families reputation and safety, he was placing the club for sale. It was then announced that former Nottingham Forest manager Joe Kinnear was appointed temporary manager His appointment, however, saw a backlash from fans, prompting a verbal tirade from Kinnear at the media, who questioned his decision to take the job at such a time. By the end of the year, Ashley took the club off the market claiming he was unable to find a suitable buyer.

 

In the remainder of 2008–09, Kinnear won four out of 18 matches before stepping down due to reported heart problems. Chris Hughton then took temporary charge before Alan Shearer returned to Newcastle United as manager in April with Iain Dowie as his assistant. After winning only one out of eight games, the club was relegated to the Championship for the first time since 1992. Mike Ashley then re-issued his desire to sell the club once again and issued a £100 million sale price tag.

 

Prior to the start of the 2009–10 season, Keegan's dispute with the club was resolved after a Premier League Arbitration Panel ruled that he had been misled to believe he had the final word on the club's transfer policy when in fact Director of Football Dennis Wise had been handed such control. The signings of Xisco and Nacho González were ruled to have been made without the manager's approval; with González, Dennis Wise signed him only after viewing him off of YouTube. Wise and Derek Llambias were ruled to have deliberately misled the media to believe Keegan had the final say, which amounted to constructive dismissal. Keegan was awarded £2 million in compensation and re-offered his job as Newcastle United manager under fresh new terms, though in response to the offer, he stated the fans had "had enough" for the time being and declined. He stated in 2013 he would consider a return should Mike Ashley leave the club.

 

Chris Hughton was appointed full-time manager early in the 2009–10 season. The club dominated the Championship, winning 30 games, drawing 12 and losing only four, scoring a total of 90 goals and finishing top of the league with 102 points, thus re-gaining Premier League status at the first attempt.

 

Beginning 2010–11, Hughton remained on course to secure survival from relegation with the club's first win at the Emirates over Arsenal, and a memorable 5–1 defeat over Sunderland. However, fury once again was caused by the board, as the club controversially sacked Chris Hughton after a 3–1 defeat to West Bromwich Albion on 6 December 2010. Critics players and fans alike were shocked by Hughton's dismissal, leading to protests prior to the club's game against Liverpool in a bid to thank him for his work and support. Alan Pardew was then announced as being appointed manager on a five-and-a-half-year contract, with the club announcing they wanted a manager with more experience. Pardew stated he had nothing but respect for Chris Hughton and acknowledged the fact that other managers questioned his appointment. He secured his first win on his debut as manager with a 3–1 win over Liverpool On 31 January 2011, Newcastle sold striker Andy Carroll to Liverpool for a club record of £35 million. The sale of a young player at a high value proved controversial for Liverpool, with Alan Shearer ridiculing the price Liverpool paid as well as expressing sorrow at Newcastle for losing Carroll. Carroll himself stated that he did not want to leave the club but was forced out by the club's directors after Liverpool's final offer of £35 million; the board responded that Carroll had previously handed in a transfer request. Pardew said he was disappointed to lose Carroll, but pledged to invest in the club's summer transfer window. The remainder of the season saw Leon Best score a hat-trick on his debut in a 5–0 defeat of West Ham United, a memorable 4–4 comeback against Arsenal, and a 4–1 defeat of Wolverhampton Wanderers, eventually finishing 12th in the league.

 

Entering 2011–12, Pardew was reportedly denied the £35 million from the sale of Andy Carroll for transfers and told to sell players to raise funds, having claimed he had been assured the finances upon Carroll's departure. Kevin Keegan had previously stated Alan Pardew should not have expected the money following his issues with the board in 2008. The club signed many French-speaking players in the transfer window, including Yohan Cabaye, Mathieu Debuchy, Sylvain Marveaux and Demba Ba. and with impressive results throughout the season, Newcastle finished fifth.

 

In the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League, Newcastle reached the quarter-finals, and in the January transfer window, the French revolution continued into the new year, with Moussa Sissoko and Yoan Gouffran joining the squad. The team, however, had a poor 2012–13 Premier League and finished 16th in the Premier League.

 

Beginning the 2013–14 season, in a surprise move Joe Kinnear returned to the club as Director of Football, instantly causing fan fury following his outburst that he was "more intelligent" than the fans and critics, as well as mispronouncing various players names during a radio interview. However, he resigned after just eight months on the job following further critique for managing to sign only two players on loan—Loïc Rémy and Luuk de Jong—throughout the season's summer and January transfer windows, as well selling Yohan Cabaye to Paris Saint-Germain for £20 million, considered to be one of the most influential players at the time. Following the lack of transfer activity, Mike Ashley once again faced a fan revolt, with protests being launched at him to sell the club, and entered a dispute with several media titles whom the club banned from Newcastle United media facilities, press conferences and player interviews, declaring stories reported were intensely exaggerated and aimed only to damage Ashley's image further. Throughout the season, the club remained on course to ensure a top half finish, notably defeating Manchester United at Old Trafford for the first time since 1972. Nonetheless, the team struggled for goals following the sale of Cabaye. Further dismay upon the season was caused when Pardew was banned for seven matches and fined £100,000 for an assault on Hull City midfielder David Meyler. The club then encountered a poor run of form, losing eight out of ten games and finishing the season tenth in the league, though the club confirmed Alan Pardew would stay on.

 

The opening eight games of the 2014–15 season proved disappointing, with the club failing to secure a win. After the dip in form, however, the club had an emphatic resurgence, seeing a five-game unbeaten run whilst also surprising League Cup holders Manchester City with a 2–0 win and progressing to the quarter-finals of the tournament. Pardew, however, resigned from the club on 30 December 2014 following immense pressure from fans calling for his departure, with many posters at games designed with the Sports Direct logo advertising a website demanding his resignation. Pardew admitted in the months leading up to his departure that protests from the fans were affecting his family and was subsequently feeling unhappy at the club. He was replaced by his assistant manager John Carver, though the team subsequently earned just 13 points out of a possible 50, surviving relegation on the final day of the season with a victory over West Ham, Carver was dismissed before the club's pre-season for 2016 began. The club paid tribute to player Jonás Gutiérrez following his successful recovery from testicular cancer to resume his playing career.

 

Beginning the 2015–16 season, former England F.C. Manager Steve McClaren was appointed manager, signing Georginio Wijnaldum, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Chancel Mbemba, Florian Thauvin, Henri Saivet, Jonjo Shelvey, Andros Townsend and Ivan Toney. McClaren however struggled to produce results winning 6 and drawing 6 out of 28 games, whilst exiting both the FA Cup and League Cup in the Third Round. McClaren was subsequently sacked on 11 March 2016 with critics and former players voicing their favour of the decision. Rafael Benítez was announced as McClaren's successor the same day, signing a three-year deal. Benítez recorded his first victory in 3–0 defeat of Swansea City in the Premier League on 17 April 2016 after 5 games in charge, and maintained an emphatic 5-game unbeaten streak to the end of the season. Newcastle were however relegated from the Premier League along with Aston Villa and Norwich finishing 18th place, 2 points below safety. Betting websites confirmed after the final game that the club's 5–1 defeat of Tottenham Hotspur matched the initial odds of Leicester City's 5000/1 win of the 2015–16 Premier League season.

 

Starting the 2016-17 season, Rafa Benítez signed 12 new players full-time and also acquired 5 players on loan, whilst 8 players left the club and another 12 on loan. New signings Dwight Gayle and Matt Ritchie proved popular scoring a combined total of 39 goals, finishing among the top goalscorers that season. Despite failing to improve on their dominant success in the 2009/10 championship season, the club remained in contention for the trophy throughout; threatened only by Brighton & Hove Albion Newcastle enjoyed a 3-game winning streak to the final day of the season and lifted the Football League Championship trophy on 8 May 2017 following a 3–0 win over Barnsley. Rafa Benítez denied speculation that he would leave the club following promotion to the Premier League and confirmed his commitment to the club for the foreseeable future. Shortly prior to the season's finish, the club was subject to raids by HMRC following suspicions of tax evasion. Managing Director Lee Charnley was arrested during the raid, but was later released without charge.

 

Ending the 2017-18 season, the club finished 10th in the Premier League defeating the current champions Chelsea on the final day of the season, the highest finish achieved within 4 years. Beginning the 2018–19 season, Mike Ashley again came under scrutiny following lack of major signings in the summer transfer window, with many fans accusing him of lacking interest in the club following his purchase of troubled retail chain House of Fraser for £90m. Despite the January signing of Miguel Almirón from Atlanta United FC for £21 million surpassing the club's transfer record fee of £16.8 million for Michael Owen in 2005, the club struggled throughout the season with 12 wins, 9 draws and 17 losses seeing a 13th place league table finish, whilst exiting the League Cup at the 2nd round in a 3–1 defeat of Nottingham Forest F.C and a 4th round exit of the FA Cup in a 2–0 defeat to Watford F.C. The season also saw heavy speculation regarding Rafa Benítez remaining at the club following reports he was still in negotiations following the end of the season.

 

Following fresh reports of Ashley's intention to sell the club, Sheikh Khaled Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Founder and Chairman of The Bin Zayed Group of Companies, a member of the Al Nahyan royal family of Abu Dhabi, confirmed he had agreed terms to purchase the club for £350 million. On 5 June 2019 a company named Monochrome Acquisitions Limited was registered in Nahyan's name, whilst managing director Lee Charnley applied to have four companies linked to Ashley's company St James Holdings Ltd struck off, leaving many to believe the club was on course to be sold. Talks of a takeover however stalled throughout the summer transfer window, whilst Ashley confirmed he had not received an official bid from any prospective buyer.

 

Benítez rejected a new contract offer and departed the club on 30 June 2019, accepting a move to Chinese Super League side Dalian Yifang in a £12 million deal. Ashley criticised Benítez stating unfair demands were made making it impossible for him to remain as manager. Notable player departures saw Salomón Rondón join Benitez at Dalian Yifang after returning to West Bromwich Albion F.C. from loan, whilst Ayoze Perez joined Leicester City for £30 million and Mohamed Diamé was released by Newcastle upon the expiry of his contract at the end of the 2018–19 season.

 

BBC Sport reported in July 2019 that Steve Bruce had resigned from his managerial position at Sheffield Wednesday after he earlier admitted that he had held talks with Newcastle United over their managerial vacancy. His appointment was confirmed on 17 July. Sheffield Wednesday however stated there were still outstanding legal issues with Bruce having resigned just 48 hours before, leading a report being filed to the Premier League alleging misconduct in his appointment. Newcastle United denied any wrongdoing and stated they were confident no case could be escalated. Reaction from the fans was mixed, with some feeling Bruce would not achieve the standard set by Benítez, whilst his recent lack of Premier League football and management of rival club Sunderland proved controversial. Bruce later acknowledged Benítez's popularity and stated he hoped the fans would not rush to judgement and give him time to prove himself and manager of Newcastle. Due to visa problems in China, Bruce watched his first match as manager from the stands which saw Newcastle achieve a third-place finish in the pre-season 2019 Premier League Asia Trophy following a 1–0 victory over West Ham United F.C. Bruce quickly made his first transfer, signing Joelinton from TSG 1899 Hoffenheim for £40 million, breaking the club's transfer fee record previously held by Miguel Almirón at £21 million just 6 months before, before signing French international winger Allan Saint-Maximin from OGC Nice on a permanent deal for £16.5 million, Sweden international defender Emil Krafth for £5 million, central midfielder Kyle Scott on a free signing following his departure from Chelsea, and Netherlands international defender Jetro Willems on loan from Frankfurt F.C until the end of the 2019–20 season. Bruce made his final transfer of the pre-season on deadline day by re-signing striker Andy Carroll, who had left the club over 7 years earlier. On 4 February 2020, Steve Bruce's side ended a 14-year drought by reaching the 5th round of the FA Cup they beat League One side Oxford United 2–3 in a replay thanks to a late winner from Allan Saint-Maximin in extra time.

 

From March 2020, the season was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. On 13 March, following an emergency meeting between the Premier League, The Football Association (FA), the English Football League and the FA Women's Super League, it was unanimously decided to suspend professional football in England. On 19 March, the suspension was extended indefinitely, with a restart date of 17 June announced in late May with all remaining games to be played without crowd attendance.

 

Newcastle finished the season in 13th place. Defender Danny Rose was an outspoken critic of the decision to continue the season, citing the virus was still in major circulation and accused the FA of having no concern for footballers' health. Karl Darlow has since urged players at the club to get vaccinated following his hospitalisation from complications of Covid, whilst manager Steve Bruce admitted some players had voluntarily declined the vaccination.

 

The 2020-21 season saw all matches played without crowd attendance until May 2021, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Newcastle failed to improve on the previous season, finishing 12th in the premier league and were knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round added time to Arsenal and exited the EFL Cup in the quarter-finals losing 1–0 to Brentford.

 

In April 2020, it was widely reported that a consortium consisting of Public Investment Fund, PCP Capital Partners and the Reuben Brothers, was finalising an offer to acquire Newcastle United. The proposed sale prompted concerns and criticism, such as arguments considering it sportwashing of the country's human rights record, as well as ongoing large-scale piracy of sports broadcasts in the region. However the consortium announced its withdrawal from the Newcastle deal on July 30, 2020, after multiple media reports highlighted realm as the staunch violator of human rights, and the WTO ruled that it was behind the piracy campaign using pirate-pay-service beoutQ. "With a deep appreciation for the Newcastle community and the significance of its football club, we have come to the decision to withdraw our interest in acquiring Newcastle United Football Club," the group said in its statement upon withdrawal. The group also stated that the "prolonged process" was a major factor in them pulling out. The collapse of the takeover was met with widespread criticism from Newcastle fans, with Newcastle MP Chi Onwurah accusing the Premier League of treating fans of the club with "contempt" and subsequently wrote to Masters for an explanation. Despite the consortium's withdrawal, disputes over the takeover continued. On 9 September 2020, Newcastle United released a statement claiming that the Premier League had officially rejected the takeover by the consortium and accused Masters and the Premier League board of " acting appropriately in relation to [the takeover]", while stating that the club would be considering any relevant legal action. The Premier League strongly denied this in a statement released the next day, expressing "surprise" and "disappointment" at Newcastle's statement.

 

On October 7, 2021, the Public Investment Fund, PCP Capital Partners and RB Sports & Media confirmed that they had officially completed the acquisition of Newcastle United. Governor of the investment fund Yasir bin Othman Al-Rumayyan was appointed non-executive chairman, whilst Amanda Staveley and Jamie Reuben were both appointed as directors and each held a 10% shareholding in the club.

 

The takeover led to widespread speculation that manager Steve Bruce was expected to leave the club. Although not denying the speculation that the club was keen to appoint a new manager, Staveley stated Bruce was to remain for the new owners first game against Tottenham Hotspur; his 1000th match as a football manager. However following Newcastle losing the game 3-2 and alleged discontent among the players, Bruce left the club by mutual consent. Bruce stated his sadness at leaving the club and felt Newcastle fans launched unnecessary verbal abuse at him during his time there. Interim manager Graeme Jones as well as Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta supported Bruce's claims stating the abuse he received was off putting for other managers to take the role.

 

Eddie Howe was appointed as manager on 8 November 2021. The announcement was made following reports that the club had discussed the role with him the previous week and confirmed following his attendance at the away draw to Brighton & Hove Albion. On 19 November 2021, Newcastle announced that Howe had tested positive for COVID-19 and would miss his first game in charge, which instead forced him to watch his first game as manager from a hotel room as Newcastle drew 3–3 with Brentford on 20 November.

 

Lee Charnley, who acted as Managing Director under Ashley's ownership, left the club on 19 November 2021 following a six-week handover period. His departure was the final of Mike Ashley's hierarchy, with Staveley stating the club was undergoing a "formal process" to appoint a new figure to replace the role.

 

Eddie Howe had to wait until 4 December 2021 for his first win as Newcastle manager in a 1–0 win against Burnley, which was also the first win since the takeover happened. Howe then made five signings in the first January transfer window under the new ownership which included a marquee singing in Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimarães from Olympique Lyonnais. The transfer window and the players that were already there that Howe improved helped Newcastle to go on a 9-game unbeaten run in the Premier League to get them 10 points clear from the relegation zone and increasing the chance of guaranteeing survival. After Newcastle's 1–0 win against Crystal Palace, this was the first time the club had managed to win 6 home games in a row since 2004 when Sir Bobby Robson was in charge. Newcastle finished in 11th place after a run of 12 wins in their final 18 games, and became the first team in Premier League history to avoid relegation after not winning any of the first 14 games they played.

 

On 30 May 2022, the club announced they had reached an agreement of a compensation fee with Brighton & Hove Albion to appoint Dan Ashworth as the new Sporting Director, the appointment was confirmed on 6 June 2022. On 15 July 2022, the club brought in Darren Eales, from MLS side Atlanta United, as the club's new Chief Executive Officer - acting as a "key member of the club's leadership structure".

 

Newcastle United was set up as a private company limited by shares on 6 September 1895. However, by the 1930s, ownership of the company was dominated by a small number of individuals: Alderman William McKeag, George and Robert Rutherford, and William Westwood, 1st Baron Westwood. George Stanley Seymour was allocated some shares when he joined the board in 1938.

 

By the second half of the 20th century, these shareholdings had passed to the next generation: Gordon McKeag, Robert James Rutherford, Stan Seymour Jr. and William Westwood, 2nd Baron Westwood. The Magpie Group led by Sir John Hall built up a large shareholding in the club and then took control in 1992. In 2007, St James Holdings Limited, the bid vehicle of billionaire businessman Mike Ashley, secured control of the club and in 2021, the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, PCP Capital Partners and RB Sports & Media confirmed that they had acquired ownership of the club.

  

www.starnow.co.uk/christopherw33618

 

2016 Reel www.starnow.co.uk/media/623368

 

2015 Reel www.starnow.co.uk/media/500618

 

Crew CV crew.mandy.com/uk/crew/profile/chris-christopher-wilson

 

Green Service Uniform

From 1954 to 2010, the main service uniform was the green service uniform or "class A". The Army reviewed various ideas in the late 1940s in order to create a distinctive uniform. Many civilian workers were mistaken for Army personnel because of massive use of army surplus clothing after World War II.

 

US Army green service uniform for officers, as worn by former Army Chief of Staff General Peter Schoomaker.

Army commissions reviewed various factors of design, durability and appearance. Blue was considered because of its acceptance in men's clothing, but it would then have been too difficult to distinguish it from Air Force and Navy service uniforms and the Marine Corps and Navy dress uniforms. Several colors were reviewed, and finally green (shade 44) was designated the basic color for new dress uniforms.

