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My Father was one of the men on the USS Missouri that witnessed the official surrender by the Emperor of Japan, Hirohito
Nandi is the name for the bull which serves as the mount (Sanskrit: Vahana) of the god Shiva and as the gatekeeper of Shiva and Parvati. In Hindu Religion, he is the chief guru of eighteen masters (18 Siddhar ) including Patanjali and Thirumular. Temples venerating Shiva display stone images of a seated Nandi, generally facing the main shrine. There are also a number of temples dedicated solely to Nandi.
The application of the name Nandi to the bull (Sanskrit: vṛṣabha) is in fact a development of recent centuries, as Gouriswar Bhattacharya has documented in an illustrated article entitled "Nandin and Vṛṣabha". The name Nandi was earlier widely used instead for an anthropomorphic deity who was one of Shiva’s two door-keepers, the other being Mahākāla. The doorways of pre-tenth-century North Indian temples are frequently flanked by images of Mahākāla and Nandi, and it is in this role of Shiva’s watchman that Nandi figures in Kālidāsa’s poem the Kumārasambhava.
ETYMOLOGY
The word “Nandi” is derived from the ancient Indian Language of Sanskrit. The Sanskrit word 'Nandi' in English translates as Happy, Joyous or Happy Person.
BIRTH OF NANDI
There was a sage named Shilada who underwent severe penance to have a boon — a child with immortality. Lord Indra pleased of the austerities of Shilada appeared in front of him to offer a boon. After hearing the request of Shilada and his desire to have an immortal child, Lord Indra suggested he pray to Lord Shiva: nobody else could provide such a boon. Sage Shilada continued his penance for 1,000 years. He was totally immovable for many years, so the termites settled on his body and slowly started to build up their nest. Finally, his whole body was covered up by them. The insects started to eat his flesh and imbibed his blood. At last, only bones remained.
Lord Shiva appeared in front of him and provided the boon for the child. Moreover, Lord Shiva provided Sage Shilada his old form with a single touch. Sage Shilada performed Yagna and a child appeared from the sacrificial fire. His body was clad in armour made out of diamonds. The celestial dancers and singers performed on this auspicious occasion and the deities showered flowers on the child. The boy was named ’Nandi’ — who brings joy. Shilada brought the child home. Immediately the boy lost his divine appearance to an ordinary child. The child completely forgot all about his birth. Sage Shilada was worried about the sudden change. He devoted his time for Nandi's upbringing his education etc. By the age of seven, the boy was well versed in Veda and all sacred texts.
One day the deities Mitra and Varuna visited Sage Shilada. At the first sight of the boy, they commented: Though the boy had all auspicious signs, he would have a very short life. He would not live after the age of eight. Sage Shilada was mortified at this remark. Nandi could not bear his father's sorrow; he began to pray to Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva appeared before him and blessed him. Lord Shiva adorned the boy with a necklace and made him immortal. Lord Shiva blessed the child and declared that he would be worshiped along with Him and become his vahana (vehicle). Immediately the boy got all the divine powers and transformed into half bull-half human. He and Shilada went to Lord Shiva's abode to live.
IN HINDUISM
Bulls appear on the Indus Valley seals, including the 'Pasupati Seal', which depicts a seated figure and, according to some scholars, is similar to Shiva. However, most scholars agree that the horned bull on the Indus Valley seals is not identical to Nandi.
DESCRIPTIONS ON NANDI IN HINDU RELIGIOUS TEXTS INCLUDE:
- Some Puranas describe Nandi or Nandikeshvara as bull face with a human body that resembles that of Shiva in proportion and aspect, although with four hands — two hands holding the Parasu (the axe) and Mruga (the antelope) and the other two hands joined together in the Anjali (obeisance). Brahma Vaivarta Purana mentions Krishna himself to have taken the form of a bull as no one else in the Universe can bear Shiva.
- Vehicle of Shiva: The bull Nandi is Shiva's primary vehicle and is the principal gana (follower) of Shiva.
- Gate keeper of Shiva's abode: The close association of Shiva and Nandi explains the presence of a statue of Nandi at the gate of many temples dedicated to Shiva. It also explains why the word "nandi" in the Tamil, Kannada and Telugu languages is used as a metaphor for a person blocking the way.[citation needed] In Sanskrit, a bull is called vrisha, which has another connotation — that of righteousness or Dharma. It is important to seek the blessings of Nandi before proceeding to worship Lord Shiva.