 

The green uniform has been worn with minor variations since its official adoption in 1954. The green color was adopted in order to provide a color which was more military, and distinct from various uniforms of civilian service workers. It features a jacket with four buttons. Enlisted soldiers wear insignia denoting their branch of service on their collars. Officers wear two sets of insignia consisting of the letters "US" on their collars and their branch on their lapels.

 

Proficiency badges, such as the marksman's badge, are worn on the upper left pocket flap. Above this are the ribbons for medals and commendations which have been earned for various actions, duties, and training. Above the ribbons are qualification badges, such as the parachutist badges and combat action badge. A nametag is worn on the upper right pocket flap. Unit awards and foreign awards are worn above the right pocket, with a regimental insignia above both. Special duty badges, such as the recruiter badge, are worn on the upper two pockets of the jacket; the side on which they are worn varies by badge.

 

US Army green service uniforms for enlisted personnel. Differing shoulder patches denote various units.

 

On each shoulder of the uniform are unit patches. The left side will have the patch of the soldier's current unit assignment. The right shoulder may have the patch of a unit to which the soldier has previously been assigned while deployed to a combat zone; soldiers with multiple previous combat assignments may choose which patch to wear. Tabs indicating ranger, special forces, or sapper qualification, if applicable, are worn above the unit patch on the left shoulder. A similar "airborne" tab is worn immediately above the unit patch if the command is designated as airborne, irrespective of whether the individual soldier is qualified as a paratrooper. As the shoulder sleeve insignia generally indicates merely the general-officer command to which the soldier is assigned, the soldier's immediate battalion or intermediate-level command may be indicated by distinctive unit insignia of metal and enamel, on the soldier's epaulets.

 

Issuance of the Army green service uniform was halted in 2010, and the uniform was phased out in 2015, and was completely replaced by the blue ASU. The green service uniform was laid to rest after 61 years of approved wear, the vast majority of that stretch as the service uniform that defined the Army at the time.

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Qualified 3rd for Le Mans in 1983, retired after 22 hours.

The hippopotamus, hippopotamuses or hippopotami, also shortened to hippo, hippos or Hippopotamus amphibius, further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae, the other being the pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis liberiensis or Hexaprotodon liberiensis). Its name comes from the ancient Greek for "river horse" (ἱπποπόταμος).

 

After elephants and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the next largest land mammal. It is also the largest extant land artiodactyl. Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, the closest living relatives of the hippopotamids are cetaceans (whales, dolphins, porpoises, etc.), from which they diverged about 55 million years ago. Hippos are recognisable for their barrel-shaped torsos, wide-opening mouths with large canine tusks, nearly hairless bodies, pillar-like legs, and large size: adults average 1,500 kg (3,300 lb) for bulls (males) and 1,300 kg (2,900 lb) for cows (females). Despite its stocky shape and short legs, it is capable of running 30 km/h (19 mph) over short distances.

 

Hippos inhabit rivers, lakes, and mangrove swamps. Territorial bulls each preside over a stretch of water and a group of five to thirty cows and calves. Mating and birth both occur in the water. During the day, hippos remain cool by staying in water or mud, emerging at dusk to graze on grasses. While hippos rest near each other in the water, grazing is a solitary activity and hippos typically do not display territorial behaviour on land. Hippos are among the most dangerous animals in the world due to their aggressive and unpredictable nature. They are threatened by habitat loss and poaching for their meat and ivory (canine teeth).

 

Etymology

The Latin word hippopotamus is derived from the ancient Greek ἱπποπόταμος (hippopótamos), from ἵππος (híppos) 'horse' and ποταμός (potamós) 'river', together meaning 'horse of the river'. In English, the plural is "hippopotamuses", but "hippopotami" is also used.

 

Taxonomy and origins

Classification

The modern hippopotamus and the pygmy hippopotamus are the only living members of the family Hippopotamidae. Some taxonomists place hippos and anthracotheres in the superfamily Anthracotheroidea. Hippopotamidae are classified along with other even-toed ungulates in the order Artiodactyla.

  

Detail of the head

Five subspecies of hippos have been described based on morphological differences in their skulls as well as differences in geographical range:

 

H. a. amphibius – (the nominate subspecies) ranges from Gambia east to Ethiopia and then south to Mozambique and historically ranged as far north as Egypt; its skull is distinguished by a moderately reduced preorbital region, a bulging dorsal surface, elongated mandibular symphysis and larger chewing teeth.

H. a. kiboko – found in Kenya and Somalia; was noted to be smaller and more lightly coloured than other hippos with wider nostrils, somewhat longer snout and more rounded and relatively raised orbits with the space between them being incurved.

H. a. capensis – found in Zambia and South Africa; distinguished by wider orbits.

H. a. tschadensis – ranges between Chad and Niger; featured a slightly shorter but broader face, and pronounced, forward-facing orbits.

H. a. constrictus – ranged from the southern Democratic Republic of Congo to Angola and Namibia; skull characterised by a thicker preorbital region, shorter snout, flatter dorsal surface, reduced mandibular symphysis and smaller chewing teeth.

The suggested subspecies above were never widely used or validated by field biologists; the described morphological differences were small enough that they could have resulted from simple variation in nonrepresentative samples. A study examining mitochondrial DNA from skin biopsies taken from 13 sampling locations found "low, but significant, genetic differentiation" among H. a. amphibius, H. a. capensis, and H. a. kiboko. Neither H. a. tschadensis nor H. a. constrictus have been tested.

 

Evolution

Until 1909, naturalists classified hippos together with pigs based on molar patterns. Several lines of evidence, first from blood proteins, then from molecular systematics and DNA and the fossil record, show their closest living relatives are cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises). The common ancestor of hippos and whales branched off from Ruminantia and the rest of the even-toed ungulates; the cetacean and hippo lineages split soon afterwards.

 

Artiodactyla

Tylopoda

Artiofabula

Suina

Cetruminantia

Ruminantia

Whippomorpha

Hippopotamidae

Cetacea

  

Anthracotherium magnum from the Oligocene of Europe

The most recent theory of the origins of Hippopotamidae suggests hippos and whales shared a common semiaquatic ancestor that branched off from other artiodactyls around 60 million years ago. This hypothesised ancestral group likely split into two branches again around 54 million years ago.

 

One branch would evolve into cetaceans, possibly beginning about 52 million years ago, with the protowhale Pakicetus and other early whale ancestors collectively known as Archaeoceti. This group eventually underwent aquatic adaptation into the completely aquatic cetaceans. The other branch became the anthracotheres, a large family of four-legged beasts, the earliest of which in the late Eocene would have resembled skinny hippos with comparatively smaller, narrower heads. All branches of the anthracotheres, except that which evolved into Hippopotamidae, became extinct during the Pliocene, leaving no descendants.

 

A rough evolutionary lineage of the hippo can thus be traced from Eocene and Oligocene species: from Anthracotherium and Elomeryx to the Miocene species Merycopotamus and Libycosaurus and finally the very latest anthracotheres in the Pliocene. These groups lived across Eurasia and Africa. The discovery of Epirigenys in East Africa, which was likely a descent of Asian anthracotheres and a sister taxon to Hippopotamidae, suggests that hippo ancestors entered Africa from Asia around 35 million years ago. An early hippopotamid is the genus Kenyapotamus, which lived in Africa from 15 to 9 million years ago. Hippopotamid species would spread across Africa and Eurasia, including the modern pygmy hippo. From 7.5 to 1.8 million years ago, a possible ancestor to the modern hippo, Archaeopotamus, lived in Africa and the Middle East. The oldest records of the genus Hippopotamus date to the Pliocene (5.3-2.6 million years ago). The oldest unambiguous records of the modern H. amphibius date to the Middle Pleistocene, though there are possible Early Pleistocene records.

 

Extinct species

Three species of Malagasy hippopotamus became extinct during the Holocene on Madagascar, the last of them within the past 1,000 years. The Malagasy hippos were smaller than the modern hippo, a likely result of the process of insular dwarfism. Fossil evidence indicates many Malagasy hippos were hunted by humans, a factor in their eventual extinction. Isolated individual Malagasy hippos may have survived in remote pockets; in 1976, villagers described a living animal called the kilopilopitsofy, which may have been a Malagasy hippo.

 

Hippopotamus gorgops from the Early Pleistocene-early Middle Pleistocene of Africa and West Asia grew considerably larger than the living hippopotamus, with an estimated body mass of over 4,000 kilograms (8,800 lb). Hippopotamus antiquus ranged throughout Europe, extending as far north as Britain during the Early and Middle Pleistocene epochs, before being replaced by the modern H. amphibius in Europe during the latter part of the Middle Pleistocene. The Pleistocene also saw a number of dwarf species evolve on several Mediterranean islands, including Crete (Hippopotamus creutzburgi), Cyprus (the Cyprus dwarf hippopotamus, Hippopotamus minor), Malta (Hippopotamus melitensis), and Sicily (Hippopotamus pentlandi). Of these, the Cyprus dwarf hippo survived until the end of the Pleistocene or early Holocene. Evidence from the archaeological site Aetokremnos continues to cause debate on whether or not the species was driven to extinction, or even encountered, by man.

 

Characteristics

The hippopotamus is a megaherbivore and is exceeded in size among land animals only by elephants and some rhinoceros species. The mean adult weight is around 1,480 kg (3,260 lb) for bulls and 1,365 kg (3,009 lb) for cows. Exceptionally large males have been recorded reaching 2,660 kg (5,860 lb). Male hippos appear to continue growing throughout their lives, while females reach maximum weight at around age 25. Hippos measure 2.90 to 5.05 m (9.5 to 16.6 ft) long, including a tail of about 35 to 56 cm (1.15 to 1.84 ft) in length and 1.30 to 1.65 m (4.3 to 5.4 ft) tall at the shoulder, with males and females ranging 1.40 to 1.65 m (4.6 to 5.4 ft) and 1.30 to 1.45 m (4.3 to 4.8 ft) tall at the shoulder respectively. The species has a typical head-body length of 3.3–3.45 m (10.8–11.3 ft) and an average standing height of 1.4 m (4.6 ft) at the shoulder.

 

Hippos have barrel-shaped bodies with short tails and legs, and an hourglass-shaped skull with a long snout.  Their skeletal structures are graviportal, adapted to carrying their enormous weight, and their dense bones and low centre of gravity allows them to sink and move along the bottom of the water. Hippopotamuses have small legs (relative to other megafauna) because the water in which they live reduces the weight burden. The toes are webbed and the pelvis rests at an angle of 45 degrees.  Though chubby-looking, hippos have little fat.  The eyes, ears, and nostrils of hippos are placed high on the roof of their skulls. This allows these organs to remain above the surface while the rest of the body is submerged.  The nostrils and ears can close when underwater while nictitating membranes cover the eyes.  The vocal folds of the hippo are more horizontally positioned, much like cetaceans. Underneath are throat tissues, where vibrations are transmitted to produce underwater calls.

  

Characteristic "yawn" of a hippo

The hippo's jaw is powered by huge masseter and digastric muscles which give them large, droopy cheeks. The jaw hinge allows the animal to open its mouth at almost 180°.  A folded orbicularis oris muscle allows the hippo to attain an extreme gape without tearing any tissue. On the lower jaw, the incisors and canines grow continuously, the former reaching 40 cm (1 ft 4 in), while the latter can grow to up to 50 cm (1 ft 8 in). The lower canines are sharpened through contact with the smaller upper canines. The canines and incisors are used mainly for combat instead of feeding. Hippos rely on their flattened, horny lips to grasp and pull grasses which are then ground by the molars.  The hippo is considered to be a pseudoruminant; it has a complex three-chambered stomach, but does not "chew cud".

  

Completely submerged hippo (San Diego Zoo)

Hippo skin is 6 cm (2 in) thick across much of its body with little hair.  The animal is mostly purplish-grey or blue-black, but brownish-pink on the underside and around the eyes and ears. Their skin secretes a natural, red-coloured sunscreen substance that is sometimes referred to as "blood sweat" but is neither blood nor sweat. This secretion is initially colourless and turns red-orange within minutes, eventually becoming brown. Two highly acidic pigments have been identified in the secretions; one red (hipposudoric acid) and one orange (norhipposudoric acid), which inhibit the growth of disease-causing bacteria and their light-absorption profile peaks in the ultraviolet range, creating a sunscreen effect. Regardless of diet, all hippos secrete these pigments so food does not appear to be their source; rather, they may be synthesised from precursors such as the amino acid tyrosine. This natural sunscreen cannot prevent the animal's skin from cracking if it stays out of water too long.

 

The testes of the males do not fully descend and a scrotum is not present. In addition, the penis retracts into the body when not erect. The genitals of the female hippos are unusual in that the vagina is ridged and the vulval vestibule has two large, protruding diverticula. Both of these have an unknown function. 

 

A hippo's lifespan is typically 40 to 50 years.  Donna the Hippo was one of the oldest living hippos in captivity. She lived at the Mesker Park Zoo in Evansville, Indiana, in the US until her death in 2012 at the age of 61. The oldest hippo ever recorded was called Bertha; she had lived in the Manila Zoo in the Philippines since it first opened in 1959. When she died in 2017, her age was estimated to be 65.

 

Distribution and status

During the Middle Pleistocene to the early Late Pleistocene (~500,000–80,000 years ago) Hippopotamus amphibius was present in Europe, extending as far north as England during the Eemian (130–115,000 years ago), with fossils also known from Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Greece. The species first entered Europe between 560,000 and 460,000 years ago, while the last H. amphibius remains in Europe are dated to about 30,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence exists of its presence in the Levant, dating to less than 3,000 years ago. The species was common in Egypt's Nile region during antiquity, but it has since been driven out. According to Pliny the Elder, in his time, the best location in Egypt for capturing this animal was in the Saite nome; the animal could still be found along the Damietta branch of the Nile after the Arab Conquest in 639. Reports of the slaughter of the last hippo in Natal Province were made at the end of the 19th century. Hippos are still found in the rivers and lakes of the northern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya, north through to Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan, west to The Gambia, and south to South Africa.

 

Genetic evidence suggests common hippos in Africa experienced a marked population expansion during or after the Pleistocene, attributed to an increase in water bodies at the end of the era. These findings have important conservation implications, as hippo populations across the continent are currently threatened by loss of access to fresh water. Hippos are also subject to unregulated hunting and poaching. The species is included in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meaning international export/import (including in parts and derivatives) requires CITES documentation to be obtained and presented to border authorities.

 

As of 2017, the IUCN Red List drawn up by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the species as vulnerable, with a stable population estimated between 115,000 and 130,000 animals. The hippo population has declined most dramatically in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. By 2005, the population in Virunga National Park had dropped to 800 or 900 from around 29,000 in the mid-1970s. This decline is attributed to the disruptions caused by the Second Congo War. The poachers are believed to be Mai-Mai rebels, underpaid Congolese soldiers, and local militia groups. Reasons for poaching include the belief hippos are harmful to society, as well as financial gain. As of 2016, the Virunga hippo population appears to have increased again, possibly due to better protection from park rangers, who have worked with local fishermen. The sale of hippo meat is illegal, but black-market sales are difficult for Virunga National Park officers to track. Hippo meat is highly valued in some areas of central Africa and the teeth may be used as a replacement for elephant ivory.

 

A population of hippos exists in Colombia, descended from captive individuals that escaped from Pablo Escobar's estate after his death in 1993. Their numbers grew to 100 by the 2020s and ecologists believe the population should be eradicated, as they are breeding rapidly and are an increasing menace to humans and the environment. Attempts to control them include sterilisation and culling.

 

Behaviour and ecology

Hippos are semiaquatic and require enough water to immerse in, while being close to grass. Like most herbivores, hippos will consume a variety of plants if presented with them in captivity, but their diet in nature consists almost entirely of grass, with only minimal consumption of aquatic plants. They prefer relatively still waters with gently sloping shores, though male hippos may also be found in very small numbers in more rapid waters with rocky slopes.  Hippos mostly live in freshwater habitat, but can be found in estuaries. Despite being semiaquatic, an adult hippo is not a particularly good swimmer, nor can it float. It rarely enters deep water; when it does, the animal moves by bouncing off the bottom. An adult hippo surfaces every four to six minutes, while young need to breathe every two to three minutes.

 

Hippos spend most the day in water to stay cool and hydrated. Just before night begins, they leave the water to forage on land. Hippos usually trot to move quickly on land and can gallop at 30 km/h (19 mph) when needed. They are incapable of jumping but can walk up steep banks. A hippo will travel 3–5 km (1.9–3.1 mi) per night, eating around 40 kg (88 lb) of grass. By dawn, they are back in the water. The hippopotamus sleeps with both hemispheres of the brain resting, as in all land mammals, and usually sleeps on land or in water with the nostrils exposed. Despite this, it may be capable of sleeping while submerged, intermittently surfacing to breathe without waking. They appear to transition between different phases of sleep more quickly than other mammals.

 

Because of their size and their habit of taking the same paths to feed, hippos can have a significant impact on the land across which they walk, keeping the land clear of vegetation and depressing the ground. Over prolonged periods, hippos can divert the paths of swamps and channels. By defecating in the water, the animals also appear to pass on microbes from their gut, affecting the biogeochemical cycle. On occasion, hippos have been filmed eating carrion, usually near the water. There are other reports of meat-eating and even cannibalism and predation. Hippos' stomach anatomy lacks adaptions to carnivory and meat-eating is likely caused by lack of nutrients or just an abnormal behaviour.

 

Social life

It is challenging to study the interaction of bulls and cows because hippos are not sexually dimorphic, so cows and young bulls are almost indistinguishable in the field. Hippo pods fluctuate but can contain over 100 hippos. Although they lie close together, adults develop almost no social bonds. Males establish territories in water but not land, and these may range 250–500 m (270–550 yd) in lakes and 50–100 m (55–109 yd) in rivers. Territories are abandoned when the water dries up. The bull has breeding access to all the cows in his territory. Younger bachelors are allowed to stay as long as they defer to him. A younger male may challenge the old bull for control of the territory. Within the pods, the hippos tend to segregate by sex and status. Bachelor males lounge near other bachelors, females with other females, and the territorial male is on his own. When hippos emerge from the water to graze, they do so individually.

  

Male hippos fighting

Hippos engage in "muck-spreading" which involves defecating while spinning their tails to distribute the faeces over a greater area. Muck-spreading occurs both on land and in water and its function is not well understood. It is unlikely to serve a territorial function, as the animals only establish territories in the water. They may be used as trails between the water and grazing areas.  "Yawning" serves as a threat display. When fighting, bulls use their incisors to block each other's attacks and their large canines as offensive weapons.  When hippos become over-populated or a habitat shrinks, bulls sometimes attempt infanticide, but this behaviour is not common under normal conditions.

 

The most common hippo vocalisation is the "wheeze honk", which can travel over long distances in air. This call starts as a high-pitched squeal followed by a deeper, resonant call.  The animals can recognise the calls of other individuals. Hippos are more likely to react to the wheeze honks of strangers than to those they are more familiar with. When threatened or alarmed, they produce exhalations, and fighting bulls will bellow loudly. Hippos are recorded to produce clicks underwater which may have echolocative properties. They have the unique ability to hold their heads partially above the water and send out a cry that travels through both water and air; individuals respond both above and below water.

 

Reproduction

Cows reach sexual maturity at five to six years of age and have a gestation period of eight months. A study of endocrine systems revealed cows may begin puberty at as early as three or four years. Males reach maturity at around 7.5 years. Both conceptions and births are highest during the wet season. Male hippo always have mobile spermatozoa and can breed year-round.  After becoming pregnant, a female hippo will typically not begin ovulation again for 17 months.

  

Preserved hippopotamus fetus

Hippos mate in the water, with the cow remaining under the surface,  her head emerging periodically to draw breath. Cows give birth in seclusion and return within 10 to 14 days. Calves are born on land or shallow water weighing on average 50 kg (110 lb) and at an average length of around 127 cm (4.17 ft). The female lies on her side when nursing, which can occur underwater or on land. The young are carried on their mothers' backs in deep water. 

 

Mother hippos are very protective of their young, not allowing others to get too close. One cow was recorded protecting a calf's carcass after it had died. Calves may be temporarily kept in nurseries, guarded by one or more adults, and will play amongst themselves. Like many other large mammals, hippos are described as K-strategists, in this case typically producing just one large, well-developed infant every couple of years (rather than many small, poorly developed young several times per year, as is common among small mammals such as rodents). Calves no longer need to suckle when they are a year old. 

 

Interspecies interactions

Hippos coexist alongside a variety of large predators in their habitats. Nile crocodiles, lions, and spotted hyenas are known to prey on young hippos. Beyond these, adult hippos are not usually preyed upon by other animals due to their aggression and size. Cases where large lion prides have successfully preyed on adult hippos have been reported, but it is generally rare. Lions occasionally prey on adults at Gorongosa National Park and calves are sometimes taken at Virunga. Crocodiles are frequent targets of hippo aggression, probably because they often inhabit the same riparian habitats; crocodiles may be either aggressively displaced or killed by hippos. In turn, very large Nile crocodiles have been observed preying occasionally on calves, "half-grown" hippos, and possibly also adult female hippos. Groups of crocodiles have also been observed finishing off still-living male hippos that were previously injured in mating battles with other males.

 

Hippos occasionally visit cleaning stations in order to be cleaned of parasites by certain species of fishes. They signal their readiness for this service by opening their mouths wide. This is an example of mutualism, in which the hippo benefits from the cleaning while the fish receive food. Hippo defecation creates allochthonous deposits of organic matter along the river beds. These deposits have an unclear ecological function. A 2015 study concluded hippo dung provides nutrients from terrestrial material for fish and aquatic invertebrates, while a 2018 study found that their dung can be toxic to aquatic life in large quantities, due to absorption of dissolved oxygen in water bodies.

 

The parasitic monogenean flatworm Oculotrema hippopotami infests hippopotamus eyes, mainly the nictitating membrane. It is the only monogenean species (which normally live on fish) documented to live on a mammal.

 

Hippos and humans

The earliest evidence of human interaction with hippos comes from butchery cut marks on hippo bones found at the Bouri Formation and dated to around 160,000 years ago. 4,000–5,000 year art showing hippos being hunted have been found in the Tassili n'Ajjer Mountains of the central Sahara near Djanet. The ancient Egyptians recognised the hippo as a ferocious denizen of the Nile and representations on the tombs of nobles show the animals were hunted by humans.

 

The hippo was also known to the Greeks and Romans. The Greek historian Herodotus described the hippo in The Histories (written circa 440 BC) and the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder wrote about the hippo in his encyclopedia Naturalis Historia (written circa 77 AD). The Yoruba people called the hippo erinmi, which means "elephant of the water". Some individual hippos have achieved international fame. Huberta became a celebrity during the Great Depression for trekking a great distance across South Africa. 

 

Attacks on humans

The hippo is considered to be extremely aggressive and has frequently been reported charging and attacking boats. Small boats can easily be capsized by hippos and passengers can be injured or killed by the animals, or drown in the water. In one 2014 case in Niger, a boat was capsized by a hippo and 13 people were killed. Hippos will often raid farm crops if the opportunity arises, and humans may come into conflict with them on these occasions. These encounters can be fatal to either humans or hippos.

 

According to the Ptolemaic historian Manetho, the pharaoh Menes was carried off and then killed by a hippopotamus.

 

In zoos

Hippos have long been popular zoo animals. The first record of hippos taken into captivity for display is dated to 3500 BC in Hierakonpolis, Egypt. The first zoo hippo in modern history was Obaysch, who arrived at the London Zoo on 25 May 1850, where he attracted up to 10,000 visitors a day and inspired a popular song, the "Hippopotamus Polka".

 

Hippos generally breed well in captivity; birth rates are lower than in the wild, but this can be attributed to zoos' desire to limit births, since hippos are relatively expensive to maintain. Starting in 2015, the Cincinnati Zoo built a US$73 million exhibit to house three adult hippos, featuring a 250,000 L (66,000 US gal) tank. Modern hippo enclosures also have a complex filtration system for the animal's waste, an underwater viewing area for the visitors, and glass that may be up to 9 cm (3.5 in) thick and capable of holding water under pressures of 31 kPa (4.5 psi).  In 1987, the Toledo Zoo saw the first underwater birth by a captive hippo. The exhibit was so popular, the logo of the Toledo Zoo was updated to feature the hippos.

 

Cultural significance

In Egyptian mythology, the god Set takes the form of a red hippopotamus and fights Horus for control of the land, but is defeated. The goddess Tawaret is depicted as a pregnant woman with a hippo head, representing fierce maternal love. The Ijaw people of the Niger Delta wore masks of aquatic animals like the hippo when practising their water spirit cults, and hippo ivory was used in the divination rituals of the Yoruba. Hippo masks were also used in Nyau funerary rituals of the Chewa of Southern Africa.[97]: 120  According to Robert Baden-Powell, Zulu warriors referred to hippos in war chants. The Behemoth from the Book of Job, is thought to be based on the hippo.

 

Hippos have been the subjects of various African folktales. According to a San story, when the Creator assigned each animal its place in nature, the hippos wanted to live in the water, but were refused out of fear they might eat all the fish. After begging and pleading, the hippos were finally allowed to live in the water on the condition they would eat grass instead of fish, and fling their dung so it can be inspected for fish bones. In a Ndebele tale, the hippo originally had long, beautiful hair, but it was set on fire by a jealous hare and the hippo had to jump into a nearby pool. The hippo lost most of his hair and was too embarrassed to leave the water.

  

The "Hippopotamus Polka"

Hippopotamuses were rarely depicted in European art during the Renaissance and Baroque periods, due to less access to specimens by Europeans. One notable exception is Peter Paul Rubens' The Hippopotamus and Crocodile Hunt (1615–1616).  Ever since Obaysch inspired the "Hippopotamus Polka", hippos have been popular animals in Western culture for their rotund appearance, which many consider comical. The Disney film Fantasia featured a ballerina hippo dancing to the opera La Gioconda. The film Hugo the Hippo is set in Tanzania and involves the title character trying to escape being slaughtered with the help of local children. The Madagascar films feature a hippo named Gloria.  Hippos even inspired a popular board game, Hungry Hungry Hippos.

 

Among the most famous poems about the hippo is "The Hippopotamus" by T. S. Eliot, where he uses the animal to represent the Catholic Church. Hippos are mentioned in the novelty Christmas song "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" that became a hit for child star Gayla Peevey in 1953. They also featured in the popular "The Hippopotamous Song" by Flanders and Swann. 

 

A popular internet myth reports that hippos have pink milk. Biologist David Wynick states, "I think this is an Internet legend that is oft repeated but without any evidence for it that I can find... Like all mammals, hippos produce white or off-white milk for their young.

The hippopotamus, hippopotamuses or hippopotami, also shortened to hippo, hippos or Hippopotamus amphibius, further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae, the other being the pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis liberiensis or Hexaprotodon liberiensis). Its name comes from the ancient Greek for "river horse" (ἱπποπόταμος).

 

After elephants and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the next largest land mammal. It is also the largest extant land artiodactyl. Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, the closest living relatives of the hippopotamids are cetaceans (whales, dolphins, porpoises, etc.), from which they diverged about 55 million years ago. Hippos are recognisable for their barrel-shaped torsos, wide-opening mouths with large canine tusks, nearly hairless bodies, pillar-like legs, and large size: adults average 1,500 kg (3,300 lb) for bulls (males) and 1,300 kg (2,900 lb) for cows (females). Despite its stocky shape and short legs, it is capable of running 30 km/h (19 mph) over short distances.

 

Hippos inhabit rivers, lakes, and mangrove swamps. Territorial bulls each preside over a stretch of water and a group of five to thirty cows and calves. Mating and birth both occur in the water. During the day, hippos remain cool by staying in water or mud, emerging at dusk to graze on grasses. While hippos rest near each other in the water, grazing is a solitary activity and hippos typically do not display territorial behaviour on land. Hippos are among the most dangerous animals in the world due to their aggressive and unpredictable nature. They are threatened by habitat loss and poaching for their meat and ivory (canine teeth).

 

Etymology

The Latin word hippopotamus is derived from the ancient Greek ἱπποπόταμος (hippopótamos), from ἵππος (híppos) 'horse' and ποταμός (potamós) 'river', together meaning 'horse of the river'. In English, the plural is "hippopotamuses", but "hippopotami" is also used.

 

Taxonomy and origins

Classification

The modern hippopotamus and the pygmy hippopotamus are the only living members of the family Hippopotamidae. Some taxonomists place hippos and anthracotheres in the superfamily Anthracotheroidea. Hippopotamidae are classified along with other even-toed ungulates in the order Artiodactyla.

  

Detail of the head

Five subspecies of hippos have been described based on morphological differences in their skulls as well as differences in geographical range:

 

H. a. amphibius – (the nominate subspecies) ranges from Gambia east to Ethiopia and then south to Mozambique and historically ranged as far north as Egypt; its skull is distinguished by a moderately reduced preorbital region, a bulging dorsal surface, elongated mandibular symphysis and larger chewing teeth.

H. a. kiboko – found in Kenya and Somalia; was noted to be smaller and more lightly coloured than other hippos with wider nostrils, somewhat longer snout and more rounded and relatively raised orbits with the space between them being incurved.

H. a. capensis – found in Zambia and South Africa; distinguished by wider orbits.

H. a. tschadensis – ranges between Chad and Niger; featured a slightly shorter but broader face, and pronounced, forward-facing orbits.

H. a. constrictus – ranged from the southern Democratic Republic of Congo to Angola and Namibia; skull characterised by a thicker preorbital region, shorter snout, flatter dorsal surface, reduced mandibular symphysis and smaller chewing teeth.

The suggested subspecies above were never widely used or validated by field biologists; the described morphological differences were small enough that they could have resulted from simple variation in nonrepresentative samples. A study examining mitochondrial DNA from skin biopsies taken from 13 sampling locations found "low, but significant, genetic differentiation" among H. a. amphibius, H. a. capensis, and H. a. kiboko. Neither H. a. tschadensis nor H. a. constrictus have been tested.

 

Evolution

Until 1909, naturalists classified hippos together with pigs based on molar patterns. Several lines of evidence, first from blood proteins, then from molecular systematics and DNA and the fossil record, show their closest living relatives are cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises). The common ancestor of hippos and whales branched off from Ruminantia and the rest of the even-toed ungulates; the cetacean and hippo lineages split soon afterwards.

 

Artiodactyla

Tylopoda

Artiofabula

Suina

Cetruminantia

Ruminantia

Whippomorpha

Hippopotamidae

Cetacea

  

Anthracotherium magnum from the Oligocene of Europe

The most recent theory of the origins of Hippopotamidae suggests hippos and whales shared a common semiaquatic ancestor that branched off from other artiodactyls around 60 million years ago. This hypothesised ancestral group likely split into two branches again around 54 million years ago.

 

One branch would evolve into cetaceans, possibly beginning about 52 million years ago, with the protowhale Pakicetus and other early whale ancestors collectively known as Archaeoceti. This group eventually underwent aquatic adaptation into the completely aquatic cetaceans. The other branch became the anthracotheres, a large family of four-legged beasts, the earliest of which in the late Eocene would have resembled skinny hippos with comparatively smaller, narrower heads. All branches of the anthracotheres, except that which evolved into Hippopotamidae, became extinct during the Pliocene, leaving no descendants.

 

A rough evolutionary lineage of the hippo can thus be traced from Eocene and Oligocene species: from Anthracotherium and Elomeryx to the Miocene species Merycopotamus and Libycosaurus and finally the very latest anthracotheres in the Pliocene. These groups lived across Eurasia and Africa. The discovery of Epirigenys in East Africa, which was likely a descent of Asian anthracotheres and a sister taxon to Hippopotamidae, suggests that hippo ancestors entered Africa from Asia around 35 million years ago. An early hippopotamid is the genus Kenyapotamus, which lived in Africa from 15 to 9 million years ago. Hippopotamid species would spread across Africa and Eurasia, including the modern pygmy hippo. From 7.5 to 1.8 million years ago, a possible ancestor to the modern hippo, Archaeopotamus, lived in Africa and the Middle East. The oldest records of the genus Hippopotamus date to the Pliocene (5.3-2.6 million years ago). The oldest unambiguous records of the modern H. amphibius date to the Middle Pleistocene, though there are possible Early Pleistocene records.

 

Extinct species

Three species of Malagasy hippopotamus became extinct during the Holocene on Madagascar, the last of them within the past 1,000 years. The Malagasy hippos were smaller than the modern hippo, a likely result of the process of insular dwarfism. Fossil evidence indicates many Malagasy hippos were hunted by humans, a factor in their eventual extinction. Isolated individual Malagasy hippos may have survived in remote pockets; in 1976, villagers described a living animal called the kilopilopitsofy, which may have been a Malagasy hippo.

 

Hippopotamus gorgops from the Early Pleistocene-early Middle Pleistocene of Africa and West Asia grew considerably larger than the living hippopotamus, with an estimated body mass of over 4,000 kilograms (8,800 lb). Hippopotamus antiquus ranged throughout Europe, extending as far north as Britain during the Early and Middle Pleistocene epochs, before being replaced by the modern H. amphibius in Europe during the latter part of the Middle Pleistocene. The Pleistocene also saw a number of dwarf species evolve on several Mediterranean islands, including Crete (Hippopotamus creutzburgi), Cyprus (the Cyprus dwarf hippopotamus, Hippopotamus minor), Malta (Hippopotamus melitensis), and Sicily (Hippopotamus pentlandi). Of these, the Cyprus dwarf hippo survived until the end of the Pleistocene or early Holocene. Evidence from the archaeological site Aetokremnos continues to cause debate on whether or not the species was driven to extinction, or even encountered, by man.

 

Characteristics

The hippopotamus is a megaherbivore and is exceeded in size among land animals only by elephants and some rhinoceros species. The mean adult weight is around 1,480 kg (3,260 lb) for bulls and 1,365 kg (3,009 lb) for cows. Exceptionally large males have been recorded reaching 2,660 kg (5,860 lb). Male hippos appear to continue growing throughout their lives, while females reach maximum weight at around age 25. Hippos measure 2.90 to 5.05 m (9.5 to 16.6 ft) long, including a tail of about 35 to 56 cm (1.15 to 1.84 ft) in length and 1.30 to 1.65 m (4.3 to 5.4 ft) tall at the shoulder, with males and females ranging 1.40 to 1.65 m (4.6 to 5.4 ft) and 1.30 to 1.45 m (4.3 to 4.8 ft) tall at the shoulder respectively. The species has a typical head-body length of 3.3–3.45 m (10.8–11.3 ft) and an average standing height of 1.4 m (4.6 ft) at the shoulder.

 

Hippos have barrel-shaped bodies with short tails and legs, and an hourglass-shaped skull with a long snout.  Their skeletal structures are graviportal, adapted to carrying their enormous weight, and their dense bones and low centre of gravity allows them to sink and move along the bottom of the water. Hippopotamuses have small legs (relative to other megafauna) because the water in which they live reduces the weight burden. The toes are webbed and the pelvis rests at an angle of 45 degrees.  Though chubby-looking, hippos have little fat.  The eyes, ears, and nostrils of hippos are placed high on the roof of their skulls. This allows these organs to remain above the surface while the rest of the body is submerged.  The nostrils and ears can close when underwater while nictitating membranes cover the eyes.  The vocal folds of the hippo are more horizontally positioned, much like cetaceans. Underneath are throat tissues, where vibrations are transmitted to produce underwater calls.

  

Characteristic "yawn" of a hippo

The hippo's jaw is powered by huge masseter and digastric muscles which give them large, droopy cheeks. The jaw hinge allows the animal to open its mouth at almost 180°.  A folded orbicularis oris muscle allows the hippo to attain an extreme gape without tearing any tissue. On the lower jaw, the incisors and canines grow continuously, the former reaching 40 cm (1 ft 4 in), while the latter can grow to up to 50 cm (1 ft 8 in). The lower canines are sharpened through contact with the smaller upper canines. The canines and incisors are used mainly for combat instead of feeding. Hippos rely on their flattened, horny lips to grasp and pull grasses which are then ground by the molars.  The hippo is considered to be a pseudoruminant; it has a complex three-chambered stomach, but does not "chew cud".

  

Completely submerged hippo (San Diego Zoo)

Hippo skin is 6 cm (2 in) thick across much of its body with little hair.  The animal is mostly purplish-grey or blue-black, but brownish-pink on the underside and around the eyes and ears. Their skin secretes a natural, red-coloured sunscreen substance that is sometimes referred to as "blood sweat" but is neither blood nor sweat. This secretion is initially colourless and turns red-orange within minutes, eventually becoming brown. Two highly acidic pigments have been identified in the secretions; one red (hipposudoric acid) and one orange (norhipposudoric acid), which inhibit the growth of disease-causing bacteria and their light-absorption profile peaks in the ultraviolet range, creating a sunscreen effect. Regardless of diet, all hippos secrete these pigments so food does not appear to be their source; rather, they may be synthesised from precursors such as the amino acid tyrosine. This natural sunscreen cannot prevent the animal's skin from cracking if it stays out of water too long.