- Chief in Shiva's army: Some Puranas mention that Nandi lead the Shiva Ganas, Shiva's attendants.
- A Guru of Saivism: In addition to being his mount, Nandi is Shiva's foremost disciple. In the Natha/Siddhar tradition, Nandi is one of the primal gurus. He was the guru to Siddhar Thirumulanathar, Patanjalinathar and others.
- From the yogic perspective, Nandi/Nandhi/Nandikeshvara is the mind dedicated to Lord Siva, the Absolute. In other words, to understand and absorb Light, the 'experience and the wisdom' is Nandi which is the Guru within.
- Spiritually, Nandi represents an individual jiva (soul) and the message that the jiva should always be focused on the Atman (Paramatman).
LEGENDS
According to some puranas, Nandi was born to sage Shilada who got him by the grace of Shiva.
It was Nandi who cursed Ravana (the demon King of Lanka) that his kingdom would be burnt by a monkey (Vanara). And later Hanuman burnt Lanka when he went in search of Sita, who was kept prisoner by Ravana in Ashok Vatika.
In one puranic story, it is stated that once Siva and Parvathi were playing a game of dice. For any game there has to be an umpire, who has to declare who is the winner. Siva and Parvathi agreed to have Nandi (the divine bull) as the umpire. Nandi is a favorite of Siva, as he is Siva's vehicle. Although Siva lost the game, Nandi declared him the winner. It is stated that Parvathi was indignant over Nandi's partiality for Siva and cursed him that he should die from an incurable disease. Thereupon Nandi fell at the feet of Parvathi and pleaded for forgiveness. "Mother forgive me. Should I not show at least this amount of gratitude to one who is my master? Is it not humiliating for me to declare that my master has lost the game? To uphold his honor I no doubt uttered a lie. But am I to be punished with such severity for so small an offence?" Nandi prayed for forgiveness in this manner. Parvathi forgave Nandi and taught him the means to atone for his lapse. She told him. "The Chaturdasi day in the month of Bhadrapada is the day when my son's birthday is celebrated. On that day you have to offer to my son what pleases you most (green grass)". This means that one atones for one's sins when one offers to the Lord what is most pleasing and enjoyable to him. For Nandi the most enjoyable and relishing food is green grass. As directed by Parvathi Nandi worshipped Ganapathi by offering green grass. Nandi was then relieved of his dreaded disease. His health improved and by the grace of Parvathi he was redeemed.
When the positive forces, the devas, and the negative forces, the asuras, joined together on a rare occasion to churn the ocean with a mountain to obtain the nectar of immortality they utilized Vasuki, the serpent, as the rope. The devas pulled from one end and the asuras from the other. Lots of precious herbs and gems were produced during the Churning and one of them was a poison (halāhala) which became human karma. This "poison" was so dangerous that none of the devas or asuras wanted to go near it. It was extremely sticky and coming into contact with this poison, i.e., human karma, would drag the divinity down to the realms of human suffering and ego. As everyone else ran away, Lord Siva, followed by Nandi, came forward to help as he was the only one who could counteract this deadly poison. Siva took the poison into his hand and drank it, the descent of the poison was in turn stopped at His throat, by His divine consort. Siva is therefore also known as Nīlakaṇṭha (the blue-throated one) and Viṣakaṇṭha (the poison-throated one). Nandi saw some of the poison spill out of Siva's mouth and immediately drank if off the ground. The devas and asuras watching were shocked and wondered aloud what would happen to Nandi. Lord Siva calmed their fears saying, "Nandi has surrendered into me so completely that he has all my powers and my protection".
LARGEST NANDIS IN INDIA
1. Lepakshi, Andhra Pradesh
2. Brahadishwara Temple, Tamil Nadu
4. Bull Temple, Bangalore, Karnataka
5. Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu
6. Hoysaleswara Temple, Halebidu, Karnataka
7. Shanthaleswara Temple, Halebidu, Karnataka
8. Vadakkunnathan Temple, Thrissur, Kerala
9. Virupaksha Temple, Hampi, Karnataka
10. Nandi Temple, Western Group of Temples, Khajuraho,
Madhya Pradesh
11. Kedareshvara Temple at Balligavi (Karnataka)
12. Doddabasaveshvara temple, Kurugodu Bellary dist
MISCELLANEOUS
The white color of the bull symbolizes purity and justice.