 

The testes of the males do not fully descend and a scrotum is not present. In addition, the penis retracts into the body when not erect. The genitals of the female hippos are unusual in that the vagina is ridged and the vulval vestibule has two large, protruding diverticula. Both of these have an unknown function. 

 

A hippo's lifespan is typically 40 to 50 years.  Donna the Hippo was one of the oldest living hippos in captivity. She lived at the Mesker Park Zoo in Evansville, Indiana, in the US until her death in 2012 at the age of 61. The oldest hippo ever recorded was called Bertha; she had lived in the Manila Zoo in the Philippines since it first opened in 1959. When she died in 2017, her age was estimated to be 65.

 

Distribution and status

During the Middle Pleistocene to the early Late Pleistocene (~500,000–80,000 years ago) Hippopotamus amphibius was present in Europe, extending as far north as England during the Eemian (130–115,000 years ago), with fossils also known from Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Greece. The species first entered Europe between 560,000 and 460,000 years ago, while the last H. amphibius remains in Europe are dated to about 30,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence exists of its presence in the Levant, dating to less than 3,000 years ago. The species was common in Egypt's Nile region during antiquity, but it has since been driven out. According to Pliny the Elder, in his time, the best location in Egypt for capturing this animal was in the Saite nome; the animal could still be found along the Damietta branch of the Nile after the Arab Conquest in 639. Reports of the slaughter of the last hippo in Natal Province were made at the end of the 19th century. Hippos are still found in the rivers and lakes of the northern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya, north through to Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan, west to The Gambia, and south to South Africa.

 

Genetic evidence suggests common hippos in Africa experienced a marked population expansion during or after the Pleistocene, attributed to an increase in water bodies at the end of the era. These findings have important conservation implications, as hippo populations across the continent are currently threatened by loss of access to fresh water. Hippos are also subject to unregulated hunting and poaching. The species is included in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meaning international export/import (including in parts and derivatives) requires CITES documentation to be obtained and presented to border authorities.

 

As of 2017, the IUCN Red List drawn up by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the species as vulnerable, with a stable population estimated between 115,000 and 130,000 animals. The hippo population has declined most dramatically in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. By 2005, the population in Virunga National Park had dropped to 800 or 900 from around 29,000 in the mid-1970s. This decline is attributed to the disruptions caused by the Second Congo War. The poachers are believed to be Mai-Mai rebels, underpaid Congolese soldiers, and local militia groups. Reasons for poaching include the belief hippos are harmful to society, as well as financial gain. As of 2016, the Virunga hippo population appears to have increased again, possibly due to better protection from park rangers, who have worked with local fishermen. The sale of hippo meat is illegal, but black-market sales are difficult for Virunga National Park officers to track. Hippo meat is highly valued in some areas of central Africa and the teeth may be used as a replacement for elephant ivory.

 

A population of hippos exists in Colombia, descended from captive individuals that escaped from Pablo Escobar's estate after his death in 1993. Their numbers grew to 100 by the 2020s and ecologists believe the population should be eradicated, as they are breeding rapidly and are an increasing menace to humans and the environment. Attempts to control them include sterilisation and culling.

 

Behaviour and ecology

Hippos are semiaquatic and require enough water to immerse in, while being close to grass. Like most herbivores, hippos will consume a variety of plants if presented with them in captivity, but their diet in nature consists almost entirely of grass, with only minimal consumption of aquatic plants. They prefer relatively still waters with gently sloping shores, though male hippos may also be found in very small numbers in more rapid waters with rocky slopes.  Hippos mostly live in freshwater habitat, but can be found in estuaries. Despite being semiaquatic, an adult hippo is not a particularly good swimmer, nor can it float. It rarely enters deep water; when it does, the animal moves by bouncing off the bottom. An adult hippo surfaces every four to six minutes, while young need to breathe every two to three minutes.

 

Hippos spend most the day in water to stay cool and hydrated. Just before night begins, they leave the water to forage on land. Hippos usually trot to move quickly on land and can gallop at 30 km/h (19 mph) when needed. They are incapable of jumping but can walk up steep banks. A hippo will travel 3–5 km (1.9–3.1 mi) per night, eating around 40 kg (88 lb) of grass. By dawn, they are back in the water. The hippopotamus sleeps with both hemispheres of the brain resting, as in all land mammals, and usually sleeps on land or in water with the nostrils exposed. Despite this, it may be capable of sleeping while submerged, intermittently surfacing to breathe without waking. They appear to transition between different phases of sleep more quickly than other mammals.

 

Because of their size and their habit of taking the same paths to feed, hippos can have a significant impact on the land across which they walk, keeping the land clear of vegetation and depressing the ground. Over prolonged periods, hippos can divert the paths of swamps and channels. By defecating in the water, the animals also appear to pass on microbes from their gut, affecting the biogeochemical cycle. On occasion, hippos have been filmed eating carrion, usually near the water. There are other reports of meat-eating and even cannibalism and predation. Hippos' stomach anatomy lacks adaptions to carnivory and meat-eating is likely caused by lack of nutrients or just an abnormal behaviour.

 

Social life

It is challenging to study the interaction of bulls and cows because hippos are not sexually dimorphic, so cows and young bulls are almost indistinguishable in the field. Hippo pods fluctuate but can contain over 100 hippos. Although they lie close together, adults develop almost no social bonds. Males establish territories in water but not land, and these may range 250–500 m (270–550 yd) in lakes and 50–100 m (55–109 yd) in rivers. Territories are abandoned when the water dries up. The bull has breeding access to all the cows in his territory. Younger bachelors are allowed to stay as long as they defer to him. A younger male may challenge the old bull for control of the territory. Within the pods, the hippos tend to segregate by sex and status. Bachelor males lounge near other bachelors, females with other females, and the territorial male is on his own. When hippos emerge from the water to graze, they do so individually.

  

Male hippos fighting

Hippos engage in "muck-spreading" which involves defecating while spinning their tails to distribute the faeces over a greater area. Muck-spreading occurs both on land and in water and its function is not well understood. It is unlikely to serve a territorial function, as the animals only establish territories in the water. They may be used as trails between the water and grazing areas.  "Yawning" serves as a threat display. When fighting, bulls use their incisors to block each other's attacks and their large canines as offensive weapons.  When hippos become over-populated or a habitat shrinks, bulls sometimes attempt infanticide, but this behaviour is not common under normal conditions.

 

The most common hippo vocalisation is the "wheeze honk", which can travel over long distances in air. This call starts as a high-pitched squeal followed by a deeper, resonant call.  The animals can recognise the calls of other individuals. Hippos are more likely to react to the wheeze honks of strangers than to those they are more familiar with. When threatened or alarmed, they produce exhalations, and fighting bulls will bellow loudly. Hippos are recorded to produce clicks underwater which may have echolocative properties. They have the unique ability to hold their heads partially above the water and send out a cry that travels through both water and air; individuals respond both above and below water.

 

Reproduction

Cows reach sexual maturity at five to six years of age and have a gestation period of eight months. A study of endocrine systems revealed cows may begin puberty at as early as three or four years. Males reach maturity at around 7.5 years. Both conceptions and births are highest during the wet season. Male hippo always have mobile spermatozoa and can breed year-round.  After becoming pregnant, a female hippo will typically not begin ovulation again for 17 months.

  

Preserved hippopotamus fetus

Hippos mate in the water, with the cow remaining under the surface,  her head emerging periodically to draw breath. Cows give birth in seclusion and return within 10 to 14 days. Calves are born on land or shallow water weighing on average 50 kg (110 lb) and at an average length of around 127 cm (4.17 ft). The female lies on her side when nursing, which can occur underwater or on land. The young are carried on their mothers' backs in deep water. 

 

Mother hippos are very protective of their young, not allowing others to get too close. One cow was recorded protecting a calf's carcass after it had died. Calves may be temporarily kept in nurseries, guarded by one or more adults, and will play amongst themselves. Like many other large mammals, hippos are described as K-strategists, in this case typically producing just one large, well-developed infant every couple of years (rather than many small, poorly developed young several times per year, as is common among small mammals such as rodents). Calves no longer need to suckle when they are a year old. 

 

Interspecies interactions

Hippos coexist alongside a variety of large predators in their habitats. Nile crocodiles, lions, and spotted hyenas are known to prey on young hippos. Beyond these, adult hippos are not usually preyed upon by other animals due to their aggression and size. Cases where large lion prides have successfully preyed on adult hippos have been reported, but it is generally rare. Lions occasionally prey on adults at Gorongosa National Park and calves are sometimes taken at Virunga. Crocodiles are frequent targets of hippo aggression, probably because they often inhabit the same riparian habitats; crocodiles may be either aggressively displaced or killed by hippos. In turn, very large Nile crocodiles have been observed preying occasionally on calves, "half-grown" hippos, and possibly also adult female hippos. Groups of crocodiles have also been observed finishing off still-living male hippos that were previously injured in mating battles with other males.

 

Hippos occasionally visit cleaning stations in order to be cleaned of parasites by certain species of fishes. They signal their readiness for this service by opening their mouths wide. This is an example of mutualism, in which the hippo benefits from the cleaning while the fish receive food. Hippo defecation creates allochthonous deposits of organic matter along the river beds. These deposits have an unclear ecological function. A 2015 study concluded hippo dung provides nutrients from terrestrial material for fish and aquatic invertebrates, while a 2018 study found that their dung can be toxic to aquatic life in large quantities, due to absorption of dissolved oxygen in water bodies.

 

The parasitic monogenean flatworm Oculotrema hippopotami infests hippopotamus eyes, mainly the nictitating membrane. It is the only monogenean species (which normally live on fish) documented to live on a mammal.

 

Hippos and humans

The earliest evidence of human interaction with hippos comes from butchery cut marks on hippo bones found at the Bouri Formation and dated to around 160,000 years ago. 4,000–5,000 year art showing hippos being hunted have been found in the Tassili n'Ajjer Mountains of the central Sahara near Djanet. The ancient Egyptians recognised the hippo as a ferocious denizen of the Nile and representations on the tombs of nobles show the animals were hunted by humans.

 

The hippo was also known to the Greeks and Romans. The Greek historian Herodotus described the hippo in The Histories (written circa 440 BC) and the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder wrote about the hippo in his encyclopedia Naturalis Historia (written circa 77 AD). The Yoruba people called the hippo erinmi, which means "elephant of the water". Some individual hippos have achieved international fame. Huberta became a celebrity during the Great Depression for trekking a great distance across South Africa. 

 

Attacks on humans

The hippo is considered to be extremely aggressive and has frequently been reported charging and attacking boats. Small boats can easily be capsized by hippos and passengers can be injured or killed by the animals, or drown in the water. In one 2014 case in Niger, a boat was capsized by a hippo and 13 people were killed. Hippos will often raid farm crops if the opportunity arises, and humans may come into conflict with them on these occasions. These encounters can be fatal to either humans or hippos.

 

According to the Ptolemaic historian Manetho, the pharaoh Menes was carried off and then killed by a hippopotamus.

 

In zoos

Hippos have long been popular zoo animals. The first record of hippos taken into captivity for display is dated to 3500 BC in Hierakonpolis, Egypt. The first zoo hippo in modern history was Obaysch, who arrived at the London Zoo on 25 May 1850, where he attracted up to 10,000 visitors a day and inspired a popular song, the "Hippopotamus Polka".

 

Hippos generally breed well in captivity; birth rates are lower than in the wild, but this can be attributed to zoos' desire to limit births, since hippos are relatively expensive to maintain. Starting in 2015, the Cincinnati Zoo built a US$73 million exhibit to house three adult hippos, featuring a 250,000 L (66,000 US gal) tank. Modern hippo enclosures also have a complex filtration system for the animal's waste, an underwater viewing area for the visitors, and glass that may be up to 9 cm (3.5 in) thick and capable of holding water under pressures of 31 kPa (4.5 psi).  In 1987, the Toledo Zoo saw the first underwater birth by a captive hippo. The exhibit was so popular, the logo of the Toledo Zoo was updated to feature the hippos.

 

Cultural significance

In Egyptian mythology, the god Set takes the form of a red hippopotamus and fights Horus for control of the land, but is defeated. The goddess Tawaret is depicted as a pregnant woman with a hippo head, representing fierce maternal love. The Ijaw people of the Niger Delta wore masks of aquatic animals like the hippo when practising their water spirit cults, and hippo ivory was used in the divination rituals of the Yoruba. Hippo masks were also used in Nyau funerary rituals of the Chewa of Southern Africa.[97]: 120  According to Robert Baden-Powell, Zulu warriors referred to hippos in war chants. The Behemoth from the Book of Job, is thought to be based on the hippo.

 

Hippos have been the subjects of various African folktales. According to a San story, when the Creator assigned each animal its place in nature, the hippos wanted to live in the water, but were refused out of fear they might eat all the fish. After begging and pleading, the hippos were finally allowed to live in the water on the condition they would eat grass instead of fish, and fling their dung so it can be inspected for fish bones. In a Ndebele tale, the hippo originally had long, beautiful hair, but it was set on fire by a jealous hare and the hippo had to jump into a nearby pool. The hippo lost most of his hair and was too embarrassed to leave the water.

  

The "Hippopotamus Polka"

Hippopotamuses were rarely depicted in European art during the Renaissance and Baroque periods, due to less access to specimens by Europeans. One notable exception is Peter Paul Rubens' The Hippopotamus and Crocodile Hunt (1615–1616).  Ever since Obaysch inspired the "Hippopotamus Polka", hippos have been popular animals in Western culture for their rotund appearance, which many consider comical. The Disney film Fantasia featured a ballerina hippo dancing to the opera La Gioconda. The film Hugo the Hippo is set in Tanzania and involves the title character trying to escape being slaughtered with the help of local children. The Madagascar films feature a hippo named Gloria.  Hippos even inspired a popular board game, Hungry Hungry Hippos.

 

Among the most famous poems about the hippo is "The Hippopotamus" by T. S. Eliot, where he uses the animal to represent the Catholic Church. Hippos are mentioned in the novelty Christmas song "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" that became a hit for child star Gayla Peevey in 1953. They also featured in the popular "The Hippopotamous Song" by Flanders and Swann. 

 

A popular internet myth reports that hippos have pink milk. Biologist David Wynick states, "I think this is an Internet legend that is oft repeated but without any evidence for it that I can find... Like all mammals, hippos produce white or off-white milk for their young.

A newly mission-qualified F-16C pilot with the 100th Fighter Squadron checks over the maintenance log prior to launching for a Green Flag sortie at Nellis AFB, Nevada in late 2012.

She is Captain Sara "SHOT" Ferrero , who fly F-16 Fighting Falcons with the 100th Fighter Squadron of the 187th Fighter Wing and was Alabama Air National Guard's first female fighter pilot in 2010.

PilotShortage_StoryTime_100FS_1LT

atthemerge.com/1130/pilot-shortage-story-time/

Peebles - River Tweed

James Hunt Qualified: 14th. Race: DNF-accident.

 

Image from the 1978 British Grand Prix pit walk at Brands Hatch. Taken with a Fujica ST605N and the colour negative now scanned with an Epson V200.

 

1978BGP-001a

 

All Rights Reserved © 1978 Frederick Roll ~ fjroll.com

Please do not use this image without prior permission

Congratulations to all who have qualified to move on to Round Two! Congratulations also to those who made an effort to participate and also challenge themselves to grow! Excellent work everyone!

 

The theme this round is "Man-Made Beauty". This round should be about how your Pullip appreciates the art around her, the beauty that man has created. It can be anything that your area/city is known for. This photo, an example of "man-made beauty" is that where I live, West Palmdale, California, is known for its aerospace engineering and military bases. Carolyn is visiting the local air park, which is a museum for retired aircraft.

 

I hope this round is as fun for you as it is challenging. Be creative and remember that this is not about winning, as much as it is about showing your fellow Pulliptographers what you find beautiful and what makes you proud to live where you live.

 

Good luck to you all! All entries are due by Sunday, May 30th, 2011. Entries must be posted in the Pullip-Tography group discussion thread for "Round Two Entries" . . . Here: www.flickr.com/groups/pullip-tography/discuss/72157626533...

 

Thank you!

Qualified: 15th. Race: DNF-engine lap 15.

 

Image from the 1980 British Grand Prix weekend at Brands Hatch. Transparancy taken with Fujica ST605N and Soligor 75-260mm zoom and now scanned with an Epson V200.

 

1980GP-023a

 

All Rights Reserved © 1980 Frederick Roll ~ fjroll.com

Please do not use this image without prior permission

Joe Haldeman is uniquely qualified to edit a collection of science-fiction alternatives to war. His novel "The Forever War" (1974), a novel of future warfare, was based on his experience as a foot soldier in Vietnam. It won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards for best science fiction novel. He asked ten science fiction writers to consider the problem of war, and whether there might be a solution to it, and this is what he got:

 

POUL ANDERSON - Warfare by formalized political assassination.

 

ISAAC ASIMOV - Peace and freedom through cybernetic regimentation.

 

BEN BOVA - Surrogate warfare via machine-induced illusion.

 

GEORGE ALEC EFFINGER - Soldier as actor; actor as soldier.

 

HARLAN ELLISON - A god-beast to teach a terrible lesson.

 

JOE HALDEMAN - Privately-sponsored nuclear blackmail.

 

HARRY HARRISON - Destroy poverty, not people.

 

DAMON KNIGHT - A visitor from Aquarius gently wrecks the world.

 

WILLIAM NABORS - Peace as the ultimate venereal disease.

 

MACK REYNOLDS - Captain Joe Mauser slugs it out for dear old VTT, Inc.

RNLI lifeguards are qualified in lifesaving and casualty care, highly trained, strong and fit. They must be able to swim 200m in under 3½ minutes, and run 200m on sand in under 40 seconds.

 

However, a good lifeguard rarely gets wet – 95% of a lifeguard's work is preventative. The lifeguards monitor sea conditions and set up the appropriate flags, watch the people on the beach and offer safety advice both on the beach and in classrooms through our education programmes.

 

Volunteer lifeguards

Most RNLI lifeguards are paid by the relevant local authority to maintain patrols on our busiest beaches. But we also have volunteer lifeguards. Some are young or newly qualified lifeguards gaining experience, while others just enjoy helping out in their spare time.

 

We also have Lifeguard Support Volunteers, who help the lifeguards with land-based duties, such as lookout, radio communications and casualty care.

 

Both Misty FAC aircrewmen were fully qualified fighter pilots. During a mission, the front-seater usually flew the aircraft while the back-seater navigated and observed. (U.S. Air Force photo)

 

U.S. Air Force forward air controllers (FACs) initially flew slow, propeller-driven aircraft to spot North Vietnamese personnel and supplies moving south along the "Ho Chi Minh Trail." As the communists reinforced their infiltration routes with anti-aircraft defenses, the loss rates for these slow FACs became unacceptable.

 

To resolve this problem, the U.S. Air Force decided to use two-seat, jet-propelled F-100F FACs over the most heavily defended areas under the code name "Commando Sabre." In June 1967, Detachment 1, 416th Tactical Fighter Squadron, commanded by Maj. George "Bud" Day, began operations. The all-volunteer aircrews of this unit quickly became known by their radio call sign "Misty."

 

In addition to being extremely hazardous, Misty FAC missions were very demanding on the aircrews. Typically remaining on station for four to six hours, they flew along the Ho Chi Minh Trail at relatively low altitude, constantly turning their aircraft to throw off the aim of enemy anti-aircraft gunners. Misty FACs located and marked targets for other aircraft to hit, and they occasionally used their 20mm cannon to attack targets themselves. Misty FACs also supported rescue forces to recover downed aircrew, and they were often the first aircraft on the scene. In spite of their skill, specialized tactics, and fast aircraft, they paid a high price for striking at the vital, well-defended lifeline of the communists -- enemy ground defenses shot down a quarter of the 155 Misty FACs.

 

Commando Sabre ended in May 1970, as F-4 Phantoms took over the role of "Fast FAC." Even so, the aircrews remained a select group in the following years -- their ranks include a Medal of Honor recipient (Col. George "Bud" Day), two USAF chiefs of staff (Gen. Merrill McPeak and Gen. Ronald Fogleman), two astronauts (Maj. Gen. Roy Bridges and Col. Charles "Clay" Veach), three other general officers (Maj. Gen. Donald Sheppard, Maj. Gen. John Dickey and Brig. Gen. Walter Bacon), and the chief pilot of the first around-the-world unrefueled flight (Col. Richard Rutan).

 

North American F-100F-10-NA Super Sabre

s/n 56-3865

309th Tactical Fighter Squadron

This aircraft was lost on August 16,1968 while on a mission over North Vietnam. The crew, Maj. John F. Overlock and Maj. Michael D. McElhanon were both listed as MIA until the mid-1970s, when they were both declared KIA even though no remains had been discovered.

Photos Taken by Edwin Ladd - Mr Ladd Media The Official Photographer for Birmingham Law Society - Newly Qualified Celebration 2022. This event took place on the 25th November 2022 held at No5 in Birmingham.

 

Birmingham Law Society - Legal Awards celebrates Birmingham and the West Midlands region as a centre of legal excellence second to none.

 

www.birminghamlawsociety.co.uk

 

#MrLaddMedia

Want Edwin Ladd - Mr Ladd Media at your next event?

 

Contact: Edwin Ladd

Mob:07828 475 591

Email: info@mrladd.co.uk

www.mrladd.co.uk/albums

FIFA World Cup Qualifiers

27 March 2022 - Toronto, ON, CAN

Canada Soccer by Beau Chevalier

 

Qualified Samuel Adekugbe

Carolin (42) is not really a model. She is a qualified merchant and self-employed.

Stranger 60/100 - Alvin

 

“I spent the last five years traveling to Ferguson, Baltimore, Berkeley, Chicago, Standing Rock, Milwaukee, Madison, Charlotte of course, Charlottesville…”

 

Meet Alvin.

 

Alvin is a featured photographer in a local exhibit called Know Justice, Know Peace — a community-created exhibit about police-involved shootings.

 

What advice would you give to your younger self? “To do everything I can do that day. I wasted a good fifteen to twenty years of my life thinking that there was tomorrow. I would do everything I needed to do that day… everything that day. Educationally, financially, spiritually, physically… do it that day. Stop putting off assuming that you have another opportunity to be great. Sometimes you only have that time, you only have that second.”

 

What do you think is your biggest challenge right now? “My pockets haven’t quite caught up with my ambition. A lot of people think that activism work just happens. Well, fuel… there’s a price tag attached to that. Food… you know, you have to pay to eat. You have to pay for lodging and things like that. If you’re an individual that has a good job, well, financially you can handle it, but how do you take off from work at a good job to go cover or document a protest in another city or state? So, there’s that balance that a lot of people don’t take into account with the work. It’s morphed into working with the Panthers. It’s morphed into being on Jay Z’s 4:44 Tour. It’s morphed into this exhibit. I have an exhibit at Davidson College entitled Three Steps Back. It’s happening. Everything that I’m wanting, that I’m speaking to, is happening, but I have to show up.”

 

Do you have a life philosophy that you follow? “I’m really here to get everything that they said that I couldn’t have. Everything that I wasn’t qualified for. Everything that I wasn’t educated enough for, I wasn’t in a proper position for, didn’t have the right pedigree… economically, religiously, I want. I want to speak everything that I need and want into existence, and I want to manifest it. My life’s philosophy is: go get it. Go get it. There’s no such thing as enough time. We talk about, oh I wish I had more money, I wish I had more time, but you’ve had more money, you had more time, you had more food, you had more clothes… just do it.”

 

Technical Notes: This is my first stranger portrait using a strobe. I used a 21” softbox attached to an XPLOR 600 strobe held in my left hand.

  

This picture is #60 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page

 

This photo also appears in The Human Family Page

The hippopotamus, hippopotamuses or hippopotami, also shortened to hippo, hippos or Hippopotamus amphibius, further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae, the other being the pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis liberiensis or Hexaprotodon liberiensis). Its name comes from the ancient Greek for "river horse" (ἱπποπόταμος).

 

After elephants and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the next largest land mammal. It is also the largest extant land artiodactyl. Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, the closest living relatives of the hippopotamids are cetaceans (whales, dolphins, porpoises, etc.), from which they diverged about 55 million years ago. Hippos are recognisable for their barrel-shaped torsos, wide-opening mouths with large canine tusks, nearly hairless bodies, pillar-like legs, and large size: adults average 1,500 kg (3,300 lb) for bulls (males) and 1,300 kg (2,900 lb) for cows (females). Despite its stocky shape and short legs, it is capable of running 30 km/h (19 mph) over short distances.

 

Hippos inhabit rivers, lakes, and mangrove swamps. Territorial bulls each preside over a stretch of water and a group of five to thirty cows and calves. Mating and birth both occur in the water. During the day, hippos remain cool by staying in water or mud, emerging at dusk to graze on grasses. While hippos rest near each other in the water, grazing is a solitary activity and hippos typically do not display territorial behaviour on land. Hippos are among the most dangerous animals in the world due to their aggressive and unpredictable nature. They are threatened by habitat loss and poaching for their meat and ivory (canine teeth).

 

Etymology

The Latin word hippopotamus is derived from the ancient Greek ἱπποπόταμος (hippopótamos), from ἵππος (híppos) 'horse' and ποταμός (potamós) 'river', together meaning 'horse of the river'. In English, the plural is "hippopotamuses", but "hippopotami" is also used.

 

Taxonomy and origins

Classification

The modern hippopotamus and the pygmy hippopotamus are the only living members of the family Hippopotamidae. Some taxonomists place hippos and anthracotheres in the superfamily Anthracotheroidea. Hippopotamidae are classified along with other even-toed ungulates in the order Artiodactyla.

  

Detail of the head

Five subspecies of hippos have been described based on morphological differences in their skulls as well as differences in geographical range:

 

H. a. amphibius – (the nominate subspecies) ranges from Gambia east to Ethiopia and then south to Mozambique and historically ranged as far north as Egypt; its skull is distinguished by a moderately reduced preorbital region, a bulging dorsal surface, elongated mandibular symphysis and larger chewing teeth.

H. a. kiboko – found in Kenya and Somalia; was noted to be smaller and more lightly coloured than other hippos with wider nostrils, somewhat longer snout and more rounded and relatively raised orbits with the space between them being incurved.

H. a. capensis – found in Zambia and South Africa; distinguished by wider orbits.

H. a. tschadensis – ranges between Chad and Niger; featured a slightly shorter but broader face, and pronounced, forward-facing orbits.

H. a. constrictus – ranged from the southern Democratic Republic of Congo to Angola and Namibia; skull characterised by a thicker preorbital region, shorter snout, flatter dorsal surface, reduced mandibular symphysis and smaller chewing teeth.

The suggested subspecies above were never widely used or validated by field biologists; the described morphological differences were small enough that they could have resulted from simple variation in nonrepresentative samples. A study examining mitochondrial DNA from skin biopsies taken from 13 sampling locations found "low, but significant, genetic differentiation" among H. a. amphibius, H. a. capensis, and H. a. kiboko. Neither H. a. tschadensis nor H. a. constrictus have been tested.

 

Evolution

Until 1909, naturalists classified hippos together with pigs based on molar patterns. Several lines of evidence, first from blood proteins, then from molecular systematics and DNA and the fossil record, show their closest living relatives are cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises). The common ancestor of hippos and whales branched off from Ruminantia and the rest of the even-toed ungulates; the cetacean and hippo lineages split soon afterwards.

 

Artiodactyla

Tylopoda

Artiofabula

Suina

Cetruminantia

Ruminantia

Whippomorpha

Hippopotamidae

Cetacea

  

Anthracotherium magnum from the Oligocene of Europe

The most recent theory of the origins of Hippopotamidae suggests hippos and whales shared a common semiaquatic ancestor that branched off from other artiodactyls around 60 million years ago. This hypothesised ancestral group likely split into two branches again around 54 million years ago.

 

One branch would evolve into cetaceans, possibly beginning about 52 million years ago, with the protowhale Pakicetus and other early whale ancestors collectively known as Archaeoceti. This group eventually underwent aquatic adaptation into the completely aquatic cetaceans. The other branch became the anthracotheres, a large family of four-legged beasts, the earliest of which in the late Eocene would have resembled skinny hippos with comparatively smaller, narrower heads. All branches of the anthracotheres, except that which evolved into Hippopotamidae, became extinct during the Pliocene, leaving no descendants.

 

A rough evolutionary lineage of the hippo can thus be traced from Eocene and Oligocene species: from Anthracotherium and Elomeryx to the Miocene species Merycopotamus and Libycosaurus and finally the very latest anthracotheres in the Pliocene. These groups lived across Eurasia and Africa. The discovery of Epirigenys in East Africa, which was likely a descent of Asian anthracotheres and a sister taxon to Hippopotamidae, suggests that hippo ancestors entered Africa from Asia around 35 million years ago. An early hippopotamid is the genus Kenyapotamus, which lived in Africa from 15 to 9 million years ago. Hippopotamid species would spread across Africa and Eurasia, including the modern pygmy hippo. From 7.5 to 1.8 million years ago, a possible ancestor to the modern hippo, Archaeopotamus, lived in Africa and the Middle East. The oldest records of the genus Hippopotamus date to the Pliocene (5.3-2.6 million years ago). The oldest unambiguous records of the modern H. amphibius date to the Middle Pleistocene, though there are possible Early Pleistocene records.

 

Extinct species

Three species of Malagasy hippopotamus became extinct during the Holocene on Madagascar, the last of them within the past 1,000 years. The Malagasy hippos were smaller than the modern hippo, a likely result of the process of insular dwarfism. Fossil evidence indicates many Malagasy hippos were hunted by humans, a factor in their eventual extinction. Isolated individual Malagasy hippos may have survived in remote pockets; in 1976, villagers described a living animal called the kilopilopitsofy, which may have been a Malagasy hippo.

 

Hippopotamus gorgops from the Early Pleistocene-early Middle Pleistocene of Africa and West Asia grew considerably larger than the living hippopotamus, with an estimated body mass of over 4,000 kilograms (8,800 lb). Hippopotamus antiquus ranged throughout Europe, extending as far north as Britain during the Early and Middle Pleistocene epochs, before being replaced by the modern H. amphibius in Europe during the latter part of the Middle Pleistocene. The Pleistocene also saw a number of dwarf species evolve on several Mediterranean islands, including Crete (Hippopotamus creutzburgi), Cyprus (the Cyprus dwarf hippopotamus, Hippopotamus minor), Malta (Hippopotamus melitensis), and Sicily (Hippopotamus pentlandi). Of these, the Cyprus dwarf hippo survived until the end of the Pleistocene or early Holocene. Evidence from the archaeological site Aetokremnos continues to cause debate on whether or not the species was driven to extinction, or even encountered, by man.

 

Characteristics

The hippopotamus is a megaherbivore and is exceeded in size among land animals only by elephants and some rhinoceros species. The mean adult weight is around 1,480 kg (3,260 lb) for bulls and 1,365 kg (3,009 lb) for cows. Exceptionally large males have been recorded reaching 2,660 kg (5,860 lb). Male hippos appear to continue growing throughout their lives, while females reach maximum weight at around age 25. Hippos measure 2.90 to 5.05 m (9.5 to 16.6 ft) long, including a tail of about 35 to 56 cm (1.15 to 1.84 ft) in length and 1.30 to 1.65 m (4.3 to 5.4 ft) tall at the shoulder, with males and females ranging 1.40 to 1.65 m (4.6 to 5.4 ft) and 1.30 to 1.45 m (4.3 to 4.8 ft) tall at the shoulder respectively. The species has a typical head-body length of 3.3–3.45 m (10.8–11.3 ft) and an average standing height of 1.4 m (4.6 ft) at the shoulder.

 

Hippos have barrel-shaped bodies with short tails and legs, and an hourglass-shaped skull with a long snout.  Their skeletal structures are graviportal, adapted to carrying their enormous weight, and their dense bones and low centre of gravity allows them to sink and move along the bottom of the water. Hippopotamuses have small legs (relative to other megafauna) because the water in which they live reduces the weight burden. The toes are webbed and the pelvis rests at an angle of 45 degrees.  Though chubby-looking, hippos have little fat.  The eyes, ears, and nostrils of hippos are placed high on the roof of their skulls. This allows these organs to remain above the surface while the rest of the body is submerged.  The nostrils and ears can close when underwater while nictitating membranes cover the eyes.  The vocal folds of the hippo are more horizontally positioned, much like cetaceans. Underneath are throat tissues, where vibrations are transmitted to produce underwater calls.

  

Characteristic "yawn" of a hippo

The hippo's jaw is powered by huge masseter and digastric muscles which give them large, droopy cheeks. The jaw hinge allows the animal to open its mouth at almost 180°.  A folded orbicularis oris muscle allows the hippo to attain an extreme gape without tearing any tissue. On the lower jaw, the incisors and canines grow continuously, the former reaching 40 cm (1 ft 4 in), while the latter can grow to up to 50 cm (1 ft 8 in). The lower canines are sharpened through contact with the smaller upper canines. The canines and incisors are used mainly for combat instead of feeding. Hippos rely on their flattened, horny lips to grasp and pull grasses which are then ground by the molars.  The hippo is considered to be a pseudoruminant; it has a complex three-chambered stomach, but does not "chew cud".

  

Completely submerged hippo (San Diego Zoo)

Hippo skin is 6 cm (2 in) thick across much of its body with little hair.  The animal is mostly purplish-grey or blue-black, but brownish-pink on the underside and around the eyes and ears. Their skin secretes a natural, red-coloured sunscreen substance that is sometimes referred to as "blood sweat" but is neither blood nor sweat. This secretion is initially colourless and turns red-orange within minutes, eventually becoming brown. Two highly acidic pigments have been identified in the secretions; one red (hipposudoric acid) and one orange (norhipposudoric acid), which inhibit the growth of disease-causing bacteria and their light-absorption profile peaks in the ultraviolet range, creating a sunscreen effect. Regardless of diet, all hippos secrete these pigments so food does not appear to be their source; rather, they may be synthesised from precursors such as the amino acid tyrosine. This natural sunscreen cannot prevent the animal's skin from cracking if it stays out of water too long.

 

The testes of the males do not fully descend and a scrotum is not present. In addition, the penis retracts into the body when not erect. The genitals of the female hippos are unusual in that the vagina is ridged and the vulval vestibule has two large, protruding diverticula. Both of these have an unknown function. 

 

A hippo's lifespan is typically 40 to 50 years.  Donna the Hippo was one of the oldest living hippos in captivity. She lived at the Mesker Park Zoo in Evansville, Indiana, in the US until her death in 2012 at the age of 61. The oldest hippo ever recorded was called Bertha; she had lived in the Manila Zoo in the Philippines since it first opened in 1959. When she died in 2017, her age was estimated to be 65.

 

Distribution and status

During the Middle Pleistocene to the early Late Pleistocene (~500,000–80,000 years ago) Hippopotamus amphibius was present in Europe, extending as far north as England during the Eemian (130–115,000 years ago), with fossils also known from Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Greece. The species first entered Europe between 560,000 and 460,000 years ago, while the last H. amphibius remains in Europe are dated to about 30,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence exists of its presence in the Levant, dating to less than 3,000 years ago. The species was common in Egypt's Nile region during antiquity, but it has since been driven out. According to Pliny the Elder, in his time, the best location in Egypt for capturing this animal was in the Saite nome; the animal could still be found along the Damietta branch of the Nile after the Arab Conquest in 639. Reports of the slaughter of the last hippo in Natal Province were made at the end of the 19th century. Hippos are still found in the rivers and lakes of the northern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya, north through to Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan, west to The Gambia, and south to South Africa.

 

Genetic evidence suggests common hippos in Africa experienced a marked population expansion during or after the Pleistocene, attributed to an increase in water bodies at the end of the era. These findings have important conservation implications, as hippo populations across the continent are currently threatened by loss of access to fresh water. Hippos are also subject to unregulated hunting and poaching. The species is included in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meaning international export/import (including in parts and derivatives) requires CITES documentation to be obtained and presented to border authorities.

 

As of 2017, the IUCN Red List drawn up by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the species as vulnerable, with a stable population estimated between 115,000 and 130,000 animals. The hippo population has declined most dramatically in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. By 2005, the population in Virunga National Park had dropped to 800 or 900 from around 29,000 in the mid-1970s. This decline is attributed to the disruptions caused by the Second Congo War. The poachers are believed to be Mai-Mai rebels, underpaid Congolese soldiers, and local militia groups. Reasons for poaching include the belief hippos are harmful to society, as well as financial gain. As of 2016, the Virunga hippo population appears to have increased again, possibly due to better protection from park rangers, who have worked with local fishermen. The sale of hippo meat is illegal, but black-market sales are difficult for Virunga National Park officers to track. Hippo meat is highly valued in some areas of central Africa and the teeth may be used as a replacement for elephant ivory.

 

A population of hippos exists in Colombia, descended from captive individuals that escaped from Pablo Escobar's estate after his death in 1993. Their numbers grew to 100 by the 2020s and ecologists believe the population should be eradicated, as they are breeding rapidly and are an increasing menace to humans and the environment. Attempts to control them include sterilisation and culling.