Women visit images of Nandi, bringing floral offerings, and touch the stone. Their prayers are for fertility. Additionally, it is also considered a custom among some to whisper the fact of their visit, to that shrine, while requesting the faithful attendant to inform his master of the same.
WIKIPEDIA
"She reads a book from across the street
Waiting for someone that she'll never meet
Talk over coffee for an hour or two
She wonders why I'm always in a good mood..."
"Even though I know what I'm looking for
She's got a brick wall behind her door
I'd travel time and confess to her
But I'm afraid she'd shoot the messenger..."
This memorial
of his untimely fate
has been erected by the
Vicar and two friends
who accompanied him
in a visit to Paris
as a tribute of respect to that
Brave and Generous Nation
Once our foes but now our
allies and brethren
Ainsi Soit il
A.D
1857
Napoleonic Conflict
In the late 1700s Dereham church's bell tower was used as a prison for French prisoners of war being transferred from Great Yarmouth to Norman Cross under the charge of the East Norfolk Militia. On 6 October 1799 a French officer, Jean de Narde, managed to escape from the tower and, being unable to escape from the church yard due to guards being present, hid in a tree. The Frenchman was spotted and shot when he refused to come down and surrender. Jean is buried in the church yard, and his grave is marked by a memorial stone erected in 1858, which includes the following statement: "Once our foes but now our allies and brethren."
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dereham
Source: eastscapes.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/once-our-foe-grave-of-j...
The East North Militia have one “battle honour” to its “credit” Whilst escorting French prisoners of war from Yarmouth to Norman Cross, The Militia locked up their prisoners for the night in the bell tower of Dereham church – for safe keeping. In spite of this, an officer by the name of Jean De Narde, the 28 year son of a notary from St. Malo, managed to escape from the church. Finding that the Militia had set piquets around the perimeter of the Church he climbed an oak hoping that his absence would go unnoticed and that the party would leave without him thus allowing him to make good his escape. Unfortunately for De Narde, the Militia, realizing that they were missing a prisoner conducted a search of the locality and the Frenchman was spotted on account of him leaving his legs dangling from the tree. The Sergeant was told to get the Frenchman down. The prisoner was called on to surrender. Whether De Narde did not understand English that was yelled at him or perhaps he did not even realise that he had been discovered, De Narde kept to his tree. The Sergeant thereupon shot the Frenchman from the tree, killing him instantly. The local population were apparently ashamed by this action and thought this deed to be one of unnecessary cruelty, according to the Parish Priest, the Reverend Benjamin John Armstrong . Eventually a monument was raised to the unfortunate De Narde and the family in St Malo informed of his fate.
Source: eastnorfolkmilitia.webs.com/themilitia.htm
Jean de Narde was a French prisoner of war who had been landed at Yarmouth, and was on his way to Norman Cross prison in 1799. His party was lodged in the Bell Tower of East Dereham church overnight, and he attempted to escape by climbing down the wall but was shot by one of the guards. He was buried in the cemetery and later in the 19th century a headstone was placed above his grave. There is a plaque on the tower wall that relates this story. A contemporary account of prisoners marching through the area records the frequent passage of such prisoners, with East Dereham being one of the halts for the night:
Columns of prisoners often 1,000 strong were marched from Yarmouth to Norwich and lodged in the castle. From Yarmouth they were marched to Lynn halting at Costessey, East Dereham and thence to Lynn. Here the captives were lodged temporarily in an old warehouse on the north side of the King Staith.
The Norman Cross brochure has this text on the front of its folder:
In 1797 the Transport Board of the Admiralty decided that a new prison establishment was required in the east of England, to house the many thousands of French and Dutch prisoners of war arriving in this country. The site had to be inland to hinder escape attempts although within easy access of the coast so that captives could be landed at Kings Lynn and Yarmouth and conveyed to the depot at minimal cost; in a fertile area where the local produce could supply the depot; and on a site that possessed a good water supply. Norman Cross possessed all these attributes and was on the Great North Road so that troops, prisoners and supplies could be conveyed along this route easily. Construction work began in December 1796 and by the following April the prison was ready for the reception of prisoners.