 

Behaviour and ecology

Hippos are semiaquatic and require enough water to immerse in, while being close to grass. Like most herbivores, hippos will consume a variety of plants if presented with them in captivity, but their diet in nature consists almost entirely of grass, with only minimal consumption of aquatic plants. They prefer relatively still waters with gently sloping shores, though male hippos may also be found in very small numbers in more rapid waters with rocky slopes.  Hippos mostly live in freshwater habitat, but can be found in estuaries. Despite being semiaquatic, an adult hippo is not a particularly good swimmer, nor can it float. It rarely enters deep water; when it does, the animal moves by bouncing off the bottom. An adult hippo surfaces every four to six minutes, while young need to breathe every two to three minutes.

 

Hippos spend most the day in water to stay cool and hydrated. Just before night begins, they leave the water to forage on land. Hippos usually trot to move quickly on land and can gallop at 30 km/h (19 mph) when needed. They are incapable of jumping but can walk up steep banks. A hippo will travel 3–5 km (1.9–3.1 mi) per night, eating around 40 kg (88 lb) of grass. By dawn, they are back in the water. The hippopotamus sleeps with both hemispheres of the brain resting, as in all land mammals, and usually sleeps on land or in water with the nostrils exposed. Despite this, it may be capable of sleeping while submerged, intermittently surfacing to breathe without waking. They appear to transition between different phases of sleep more quickly than other mammals.

 

Because of their size and their habit of taking the same paths to feed, hippos can have a significant impact on the land across which they walk, keeping the land clear of vegetation and depressing the ground. Over prolonged periods, hippos can divert the paths of swamps and channels. By defecating in the water, the animals also appear to pass on microbes from their gut, affecting the biogeochemical cycle. On occasion, hippos have been filmed eating carrion, usually near the water. There are other reports of meat-eating and even cannibalism and predation. Hippos' stomach anatomy lacks adaptions to carnivory and meat-eating is likely caused by lack of nutrients or just an abnormal behaviour.

 

Social life

It is challenging to study the interaction of bulls and cows because hippos are not sexually dimorphic, so cows and young bulls are almost indistinguishable in the field. Hippo pods fluctuate but can contain over 100 hippos. Although they lie close together, adults develop almost no social bonds. Males establish territories in water but not land, and these may range 250–500 m (270–550 yd) in lakes and 50–100 m (55–109 yd) in rivers. Territories are abandoned when the water dries up. The bull has breeding access to all the cows in his territory. Younger bachelors are allowed to stay as long as they defer to him. A younger male may challenge the old bull for control of the territory. Within the pods, the hippos tend to segregate by sex and status. Bachelor males lounge near other bachelors, females with other females, and the territorial male is on his own. When hippos emerge from the water to graze, they do so individually.

  

Male hippos fighting

Hippos engage in "muck-spreading" which involves defecating while spinning their tails to distribute the faeces over a greater area. Muck-spreading occurs both on land and in water and its function is not well understood. It is unlikely to serve a territorial function, as the animals only establish territories in the water. They may be used as trails between the water and grazing areas.  "Yawning" serves as a threat display. When fighting, bulls use their incisors to block each other's attacks and their large canines as offensive weapons.  When hippos become over-populated or a habitat shrinks, bulls sometimes attempt infanticide, but this behaviour is not common under normal conditions.

 

The most common hippo vocalisation is the "wheeze honk", which can travel over long distances in air. This call starts as a high-pitched squeal followed by a deeper, resonant call.  The animals can recognise the calls of other individuals. Hippos are more likely to react to the wheeze honks of strangers than to those they are more familiar with. When threatened or alarmed, they produce exhalations, and fighting bulls will bellow loudly. Hippos are recorded to produce clicks underwater which may have echolocative properties. They have the unique ability to hold their heads partially above the water and send out a cry that travels through both water and air; individuals respond both above and below water.

 

Reproduction

Cows reach sexual maturity at five to six years of age and have a gestation period of eight months. A study of endocrine systems revealed cows may begin puberty at as early as three or four years. Males reach maturity at around 7.5 years. Both conceptions and births are highest during the wet season. Male hippo always have mobile spermatozoa and can breed year-round.  After becoming pregnant, a female hippo will typically not begin ovulation again for 17 months.

  

Preserved hippopotamus fetus

Hippos mate in the water, with the cow remaining under the surface,  her head emerging periodically to draw breath. Cows give birth in seclusion and return within 10 to 14 days. Calves are born on land or shallow water weighing on average 50 kg (110 lb) and at an average length of around 127 cm (4.17 ft). The female lies on her side when nursing, which can occur underwater or on land. The young are carried on their mothers' backs in deep water. 

 

Mother hippos are very protective of their young, not allowing others to get too close. One cow was recorded protecting a calf's carcass after it had died. Calves may be temporarily kept in nurseries, guarded by one or more adults, and will play amongst themselves. Like many other large mammals, hippos are described as K-strategists, in this case typically producing just one large, well-developed infant every couple of years (rather than many small, poorly developed young several times per year, as is common among small mammals such as rodents). Calves no longer need to suckle when they are a year old. 

 

Interspecies interactions

Hippos coexist alongside a variety of large predators in their habitats. Nile crocodiles, lions, and spotted hyenas are known to prey on young hippos. Beyond these, adult hippos are not usually preyed upon by other animals due to their aggression and size. Cases where large lion prides have successfully preyed on adult hippos have been reported, but it is generally rare. Lions occasionally prey on adults at Gorongosa National Park and calves are sometimes taken at Virunga. Crocodiles are frequent targets of hippo aggression, probably because they often inhabit the same riparian habitats; crocodiles may be either aggressively displaced or killed by hippos. In turn, very large Nile crocodiles have been observed preying occasionally on calves, "half-grown" hippos, and possibly also adult female hippos. Groups of crocodiles have also been observed finishing off still-living male hippos that were previously injured in mating battles with other males.

 

Hippos occasionally visit cleaning stations in order to be cleaned of parasites by certain species of fishes. They signal their readiness for this service by opening their mouths wide. This is an example of mutualism, in which the hippo benefits from the cleaning while the fish receive food. Hippo defecation creates allochthonous deposits of organic matter along the river beds. These deposits have an unclear ecological function. A 2015 study concluded hippo dung provides nutrients from terrestrial material for fish and aquatic invertebrates, while a 2018 study found that their dung can be toxic to aquatic life in large quantities, due to absorption of dissolved oxygen in water bodies.

 

The parasitic monogenean flatworm Oculotrema hippopotami infests hippopotamus eyes, mainly the nictitating membrane. It is the only monogenean species (which normally live on fish) documented to live on a mammal.

 

Hippos and humans

The earliest evidence of human interaction with hippos comes from butchery cut marks on hippo bones found at the Bouri Formation and dated to around 160,000 years ago. 4,000–5,000 year art showing hippos being hunted have been found in the Tassili n'Ajjer Mountains of the central Sahara near Djanet. The ancient Egyptians recognised the hippo as a ferocious denizen of the Nile and representations on the tombs of nobles show the animals were hunted by humans.

 

The hippo was also known to the Greeks and Romans. The Greek historian Herodotus described the hippo in The Histories (written circa 440 BC) and the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder wrote about the hippo in his encyclopedia Naturalis Historia (written circa 77 AD). The Yoruba people called the hippo erinmi, which means "elephant of the water". Some individual hippos have achieved international fame. Huberta became a celebrity during the Great Depression for trekking a great distance across South Africa. 

 

Attacks on humans

The hippo is considered to be extremely aggressive and has frequently been reported charging and attacking boats. Small boats can easily be capsized by hippos and passengers can be injured or killed by the animals, or drown in the water. In one 2014 case in Niger, a boat was capsized by a hippo and 13 people were killed. Hippos will often raid farm crops if the opportunity arises, and humans may come into conflict with them on these occasions. These encounters can be fatal to either humans or hippos.

 

According to the Ptolemaic historian Manetho, the pharaoh Menes was carried off and then killed by a hippopotamus.

 

In zoos

Hippos have long been popular zoo animals. The first record of hippos taken into captivity for display is dated to 3500 BC in Hierakonpolis, Egypt. The first zoo hippo in modern history was Obaysch, who arrived at the London Zoo on 25 May 1850, where he attracted up to 10,000 visitors a day and inspired a popular song, the "Hippopotamus Polka".

 

Hippos generally breed well in captivity; birth rates are lower than in the wild, but this can be attributed to zoos' desire to limit births, since hippos are relatively expensive to maintain. Starting in 2015, the Cincinnati Zoo built a US$73 million exhibit to house three adult hippos, featuring a 250,000 L (66,000 US gal) tank. Modern hippo enclosures also have a complex filtration system for the animal's waste, an underwater viewing area for the visitors, and glass that may be up to 9 cm (3.5 in) thick and capable of holding water under pressures of 31 kPa (4.5 psi).  In 1987, the Toledo Zoo saw the first underwater birth by a captive hippo. The exhibit was so popular, the logo of the Toledo Zoo was updated to feature the hippos.

 

Cultural significance

In Egyptian mythology, the god Set takes the form of a red hippopotamus and fights Horus for control of the land, but is defeated. The goddess Tawaret is depicted as a pregnant woman with a hippo head, representing fierce maternal love. The Ijaw people of the Niger Delta wore masks of aquatic animals like the hippo when practising their water spirit cults, and hippo ivory was used in the divination rituals of the Yoruba. Hippo masks were also used in Nyau funerary rituals of the Chewa of Southern Africa.[97]: 120  According to Robert Baden-Powell, Zulu warriors referred to hippos in war chants. The Behemoth from the Book of Job, is thought to be based on the hippo.

 

Hippos have been the subjects of various African folktales. According to a San story, when the Creator assigned each animal its place in nature, the hippos wanted to live in the water, but were refused out of fear they might eat all the fish. After begging and pleading, the hippos were finally allowed to live in the water on the condition they would eat grass instead of fish, and fling their dung so it can be inspected for fish bones. In a Ndebele tale, the hippo originally had long, beautiful hair, but it was set on fire by a jealous hare and the hippo had to jump into a nearby pool. The hippo lost most of his hair and was too embarrassed to leave the water.

  

The "Hippopotamus Polka"

Hippopotamuses were rarely depicted in European art during the Renaissance and Baroque periods, due to less access to specimens by Europeans. One notable exception is Peter Paul Rubens' The Hippopotamus and Crocodile Hunt (1615–1616).  Ever since Obaysch inspired the "Hippopotamus Polka", hippos have been popular animals in Western culture for their rotund appearance, which many consider comical. The Disney film Fantasia featured a ballerina hippo dancing to the opera La Gioconda. The film Hugo the Hippo is set in Tanzania and involves the title character trying to escape being slaughtered with the help of local children. The Madagascar films feature a hippo named Gloria.  Hippos even inspired a popular board game, Hungry Hungry Hippos.

 

Among the most famous poems about the hippo is "The Hippopotamus" by T. S. Eliot, where he uses the animal to represent the Catholic Church. Hippos are mentioned in the novelty Christmas song "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" that became a hit for child star Gayla Peevey in 1953. They also featured in the popular "The Hippopotamous Song" by Flanders and Swann. 

 

A popular internet myth reports that hippos have pink milk. Biologist David Wynick states, "I think this is an Internet legend that is oft repeated but without any evidence for it that I can find... Like all mammals, hippos produce white or off-white milk for their young.

Qualified for DIII NCAA's! Leaving next wednesday for Iowa. Sold all my shoes so I have nothing sick to wear. Had to wear inflict 3s at regionals. HOOK ME UP LOOKING TO BUY!!! Need black reissues, kolat speeds, og kolats, or anything nice. let me know sz. 9.5-10.5. REALLY WOULD LIKE YELLOW P2s!

Keke Rosberg Qualified: 26th. Race: DNQ.

 

Image from the 1980 British Grand Prix weekend at Brands Hatch. Transparancy taken with Fujica ST605N and Soligor 75-260mm zoom and now scanned with an Epson V200.

 

1980GP-043a

 

All Rights Reserved © 1980 Frederick Roll ~ fjroll.com

Please do not use this image without prior permission

The Biddulph Gate in Famagusta, Turkish Republic of North Cyprus, is a ruined structure named after General Sir Robert Biddulph. It is situated within the walled city of Famagusta but is not part of the defensive wall. The gate's current state is that of a ruin.

 

The history of the Biddulph Gate is closely tied to General Sir Robert Biddulph, a British military officer who served in Cyprus during the late 19th century. It is believed that the gate was named in his honor, possibly due to his contributions or association with the region.

 

The exact origins and architectural details of the Biddulph Gate are unclear due to its ruined state. It is possible that the gate had historical significance and functioned as an entry point or passage within the walled city of Famagusta. However, the lack of available information makes it challenging to provide an in-depth account of its original purpose or design.

 

Over time, the Biddulph Gate fell into disrepair and is now in a ruined state. The specific reasons for its deterioration or the events that led to its current condition remain unclear. The gate's ruinous state adds to its historical intrigue and provides a sense of mystery surrounding its past.

 

Despite its ruined state, the Biddulph Gate holds cultural and historical importance as a tangible reminder of Famagusta's past. It serves as a poignant symbol of the city's history and the passage of time.

 

Preservation and restoration efforts may be necessary to protect the Biddulph Gate and prevent further deterioration. These initiatives could focus on stabilizing the structure, conducting archaeological research, and potentially opening it up to visitors as a cultural and historical attraction.

 

In conclusion, the Biddulph Gate in Famagusta, Turkish Republic of North Cyprus, is a ruined structure named after General Sir Robert Biddulph. While its exact origins and original purpose are unclear due to its current state, the gate's association with General Biddulph and its location within the walled city of Famagusta contribute to its historical significance. Efforts to preserve and understand this cultural heritage site may be necessary to ensure its continued appreciation and exploration.

 

General Sir Robert Biddulph, (26 August 1835 – 18 November 1918) was a senior British Army officer. He served as Quartermaster-General to the Forces in 1893, and was then Governor of Gibraltar until 1900.

 

Military career

Educated at Twyford School and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, Biddulph was commissioned into the Royal Artillery in 1853. He served in the Crimean War and was present at the Siege of Sevastopol in 1854. He then served in the Indian Mutiny, and was Brigade Major during the Siege of Lucknow in 1857.

 

In 1871 he was selected to be Assistant Adjutant-General at the War Office and then in 1879 he succeeded Sir Garnet Wolseley as High Commissioner and Commander-in-Chief of Cyprus. In 1886, he returned to London to be Inspector-General of Recruiting and two years later became Director-General of Military Education. In 1893 he was briefly Quartermaster-General to the Forces. Later that year he became Governor of Gibraltar, serving as such until 1900. He was Colonel Commandant of Royal Artillery, and was placed on retired pay on 26 August 1902.

 

His final appointment, in 1904, was as Army Purchase Commissioner: in that capacity he abolished the purchase of commissions.

 

He was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in the 1899 Birthday Honours. Biddulph's Gate in Famagusta in Cyprus is named after him.

 

Famagusta is a city on the east coast of the de facto state Northern Cyprus. It is located east of Nicosia and possesses the deepest harbour of the island. During the Middle Ages (especially under the maritime republics of Genoa and Venice), Famagusta was the island's most important port city and a gateway to trade with the ports of the Levant, from where the Silk Road merchants carried their goods to Western Europe. The old walled city and parts of the modern city are de facto part of Northern Cyprus as the capital of the Gazimağusa District.

 

The city was known as Arsinoe or Arsinoë (Greek: Ἀρσινόη, Arsinóē) in antiquity, after Ptolemy II of Egypt's sister and wife Arsinoe II.

 

By the 3rd century, the city appears as Ammochostos (Greek: Ἀμμόχωστος or Αμμόχωστος, Ammókhōstos, "Hidden in Sand") in the Stadiasmus Maris Magni.[5] This name is still used in modern Greek with the pronunciation [aˈmːoxostos], while it developed into Latin Fama Augusta, French Famagouste, Italian Famagosta, and English Famagusta during the medieval period. Its informal modern Turkish name Mağusa (Turkish pronunciation: [maˈusa]) came from the same source. Since 1974, it has formally been known to Turkey and Northern Cyprus as Gazimağusa ([ɡaːzimaˈusa]), from the addition of the title gazi, meaning "veteran" or "one who has faught in a holy war".

 

In the early medieval period, the city was also known as New Justiniana (Greek: Νέα Ἰουστινιανία, Néa Ioustinianía) in appreciation for the patronage of the Byzantine emperor Justinian, whose wife Theodora was born there.

 

The old town of Famagusta has also been nicknamed "the City of 365 Churches" from the legend that, at its peak, it boasted a church for every day of the year.

 

The city was founded around 274 BC, after the serious damage to Salamis by an earthquake, by Ptolemy II Philadelphus and named "Arsinoe" after his sister.[6] Arsinoe was described as a "fishing town" by Strabo in his Geographica in the first century BC. In essence, Famagusta was the successor of the most famous and most important ancient city of Cyprus, Salamis. According to Greek mythology, Salamis was founded after the end of the Trojan War by Teucros, the son of Telamon and brother of Aedes, from the Greek island of Salamis.

 

The city experienced great prosperity much later, during the time of the Byzantine emperor Justinian. To honor the city, from which his wife Theodora came, Justinian enriched it with many buildings, while the inhabitants named it New Justiniania to express their gratitude. In AD 647, when the neighboring cities were destroyed by Arab raiding, the inhabitants of these cities moved to Famagusta, as a result of which the city's population increased significantly and the city experienced another boom.

 

Later, when Jerusalem was occupied by the Arabs, the Christian population fled to Famagusta, as a result of which the city became an important Christian center, but also one of the most important commercial centers in the eastern Mediterranean.

 

The turning point for Famagusta was 1192 with the onset of Lusignan rule. It was during this period that Famagusta developed as a fully-fledged town. It increased in importance to the Eastern Mediterranean due to its natural harbour and the walls that protected its inner town. Its population began to increase. This development accelerated in the 13th century as the town became a centre of commerce for both the East and West. An influx of Christian refugees fleeing the downfall of Acre (1291) in Palestine transformed it from a tiny village into one of the richest cities in Christendom.

 

In 1372 the port was seized by Genoa and in 1489 by Venice. This commercial activity turned Famagusta into a place where merchants and ship owners led lives of luxury. By the mid-14th century, Famagusta was said to have the richest citizens in the world. The belief that people's wealth could be measured by the churches they built inspired these merchants to have churches built in varying styles. These churches, which still exist, were the reason Famagusta came to be known as "the district of churches". The development of the town focused on the social lives of the wealthy people and was centred upon the Lusignan palace, the cathedral, the Square and the harbour.

 

In 1570–1571, Famagusta was the last stronghold in Venetian Cyprus to hold out against the Turks under Mustafa Pasha. It resisted a siege of thirteen months and a terrible bombardment, until at last the garrison surrendered. The Ottoman forces had lost 50,000 men, including Mustafa Pasha's son. Although the surrender terms had stipulated that the Venetian forces be allowed to return home, the Venetian commander, Marco Antonio Bragadin, was flayed alive, his lieutenant Tiepolo was hanged, and many other Christians were killed.

 

With the advent of the Ottoman rule, Latins lost their privileged status in Famagusta and were expelled from the city. Greek Cypriots natives were at first allowed to own and buy property in the city, but were banished from the walled city in 1573–74 and had to settle outside in the area that later developed into Varosha. Turkish families from Anatolia were resettled in the walled city but could not fill the buildings that previously hosted a population of 10,000. This caused a drastic decrease in the population of Famagusta. Merchants from Famagusta, who mostly consisted of Latins that had been expelled, resettled in Larnaca and as Larnaca flourished, Famagusta lost its importance as a trade centre. Over time, Varosha developed into a prosperous agricultural town thanks to its location away from the marshes, whilst the walled city remained dilapidated.

 

In the walled city, some buildings were repurposed to serve the interests of the Muslim population: the Cathedral of St. Nicholas was converted to a mosque (now known as Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque), a bazaar was developed, public baths, fountains and a theological school were built to accommodate the inhabitants' needs. Dead end streets, an Ottoman urban characteristic, was imported to the city and a communal spirit developed in which a small number of two-storey houses inhabited by the small upper class co-existed with the widespread one-storey houses.

 

With the British takeover, Famagusta regained its significance as a port and an economic centre and its development was specifically targeted in British plans. As soon as the British took over the island, a Famagusta Development Act was passed that aimed at the reconstruction and redevelopment of the city's streets and dilapidated buildings as well as better hygiene. The port was developed and expanded between 1903 and 1906 and Cyprus Government Railway, with its terminus in Famagusta, started construction in 1904. Whilst Larnaca continued to be used as the main port of the island for some time, after Famagusta's use as a military base in World War I trade significantly shifted to Famagusta. The city outside the walls grew at an accelerated rate, with development being centred around Varosha. Varosha became the administrative centre as the British moved their headquarters and residences there and tourism grew significantly in the last years of the British rule. Pottery and production of citrus and potatoes also significantly grew in the city outside the walls, whilst agriculture within the walled city declined to non-existence.

 

New residential areas were built to accommodate the increasing population towards the end of the British rule,[11] and by 1960, Famagusta was a modern port city extending far beyond Varosha and the walled city.

 

The British period saw a significant demographic shift in the city. In 1881, Christians constituted 60% of the city's population while Muslims were at 40%. By 1960, the Turkish Cypriot population had dropped to 17.5% of the overall population, while the Greek Cypriot population had risen to 70%. The city was also the site for one of the British internment camps for nearly 50,000 Jewish survivors of the Holocaust trying to emigrate to Palestine.

 

From independence in 1960 to the Turkish invasion of Cyprus of 1974, Famagusta developed toward the south west of Varosha as a well-known entertainment and tourist centre. The contribution of Famagusta to the country's economic activity by 1974 far exceeded its proportional dimensions within the country. Whilst its population was only about 7% of the total of the country, Famagusta by 1974 accounted for over 10% of the total industrial employment and production of Cyprus, concentrating mainly on light industry compatible with its activity as a tourist resort and turning out high-quality products ranging from food, beverages and tobacco to clothing, footwear, plastics, light machinery and transport equipment. It contributed 19.3% of the business units and employed 21.3% of the total number of persons engaged in commerce on the island. It acted as the main tourist destination of Cyprus, hosting 31.5% of the hotels and 45% of Cyprus' total bed capacity. Varosha acted as the main touristic and business quarters.

 

In this period, the urbanisation of Famagusta slowed down and the development of the rural areas accelerated. Therefore, economic growth was shared between the city of Famagusta and the district, which had a balanced agricultural economy, with citrus, potatoes, tobacco and wheat as main products. Famagusta maintained good communications with this hinterland. The city's port remained the island's main seaport and in 1961, it was expanded to double its capacity in order to accommodate the growing volume of exports and imports. The port handled 42.7% of Cypriot exports, 48.6% of imports and 49% of passenger traffic.

 

There has not been an official census since 1960 but the population of the town in 1974 was estimated to be around 39,000 not counting about 12,000–15,000 persons commuting daily from the surrounding villages and suburbs to work in Famagusta. The number of people staying in the city would swell to about 90,000–100,000 during the peak summer tourist period, with the influx of tourists from numerous European countries, mainly Britain, France, Germany and the Scandinavian countries. The majority of the city population were Greek Cypriots (26,500), with 8,500 Turkish Cypriots and 4,000 people from other ethnic groups.

 

During the second phase of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus on 14 August 1974 the Mesaoria plain was overrun by Turkish tanks and Famagusta was bombed by Turkish aircraft. It took two days for the Turkish Army to occupy the city, prior to which Famagusta's entire Greek Cypriot population had fled into surrounding fields. As a result of Turkish airstrikes dozens of civilians died, including tourists.

 

Unlike other parts of the Turkish-controlled areas of Cyprus, the Varosha suburb of Famagusta was fenced off by the Turkish army immediately after being captured and remained fenced off until October 2020, when the TRNC reopened some streets to visitors. Some Greek Cypriots who had fled Varosha have been allowed to view the town and journalists have been allowed in.

 

UN Security Council resolution 550 (1984) considers any attempts to settle any part of Famagusta by people other than its inhabitants as inadmissible and calls for the transfer of this area to the administration of the UN. The UN's Security Council resolution 789 (1992) also urges that with a view to the implementation of resolution 550 (1984), the area at present under the control of the United Nations Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus be extended to include Varosha.

 

Famagusta's historic city centre is surrounded by the fortifications of Famagusta, which have a roughly rectangular shape, built mainly by the Venetians in the 15th and 16th centuries, though some sections of the walls have been dated earlier times, as far as 1211.

 

Some important landmarks and visitor attractions in the old city are:

The Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque

The Othello Castle

Palazzo del Provveditore - the Venetian palace of the governor, built on the site of the former Lusignan royal palace

St. Francis' Church

Sinan Pasha Mosque

Church of St. George of the Greeks

Church of St. George of the Latins

Twin Churches

Nestorian Church (of St George the Exiler)

Namık Kemal Dungeon

Agios Ioannis Church

Venetian House

Akkule Masjid

Mustafa Pasha Mosque

Ganchvor monastery

 

In an October 2010 report titled Saving Our Vanishing Heritage, Global Heritage Fund listed Famagusta, a "maritime ancient city of crusader kings", among the 12 sites most "On the Verge" of irreparable loss and destruction, citing insufficient management and development pressures.

 

Famagusta is an important commercial hub of Northern Cyprus. The main economic activities in the city are tourism, education, construction and industrial production. It has a 115-acre free port, which is the most important seaport of Northern Cyprus for travel and commerce. The port is an important source of income and employment for the city, though its volume of trade is restricted by the embargo against Northern Cyprus. Its historical sites, including the walled city, Salamis, the Othello Castle and the St Barnabas Church, as well as the sandy beaches surrounding it make it a tourist attraction; efforts are also underway to make the city more attractive for international congresses. The Eastern Mediterranean University is also an important employer and supplies significant income and activity, as well as opportunities for the construction sector. The university also raises a qualified workforce that stimulates the city's industry and makes communications industry viable. The city has two industrial zones: the Large Industrial Zone and the Little Industrial Zone. The city is also home to a fishing port, but inadequate infrastructure of the port restricts the growth of this sector. The industry in the city has traditionally been concentrated on processing agricultural products.

 

Historically, the port was the primary source of income and employment for the city, especially right after 1974. However, it gradually lost some of its importance to the economy as the share of its employees in the population of Famagusta diminished due to various reasons. However, it still is the primary port for commerce in Northern Cyprus, with more than half of ships that came to Northern Cyprus in 2013 coming to Famagusta. It is the second most popular seaport for passengers, after Kyrenia, with around 20,000 passengers using the port in 2013.

 

The mayor-in-exile of Famagusta is Simos Ioannou. Süleyman Uluçay heads the Turkish Cypriot municipal administration of Famagusta, which remains legal as a communal-based body under the constitutional system of the Republic of Cyprus.

 

Since 1974, Greek Cypriots submitted a number of proposals within the context of bicommunal discussions for the return of Varosha to UN administration, allowing the return of its previous inhabitants, requesting also the opening of Famagusta harbour for use by both communities. Varosha would have been returned to Greek Cypriot control as part of the 2004 Annan Plan but the plan had been rejected by a majority(3/4) of Greek Cypriot voters.

 

The walled city of Famagusta contains many unique buildings. Famagusta has a walled city popular with tourists.

 

Every year, the International Famagusta Art and Culture Festival is organized in Famagusta. Concerts, dance shows and theater plays take place during the festival.

 

A growth in tourism and the city's university have fueled the development of Famagusta's vibrant nightlife. Nightlife in the city is especially active on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights and in the hotter months of the year, starting from April. Larger hotels in the city have casinos that cater to their customers. Salamis Road is an area of Famagusta with a heavy concentration of bars frequented by students and locals.

 

Famagusta's Othello Castle is the setting for Shakespeare's play Othello. The city was also the setting for Victoria Hislop's 2015 novel The Sunrise, and Michael Paraskos's 2016 novel In Search of Sixpence. The city is the birthplace of the eponymous hero of the Renaissance proto-novel Fortunatus.

 

Famagusta was home to many Greek Cypriot sport teams that left the city because of the Turkish invasion and still bear their original names. Most notable football clubs originally from the city are Anorthosis Famagusta FC and Nea Salamis Famagusta FC, both of the Cypriot First Division, which are now based in Larnaca. Usually Anorthosis Famagusta fans are politically right wing where Nea Salamis fans are left wing.

 

Famagusta is represented by Mağusa Türk Gücü in the Turkish Cypriot First Division. Dr. Fazıl Küçük Stadium is the largest football stadium in Famagusta. Many Turkish Cypriot sport teams that left Southern Cyprus because of the Cypriot intercommunal violence are based in Famagusta.

 

Famagusta is represented by DAÜ Sports Club and Magem Sports Club in North Cyprus First Volleyball Division. Gazimağusa Türk Maarif Koleji represents Famagusta in the North Cyprus High School Volleyball League.

 

Famagusta has a modern volleyball stadium called the Mağusa Arena.

 

The Eastern Mediterranean University was founded in the city in 1979. The Istanbul Technical University founded a campus in the city in 2010.

 

The Cyprus College of Art was founded in Famagusta by the Cypriot artist Stass Paraskos in 1969, before moving to Paphos in 1972 after protests from local hoteliers that the presence of art students in the city was putting off holidaymakers.

 

Famagusta has three general hospitals. Gazimağusa Devlet Hastahanesi, a state hospital, is the biggest hospital in city. Gazimağusa Tıp Merkezi and Gazimağusa Yaşam Hastahanesi are private hospitals.

 

Personalities

Saint Barnabas, born and died in Salamis, Famagusta

Chris Achilleos, illustrator of the book versions on the BBC children's series Doctor Who

Beran Bertuğ, former Governor of Famagusta, first Cypriot woman to hold this position

Marios Constantinou, former international Cypriot football midfielder and current manager.

Eleftheria Eleftheriou, Cypriot singer.

Derviş Eroğlu, former President of Northern Cyprus

Alexis Galanos, 7th President of the House of Representatives and Famagusta mayor-in-exile (2006-2019) (Republic of Cyprus)

Xanthos Hadjisoteriou, Cypriot painter

Oz Karahan, political activist, President of the Union of Cypriots

Oktay Kayalp, former Turkish Cypriot Famagusta mayor (Northern Cyprus)

Harry Luke British diplomat

Angelos Misos, former international footballer

Costas Montis was an influential and prolific Greek Cypriot poet, novelist, and playwright born in Famagusta.

Hal Ozsan, actor (Dawson's Creek, Kyle XY)

Dimitris Papadakis, a Greek Cypriot politician, who served as a Member of the European Parliament.

Ṣubḥ-i-Azal, Persian religious leader, lived and died in exile in Famagusta

Touker Suleyman (born Türker Süleyman), British Turkish Cypriot fashion retail entrepreneur, investor and reality television personality.

Alexia Vassiliou, singer, left here as a refugee when the town was invaded.

George Vasiliou, former President of Cyprus

Vamik Volkan, Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry

Derviş Zaim, film director

 

Famagusta is twinned with:

İzmir, Turkey (since 1974)

Corfu, Greece (since 1994)

Patras, Greece (since 1994)

Antalya, Turkey (since 1997)

Salamina (city), Greece (since 1998)

Struga, North Macedonia

Athens, Greece (since 2005)

Mersin, Turkey

 

Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a de facto state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus. It is recognised only by Turkey, and its territory is considered by all other states to be part of the Republic of Cyprus.

 

Northern Cyprus extends from the tip of the Karpass Peninsula in the northeast to Morphou Bay, Cape Kormakitis and its westernmost point, the Kokkina exclave in the west. Its southernmost point is the village of Louroujina. A buffer zone under the control of the United Nations stretches between Northern Cyprus and the rest of the island and divides Nicosia, the island's largest city and capital of both sides.

 

A coup d'état in 1974, performed as part of an attempt to annex the island to Greece, prompted the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. This resulted in the eviction of much of the north's Greek Cypriot population, the flight of Turkish Cypriots from the south, and the partitioning of the island, leading to a unilateral declaration of independence by the north in 1983. Due to its lack of recognition, Northern Cyprus is heavily dependent on Turkey for economic, political and military support.

 

Attempts to reach a solution to the Cyprus dispute have been unsuccessful. The Turkish Army maintains a large force in Northern Cyprus with the support and approval of the TRNC government, while the Republic of Cyprus, the European Union as a whole, and the international community regard it as an occupation force. This military presence has been denounced in several United Nations Security Council resolutions.

 

Northern Cyprus is a semi-presidential, democratic republic with a cultural heritage incorporating various influences and an economy that is dominated by the services sector. The economy has seen growth through the 2000s and 2010s, with the GNP per capita more than tripling in the 2000s, but is held back by an international embargo due to the official closure of the ports in Northern Cyprus by the Republic of Cyprus. The official language is Turkish, with a distinct local dialect being spoken. The vast majority of the population consists of Sunni Muslims, while religious attitudes are mostly moderate and secular. Northern Cyprus is an observer state of ECO and OIC under the name "Turkish Cypriot State", PACE under the name "Turkish Cypriot Community", and Organization of Turkic States with its own name.

 

Several distinct periods of Cypriot intercommunal violence involving the two main ethnic communities, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, marked mid-20th century Cyprus. These included the Cyprus Emergency of 1955–59 during British rule, the post-independence Cyprus crisis of 1963–64, and the Cyprus crisis of 1967. Hostilities culminated in the 1974 de facto division of the island along the Green Line following the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. The region has been relatively peaceful since then, but the Cyprus dispute has continued, with various attempts to solve it diplomatically having been generally unsuccessful.

 

Cyprus, an island lying in the eastern Mediterranean, hosted a population of Greeks and Turks (four-fifths and one-fifth, respectively), who lived under British rule in the late nineteenth-century and the first half of the twentieth-century. Christian Orthodox Church of Cyprus played a prominent political role among the Greek Cypriot community, a privilege that it acquired during the Ottoman Empire with the employment of the millet system, which gave the archbishop an unofficial ethnarch status.

 

The repeated rejections by the British of Greek Cypriot demands for enosis, union with Greece, led to armed resistance, organised by the National Organization of Cypriot Struggle, or EOKA. EOKA, led by the Greek-Cypriot commander George Grivas, systematically targeted British colonial authorities. One of the effects of EOKA's campaign was to alter the Turkish position from demanding full reincorporation into Turkey to a demand for taksim (partition). EOKA's mission and activities caused a "Cretan syndrome" (see Turkish Resistance Organisation) within the Turkish Cypriot community, as its members feared that they would be forced to leave the island in such a case as had been the case with Cretan Turks. As such, they preferred the continuation of British colonial rule and then taksim, the division of the island. Due to the Turkish Cypriots' support for the British, EOKA's leader, Georgios Grivas, declared them to be enemies. The fact that the Turks were a minority was, according to Nihat Erim, to be addressed by the transfer of thousands of Turks from mainland Turkey so that Greek Cypriots would cease to be the majority. When Erim visited Cyprus as the Turkish representative, he was advised by Field Marshal Sir John Harding, the then Governor of Cyprus, that Turkey should send educated Turks to settle in Cyprus.

 

Turkey actively promoted the idea that on the island of Cyprus two distinctive communities existed, and sidestepped its former claim that "the people of Cyprus were all Turkish subjects". In doing so, Turkey's aim to have self-determination of two to-be equal communities in effect led to de jure partition of the island.[citation needed] This could be justified to the international community against the will of the majority Greek population of the island. Dr. Fazil Küçük in 1954 had already proposed Cyprus be divided in two at the 35° parallel.

 

Lindley Dan, from Notre Dame University, spotted the roots of intercommunal violence to different visions among the two communities of Cyprus (enosis for Greek Cypriots, taksim for Turkish Cypriots). Also, Lindlay wrote that "the merging of church, schools/education, and politics in divisive and nationalistic ways" had played a crucial role in creation of havoc in Cyprus' history. Attalides Michael also pointed to the opposing nationalisms as the cause of the Cyprus problem.

 

By the mid-1950's, the "Cyprus is Turkish" party, movement, and slogan gained force in both Cyprus and Turkey. In a 1954 editorial, Turkish Cypriot leader Dr. Fazil Kuchuk expressed the sentiment that the Turkish youth had grown up with the idea that "as soon as Great Britain leaves the island, it will be taken over by the Turks", and that "Turkey cannot tolerate otherwise". This perspective contributed to the willingness of Turkish Cypriots to align themselves with the British, who started recruiting Turkish Cypriots into the police force that patrolled Cyprus to fight EOKA, a Greek Cypriot nationalist organisation that sought to rid the island of British rule.

 

EOKA targeted colonial authorities, including police, but Georgios Grivas, the leader of EOKA, did not initially wish to open up a new front by fighting Turkish Cypriots and reassured them that EOKA would not harm their people. In 1956, some Turkish Cypriot policemen were killed by EOKA members and this provoked some intercommunal violence in the spring and summer, but these attacks on policemen were not motivated by the fact that they were Turkish Cypriots.