The depot was in use from 1797 to 1814 and housed not only French but Dutch, German, Italian and Polish POWs. These men were captured at the naval battles of Camperduin and Trafalgar and during the Peninsular War. Prisoners also came from enemy privateers and merchant vessels, the capture of the French colonies in the West Indies and from battles such as Maida in 1806 in Italy and the Walcheren campaign of 1809.
Source: www.napoleonicwarsforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2167
The " Bell Tower" (to adopt loyally the indigenous name) stands, not on the church, like most of its contemporaries, but beside it. It was also used as a lock-up or temporary prison in the days when French captives were marched from Yarmouth to Norman Cross, and passed a night at Norwich and Dereham on their way.
One October evening in 1799, a batch of these poor fellows were lodged in the hospitable precincts of this Bell Tower. A prisoner of war by the name of Jean de la Narde, twenty-eight years of age, the son of a notary of St. Malo, thought he would try to escape during the night. He was discovered, however, by the sentry, pursued by the guard just as he had succeeded in climbing into a large tree, and was there shot dead. A neat stone was erected over his remains by the kind-hearted vicar and renewed by the Rev. B. J. Armstrong in 1856.
Page 29 “Life, writings and correspondence of George Borrow (1803-1881) based on official and other authentic sources”
Source: archive.org/stream/lifewritingsandc01knapuoft/lifewriting...
Passages from the diary of the Rev. Benjamin John Armstrong M.A. (Cantab) Vicar of Dereham. 1850 – 88
Feb. 17 1858. Today another cross was set up in the churchyard, the inscription under which will speak for itself. 'In memory of Jean de Narde, son of a Notary Public of St. Malo. A French prisoner of war, who, having escaped from the Bell tower of this church, was pursued and shot by a soldier. October 6th, 1799, aged 28 years.
Source: www.coxresearcher.com/history/norfolkdiary.htm
Source: godsacre.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/jean-de-narde-norfolk-dia...
6. (March 1858)*—“Within the last few days a stone has been placed in the churchyard at East Dereham, in memory of Jean de Narde, a French prisoner of war, who, in the year 1796 while en route from Yarmouth to Norman Cross prison, was lodged in the lower chamber of the bell tower of the church, and escaped therefrom. He was pursued by the guard, and, after some search, was espied in a tree on the Scarning Road, and when summoned by a soldier to descend and surrender he did not comply. His non-compliance forfeited his life, for he was shot off it like a crow. The stone was erected by the vicar and two other gentlemen.”
From Norfolk Annals, A Chronological Record of Remarkable Events in the ineteenth Century, Vol 2 by Charles Mackie.
Source: www.hellenicaworld.com/UK/Literature/CharlesMackie/en/Nor...
(I’m leaning towards discounting this version – not only is the year wrong but it’s the only version that implies he managed to get further than the churchyard).
So lots of slight variations on the circumstances of Jeans’ death throughout all those. I believe this headstone was a replacement for one put in place contemporaneously by the then incumbent Vicar.
The final stages of the removal of "Unconditional Surrender" at Tuna Harbor Park. (Photos courtesy Dale Frost/Port of San Diego).
Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God." Like 9:60
Leoba Puthenthope
Aérotrain
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No. 6 - 6:- Behind the High Street, Redbourn, Hertfordshire visiting the Common.
Cumberland House
1643 or 1645 is said to have been found on a chimney brick. It was a hunting lodge for the Duke of Cumberland with the pack of hounds kept on Dunstable Downs.
This particular Duke of Cumberland was probably:-
Prince Rupert of the Rhine (1619-1682), soldier and inventor, was a younger son of Frederick V, Elector Palatine. He was born in Prague. His mother, Elizabeth of Bohemia, sometimes known as the "Winter Queen", was a sister of King Charles I of England, and consequently Rupert gave his allegiance to Charles when the English Civil War broke out, as did his sister, Prince Maurice.
Rupert was a brilliant cavalry officer, having gained some experience in the Thirty Years War. In 1642, King Charles appointed him to lead the Royalist cavalry, and their early successes are largely attributable to Rupert. His dashing reputation earned him the nickname of the "Mad Cavalier". He is reputed to have taken a large dog, "Boy", into battle with him on several occasions.
As Parliament's army gained the ascendant, Rupert's skills were not enough to save the Royalists, and when, in 1645, he surrendered Bristol, his uncle rejected him, forgetful of his earlier sterling service. Rupert was court-martialled at his own request and cleared of any blame, but he never enjoyed the king's favour as he had previously done, and in 1646 he left England.
By 1648 Rupert was fighting with the French against Oliver Cromwell's England. However, following a naval defeat by Admiral Robert Blake, he took refuge in the West Indies, where he followed the life of a buccaneer, preying on English shipping. Following the Restoration of the monarchy, he returned to the service of England. After his retirement from the military in around 1670, he engaged in scientific research, and has sometimes been credited with the invention of the mezzotint, as well as a form of gunpowder and an alloy named "Prince's metal" in his honour.
He directed the Hudson's Bay Company, which traded furs in Canada, and its immense trading monopoly was named Rupert's Land for him. Prince Rupert, British Columbia is likewise named for him.
Knowledgerush
Cumberland House passed through a number of owners being bought by Mr R Cecil Peake in 1890, he installed a generator making Cumberland House the first in the village with electric lighting. He was a JP at St Albans for 37 Years and died in 1933. Gertrude Peake Place on the High Street is named after one of his daughters.
From Dodie Allman ( nee Trask, granddaughter of Robert Cecil Peake)
I wonder if you know, that when my grandfather bought Cumberland House in 1890, he also bought "the Heath", up on the corner of the Common, for his three unmarried sisters to live in. Also a lot of acreage on Crouch Hall Lane,. When Cumberland was sold to Lady Wise, in the thirties, my Aunts, Gertrude and Anna Peake moved into the Heath. After WW11, they sold the Heath ,keeping enough property to build "Heybrigge"-beside it. My nephew Cecil. V. Peake bought that house,then sold it and it was razed to build four town houses. My mother Mabel Peake was born in Cumberland House in 1894. I have such fond memories of the most wonderful Christmas's, with twenty people staying in the house. I could go on and on, I know every nook and cranny of that house. One time while visitng England, my husband and I knocked on the door of the Electricity Board, and I asked if I could show my husband. they were very reluctant, I think they thought we were Russian spys, this was probably 19 87ish, anyway, we finally were allowed all around the old part.
My father Basil F Trask built " Longcroft' on Crouch Hall Lane.
Now at age 82, (I have lived here 59 years in April) I was so interested to read about Redbourn. I have a family picture taken in Cumberland house garden on my bedroom wall.
Asheville, North Carolina.
.................................................................
A more recent owner was the Central Electricity Generating Board and later National Grid. It was used as an electricity supply control centre until its recent closure. The old car park is now used for housing (Cumberland Mews - now named Miller Close) and the surgery for the Health Centre Practice (Hawke's Drive). The back part of the Cumberland House Garden has become the Village Garden - now named Cumberland Garden, which provides a link from Hawke's Drive to the High Street.
The old car park entrance has been used for filming, the most recent being for an exterior prison scene for Judge John Deed, on what is now the entrance to Miller Close.
From the Parish Council Minutes Nov 06: - A Company called “Somethin’ Else” is filming in Cumberland House and has sought permission to also film on the Common.
Redbourn Web Page
To look Large:-
farm4.static.flickr.com/3441/3817644570_5a05abbef9_b.jpg
Taken on
August 18, 2007 at 14:34 BST
Unconditional Surrender is a series of sculptures by J Seward Johnson resembling a photograph by Alfred Eisenstaedt, V–J day in Times Square, but said by Johnson to be based on a similar, less well known, photograph by Victor Jorgensen.
Sloan Avenue & Klockner Road (across the road from the Hamilton Transit Center - 720 Sloan Avenue Hamilton, NJ 08619 - Google Map
© Sara Almalki
Copyright for this gallery photo belongs solely to me : Sara Almalki. Images may not be copied, downloaded, or used in any way without the express.
جميع الحقوق محفوظة لي : سـارآ المالكي .