 

However, in January 1957, Grivas changed his policy as his forces in the mountains became increasingly pressured by the British Crown forces. In order to divert the attention of the Crown forces, EOKA members started to target Turkish Cypriot policemen intentionally in the towns, so that Turkish Cypriots would riot against the Greek Cypriots and the security forces would have to be diverted to the towns to restore order. The killing of a Turkish Cypriot policeman on 19 January, when a power station was bombed, and the injury of three others, provoked three days of intercommunal violence in Nicosia. The two communities targeted each other in reprisals, at least one Greek Cypriot was killed and the British Army was deployed in the streets. Greek Cypriot stores were burned and their neighbourhoods attacked. Following the events, the Greek Cypriot leadership spread the propaganda that the riots had merely been an act of Turkish Cypriot aggression. Such events created chaos and drove the communities apart both in Cyprus and in Turkey.

 

On 22 October 1957 Sir Hugh Mackintosh Foot replaced Sir John Harding as the British Governor of Cyprus. Foot suggested five to seven years of self-government before any final decision. His plan rejected both enosis and taksim. The Turkish Cypriot response to this plan was a series of anti-British demonstrations in Nicosia on 27 and 28 January 1958 rejecting the proposed plan because the plan did not include partition. The British then withdrew the plan.

 

In 1957, Black Gang, a Turkish Cypriot pro-taksim paramilitary organisation, was formed to patrol a Turkish Cypriot enclave, the Tahtakale district of Nicosia, against activities of EOKA. The organisation later attempted to grow into a national scale, but failed to gain public support.

 

By 1958, signs of dissatisfaction with the British increased on both sides, with a group of Turkish Cypriots forming Volkan (later renamed to the Turkish Resistance Organisation) paramilitary group to promote partition and the annexation of Cyprus to Turkey as dictated by the Menderes plan. Volkan initially consisted of roughly 100 members, with the stated aim of raising awareness in Turkey of the Cyprus issue and courting military training and support for Turkish Cypriot fighters from the Turkish government.

 

In June 1958, the British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, was expected to propose a plan to resolve the Cyprus issue. In light of the new development, the Turks rioted in Nicosia to promote the idea that Greek and Turkish Cypriots could not live together and therefore any plan that did not include partition would not be viable. This violence was soon followed by bombing, Greek Cypriot deaths and looting of Greek Cypriot-owned shops and houses. Greek and Turkish Cypriots started to flee mixed population villages where they were a minority in search of safety. This was effectively the beginning of the segregation of the two communities. On 7 June 1958, a bomb exploded at the entrance of the Turkish Embassy in Cyprus. Following the bombing, Turkish Cypriots looted Greek Cypriot properties. On 26 June 1984, the Turkish Cypriot leader, Rauf Denktaş, admitted on British channel ITV that the bomb was placed by the Turks themselves in order to create tension. On 9 January 1995, Rauf Denktaş repeated his claim to the famous Turkish newspaper Milliyet in Turkey.

 

The crisis reached a climax on 12 June 1958, when eight Greeks, out of an armed group of thirty five arrested by soldiers of the Royal Horse Guards on suspicion of preparing an attack on the Turkish quarter of Skylloura, were killed in a suspected attack by Turkish Cypriot locals, near the village of Geunyeli, having been ordered to walk back to their village of Kondemenos.

 

After the EOKA campaign had begun, the British government successfully began to turn the Cyprus issue from a British colonial problem into a Greek-Turkish issue. British diplomacy exerted backstage influence on the Adnan Menderes government, with the aim of making Turkey active in Cyprus. For the British, the attempt had a twofold objective. The EOKA campaign would be silenced as quickly as possible, and Turkish Cypriots would not side with Greek Cypriots against the British colonial claims over the island, which would thus remain under the British. The Turkish Cypriot leadership visited Menderes to discuss the Cyprus issue. When asked how the Turkish Cypriots should respond to the Greek Cypriot claim of enosis, Menderes replied: "You should go to the British foreign minister and request the status quo be prolonged, Cyprus to remain as a British colony". When the Turkish Cypriots visited the British Foreign Secretary and requested for Cyprus to remain a colony, he replied: "You should not be asking for colonialism at this day and age, you should be asking for Cyprus be returned to Turkey, its former owner".

 

As Turkish Cypriots began to look to Turkey for protection, Greek Cypriots soon understood that enosis was extremely unlikely. The Greek Cypriot leader, Archbishop Makarios III, now set independence for the island as his objective.

 

Britain resolved to solve the dispute by creating an independent Cyprus. In 1959, all involved parties signed the Zurich Agreements: Britain, Turkey, Greece, and the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders, Makarios and Dr. Fazil Kucuk, respectively. The new constitution drew heavily on the ethnic composition of the island. The President would be a Greek Cypriot, and the Vice-President a Turkish Cypriot with an equal veto. The contribution to the public service would be set at a ratio of 70:30, and the Supreme Court would consist of an equal number of judges from both communities as well as an independent judge who was not Greek, Turkish or British. The Zurich Agreements were supplemented by a number of treaties. The Treaty of Guarantee stated that secession or union with any state was forbidden, and that Greece, Turkey and Britain would be given guarantor status to intervene if that was violated. The Treaty of Alliance allowed for two small Greek and Turkish military contingents to be stationed on the island, and the Treaty of Establishment gave Britain sovereignty over two bases in Akrotiri and Dhekelia.

 

On 15 August 1960, the Colony of Cyprus became fully independent as the Republic of Cyprus. The new republic remained within the Commonwealth of Nations.

 

The new constitution brought dissatisfaction to Greek Cypriots, who felt it to be highly unjust for them for historical, demographic and contributional reasons. Although 80% of the island's population were Greek Cypriots and these indigenous people had lived on the island for thousands of years and paid 94% of taxes, the new constitution was giving the 17% of the population that was Turkish Cypriots, who paid 6% of taxes, around 30% of government jobs and 40% of national security jobs.

 

Within three years tensions between the two communities in administrative affairs began to show. In particular disputes over separate municipalities and taxation created a deadlock in government. A constitutional court ruled in 1963 Makarios had failed to uphold article 173 of the constitution which called for the establishment of separate municipalities for Turkish Cypriots. Makarios subsequently declared his intention to ignore the judgement, resulting in the West German judge resigning from his position. Makarios proposed thirteen amendments to the constitution, which would have had the effect of resolving most of the issues in the Greek Cypriot favour. Under the proposals, the President and Vice-President would lose their veto, the separate municipalities as sought after by the Turkish Cypriots would be abandoned, the need for separate majorities by both communities in passing legislation would be discarded and the civil service contribution would be set at actual population ratios (82:18) instead of the slightly higher figure for Turkish Cypriots.

 

The intention behind the amendments has long been called into question. The Akritas plan, written in the height of the constitutional dispute by the Greek Cypriot interior minister Polycarpos Georkadjis, called for the removal of undesirable elements of the constitution so as to allow power-sharing to work. The plan envisaged a swift retaliatory attack on Turkish Cypriot strongholds should Turkish Cypriots resort to violence to resist the measures, stating "In the event of a planned or staged Turkish attack, it is imperative to overcome it by force in the shortest possible time, because if we succeed in gaining command of the situation (in one or two days), no outside, intervention would be either justified or possible." Whether Makarios's proposals were part of the Akritas plan is unclear, however it remains that sentiment towards enosis had not completely disappeared with independence. Makarios described independence as "a step on the road to enosis".[31] Preparations for conflict were not entirely absent from Turkish Cypriots either, with right wing elements still believing taksim (partition) the best safeguard against enosis.

 

Greek Cypriots however believe the amendments were a necessity stemming from a perceived attempt by Turkish Cypriots to frustrate the working of government. Turkish Cypriots saw it as a means to reduce their status within the state from one of co-founder to that of minority, seeing it as a first step towards enosis. The security situation deteriorated rapidly.

 

Main articles: Bloody Christmas (1963) and Battle of Tillyria

An armed conflict was triggered after December 21, 1963, a period remembered by Turkish Cypriots as Bloody Christmas, when a Greek Cypriot policemen that had been called to help deal with a taxi driver refusing officers already on the scene access to check the identification documents of his customers, took out his gun upon arrival and shot and killed the taxi driver and his partner. Eric Solsten summarised the events as follows: "a Greek Cypriot police patrol, ostensibly checking identification documents, stopped a Turkish Cypriot couple on the edge of the Turkish quarter. A hostile crowd gathered, shots were fired, and two Turkish Cypriots were killed."

 

In the morning after the shooting, crowds gathered in protest in Northern Nicosia, likely encouraged by the TMT, without incident. On the evening of the 22nd, gunfire broke out, communication lines to the Turkish neighbourhoods were cut, and the Greek Cypriot police occupied the nearby airport. On the 23rd, a ceasefire was negotiated, but did not hold. Fighting, including automatic weapons fire, between Greek and Turkish Cypriots and militias increased in Nicosia and Larnaca. A force of Greek Cypriot irregulars led by Nikos Sampson entered the Nicosia suburb of Omorphita and engaged in heavy firing on armed, as well as by some accounts unarmed, Turkish Cypriots. The Omorphita clash has been described by Turkish Cypriots as a massacre, while this view has generally not been acknowledged by Greek Cypriots.

 

Further ceasefires were arranged between the two sides, but also failed. By Christmas Eve, the 24th, Britain, Greece, and Turkey had joined talks, with all sides calling for a truce. On Christmas day, Turkish fighter jets overflew Nicosia in a show of support. Finally it was agreed to allow a force of 2,700 British soldiers to help enforce a ceasefire. In the next days, a "buffer zone" was created in Nicosia, and a British officer marked a line on a map with green ink, separating the two sides of the city, which was the beginning of the "Green Line". Fighting continued across the island for the next several weeks.

 

In total 364 Turkish Cypriots and 174 Greek Cypriots were killed during the violence. 25,000 Turkish Cypriots from 103-109 villages fled and were displaced into enclaves and thousands of Turkish Cypriot houses were ransacked or completely destroyed.

 

Contemporary newspapers also reported on the forceful exodus of the Turkish Cypriots from their homes. According to The Times in 1964, threats, shootings and attempts of arson were committed against the Turkish Cypriots to force them out of their homes. The Daily Express wrote that "25,000 Turks have already been forced to leave their homes". The Guardian reported a massacre of Turks at Limassol on 16 February 1964.

 

Turkey had by now readied its fleet and its fighter jets appeared over Nicosia. Turkey was dissuaded from direct involvement by the creation of a United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) in 1964. Despite the negotiated ceasefire in Nicosia, attacks on the Turkish Cypriot persisted, particularly in Limassol. Concerned about the possibility of a Turkish invasion, Makarios undertook the creation of a Greek Cypriot conscript-based army called the "National Guard". A general from Greece took charge of the army, whilst a further 20,000 well-equipped officers and men were smuggled from Greece into Cyprus. Turkey threatened to intervene once more, but was prevented by a strongly worded letter from the American President Lyndon B. Johnson, anxious to avoid a conflict between NATO allies Greece and Turkey at the height of the Cold War.

 

Turkish Cypriots had by now established an important bridgehead at Kokkina, provided with arms, volunteers and materials from Turkey and abroad. Seeing this incursion of foreign weapons and troops as a major threat, the Cypriot government invited George Grivas to return from Greece as commander of the Greek troops on the island and launch a major attack on the bridgehead. Turkey retaliated by dispatching its fighter jets to bomb Greek positions, causing Makarios to threaten an attack on every Turkish Cypriot village on the island if the bombings did not cease. The conflict had now drawn in Greece and Turkey, with both countries amassing troops on their Thracian borders. Efforts at mediation by Dean Acheson, a former U.S. Secretary of State, and UN-appointed mediator Galo Plaza had failed, all the while the division of the two communities becoming more apparent. Greek Cypriot forces were estimated at some 30,000, including the National Guard and the large contingent from Greece. Defending the Turkish Cypriot enclaves was a force of approximately 5,000 irregulars, led by a Turkish colonel, but lacking the equipment and organisation of the Greek forces.

 

The Secretary-General of the United Nations in 1964, U Thant, reported the damage during the conflicts:

 

UNFICYP carried out a detailed survey of all damage to properties throughout the island during the disturbances; it shows that in 109 villages, most of them Turkish-Cypriot or mixed villages, 527 houses have been destroyed while 2,000 others have suffered damage from looting.

 

The situation worsened in 1967, when a military junta overthrew the democratically elected government of Greece, and began applying pressure on Makarios to achieve enosis. Makarios, not wishing to become part of a military dictatorship or trigger a Turkish invasion, began to distance himself from the goal of enosis. This caused tensions with the junta in Greece as well as George Grivas in Cyprus. Grivas's control over the National Guard and Greek contingent was seen as a threat to Makarios's position, who now feared a possible coup.[citation needed] The National Guard and Cyprus Police began patrolling the Turkish Cypriot enclaves of Ayios Theodoros and Kophinou, and on November 15 engaged in heavy fighting with the Turkish Cypriots.

 

By the time of his withdrawal 26 Turkish Cypriots had been killed. Turkey replied with an ultimatum demanding that Grivas be removed from the island, that the troops smuggled from Greece in excess of the limits of the Treaty of Alliance be removed, and that the economic blockades on the Turkish Cypriot enclaves be lifted. Grivas was recalled by the Athens Junta and the 12,000 Greek troops were withdrawn. Makarios now attempted to consolidate his position by reducing the number of National Guard troops, and by creating a paramilitary force loyal to Cypriot independence. In 1968, acknowledging that enosis was now all but impossible, Makarios stated, "A solution by necessity must be sought within the limits of what is feasible which does not always coincide with the limits of what is desirable."

 

After 1967 tensions between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots subsided. Instead, the main source of tension on the island came from factions within the Greek Cypriot community. Although Makarios had effectively abandoned enosis in favour of an 'attainable solution', many others continued to believe that the only legitimate political aspiration for Greek Cypriots was union with Greece.

 

On his arrival, Grivas began by establishing a nationalist paramilitary group known as the National Organization of Cypriot Fighters (Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston B or EOKA-B), drawing comparisons with the EOKA struggle for enosis under the British colonial administration of the 1950s.

 

The military junta in Athens saw Makarios as an obstacle. Makarios's failure to disband the National Guard, whose officer class was dominated by mainland Greeks, had meant the junta had practical control over the Cypriot military establishment, leaving Makarios isolated and a vulnerable target.

 

During the first Turkish invasion, Turkish troops invaded Cyprus territory on 20 July 1974, invoking its rights under the Treaty of Guarantee. This expansion of Turkish-occupied zone violated International Law as well as the Charter of the United Nations. Turkish troops managed to capture 3% of the island which was accompanied by the burning of the Turkish Cypriot quarter, as well as the raping and killing of women and children. A temporary cease-fire followed which was mitigated by the UN Security Council. Subsequently, the Greek military Junta collapsed on July 23, 1974, and peace talks commenced in which a democratic government was installed. The Resolution 353 was broken after Turkey attacked a second time and managed to get a hold of 37% of Cyprus territory. The Island of Cyprus was appointed a Buffer Zone by the United Nations, which divided the island into two zones through the 'Green Line' and put an end to the Turkish invasion. Although Turkey announced that the occupied areas of Cyprus to be called the Federated Turkish State in 1975, it is not legitimised on a worldwide political scale. The United Nations called for the international recognition of independence for the Republic of Cyprus in the Security Council Resolution 367.

 

In the years after the Turkish invasion of northern Cyprus one can observe a history of failed talks between the two parties. The 1983 declaration of the independent Turkish Republic of Cyprus resulted in a rise of inter-communal tensions and made it increasingly hard to find mutual understanding. With Cyprus' interest of a possible EU membership and a new UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 1997 new hopes arose for a fresh start. International involvement from sides of the US and UK, wanting a solution to the Cyprus dispute prior to the EU accession led to political pressures for new talks. The believe that an accession without a solution would threaten Greek-Turkish relations and acknowledge the partition of the island would direct the coming negotiations.

 

Over the course of two years a concrete plan, the Annan plan was formulated. In 2004 the fifth version agreed upon from both sides and with the endorsement of Turkey, US, UK and EU then was presented to the public and was given a referendum in both Cypriot communities to assure the legitimisation of the resolution. The Turkish Cypriots voted with 65% for the plan, however the Greek Cypriots voted with a 76% majority against. The Annan plan contained multiple important topics. Firstly it established a confederation of two separate states called the United Cyprus Republic. Both communities would have autonomous states combined under one unified government. The members of parliament would be chosen according to the percentage in population numbers to ensure a just involvement from both communities. The paper proposed a demilitarisation of the island over the next years. Furthermore it agreed upon a number of 45000 Turkish settlers that could remain on the island. These settlers became a very important issue concerning peace talks. Originally the Turkish government encouraged Turks to settle in Cyprus providing transfer and property, to establish a counterpart to the Greek Cypriot population due to their 1 to 5 minority. With the economic situation many Turkish-Cypriot decided to leave the island, however their departure is made up by incoming Turkish settlers leaving the population ratio between Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots stable. However all these points where criticised and as seen in the vote rejected mainly by the Greek Cypriots. These name the dissolution of the „Republic of Cyprus", economic consequences of a reunion and the remaining Turkish settlers as reason. Many claim that the plan was indeed drawing more from Turkish-Cypriot demands then Greek-Cypriot interests. Taking in consideration that the US wanted to keep Turkey as a strategic partner in future Middle Eastern conflicts.

 

A week after the failed referendum the Republic of Cyprus joined the EU. In multiple instances the EU tried to promote trade with Northern Cyprus but without internationally recognised ports this spiked a grand debate. Both side endure their intention of negotiations, however without the prospect of any new compromises or agreements the UN is unwilling to start the process again. Since 2004 negotiations took place in numbers but without any results, both sides are strongly holding on to their position without an agreeable solution in sight that would suit both parties.

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Born at Maryborough in 1881, Valentine McDowell qualified as a Medical Practitioner at the University of Sydney in 1905. Later specialising in radiology, McDowell was reputedly the first doctor in Queensland to use radium in the treatment of his patients during the 1920s. In association with Thomas Elliott, an x-ray and sound engineer, McDowell also pioneered the broadcasting of regular radio programs from Brisbane station 4CM in 1921. The pair claimed to have provided the first live radio broadcast from the stage of Her Majesty’s Theatre, and in 1926 they transferred 4CM to the Old Observatory in Wickham Terrace and began conducting experiments with low-tension television broadcasting. In 1934 State and Federal government officials were astonished at the clarity of their television images, and in October 1935 they managed to transmit different forms of illustrated material. Thomas Elliott continued to experiment with television until 1949, though it was not until a decade later that this medium finally became widely available to Queensland consumers.

 

Image courtesy of Royal Historical Society Of Queensland

After all, it *is* a Eurpoean vehicle.

 

At the euro-classic car show, Winston-Salem NC

September 11, 2010