لا اسمح بنسخ الصور أو حفظها أو استخدامها بأي طرق أخرى .. دون أخذ موافقتي والإذن مني .
The present structure is actually the third Augustinian church erected on the site. The first San Agustin Church was the first religious structure constructed by the Spaniards on the island of Luzon. Made of bamboo and nipa, it was completed in 1571, but destroyed by fire in December, 1574 during the attempted invasion of Manila by the forces of Limahong. A second church made of wood was constructed on the site. This was destroyed in February 1583, in a fire that started when a candle set ablaze the drapes of the funeral bier during the interment of the Spanish Governor-General Gonzalo Ronquillo de Peñalosa.
The Augustinians decided to rebuild the church using stone, and to construct an adjacent monastery. Construction began in 1586, based on a design by Juan Macías.
The structure was built using hewn adobe stones quarried from Meycauayan, Binangonan and San Mateo, Rizal.
The work proceeded slowly due to the lack of funds and materials, as well as the relative scarcity of stone artisans. The monastery was operational by 1604, and the church was formally declared complete on January 19, 1607, and named St. Paul of Manila. San Agustin Church was looted by the British forces which occupied Manila in 1762 during the Seven Years' War. In 1854, the church was renovated under the supervision of architect Luciano Oliver. Nine years later, on June 3, 1863, the strongest earthquake at that time, hit Manila leaving widespread destruction to the city with San Agustin Church, the only public building left undamaged in the city. A series of strong earthquakes struck Manila again on 18–20 July 1880.
On August 18, 1898, the church was the site where Spanish Governor-General Fermin Jaudenes prepared the terms for the surrender of Manila to the United States of America following the Spanish-American War.
During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines during World War II, San Agustin Church was turned into a concentration camp for prisoners. In the final days of the Battle of Manila, hundreds of Intramuros residents and clergy were held hostage in the church by Japanese soldiers; many of the hostages would be killed during the three-week long battle. The church itself survived the flattening of Intramuros by American forces in May, 1945 with only its roof damaged, the only one of the seven churches in the walled city to remain standing. The adjacent monastery however was totally destroyed, and was later rebuilt in the 1970s as a museum under the design of architect Angel Nakpil.
The San Agustin Church is patterned after some of the magnificent temples built by the Augustinians in Mexico, its present edifice was built in 1587, and completed, together with the monastery, in 1604.The atmosphere is medieval since “both church and monastery symbolize the majesty and equilibrium of a Spanish golden era.”
The massive structure of the church, the symmetry and splendor of the interiors (painted by two Italians who succeeded in producing trompe l'oeil), the profile of the mouldings, rosettes and sunken panels which appear as three-dimensional carvings, a baroque pulpit with the native pineapple as a motif, the grand pipe organ, the antechoir with a 16th-century crucifix, the choir seats carved in molave with ivory inlays of the 17th century and the set of 16 huge and beautiful chandeliers from Paris.
Chocolate Louit "The Transvaal War" (2nd Boer War) c1902.
Battle of Reddesburg, 4th April 1900 - Surrender of the Royal Irish Rifles to General De Wet
A visit to Beaumaris Castle on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales. Our 2nd visit in around 20 years.
The Outer Wall walk from the top. Starting from just beyond the Llanfaes Gate, and heading all the way round, before heading back down near Gate Next The Sea.
Beaumaris Castle (Welsh: Castell Biwmares), located in the town of the same name on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, was built as part of Edward I's campaign to conquer the north of Wales after 1282. Plans were probably first made to construct the castle in 1284, but this was delayed due to lack of funds and work only began in 1295 following the Madog ap Llywelyn uprising. A substantial workforce was employed in the initial years under the direction of James of St George. Edward's invasion of Scotland soon diverted funding from the project, however, and work stopped, only recommencing after an invasion scare in 1306. When work finally ceased around 1330 a total of £15,000 had been spent, a huge sum for the period, but the castle remained incomplete.
Beaumaris Castle was taken by Welsh forces in 1403 during the rebellion of Owain Glyndŵr, but was recaptured by royal forces in 1405. Following the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642, the castle was held by forces loyal to Charles I, holding out until 1646 when it surrendered to the Parliamentary armies. Despite forming part of a local royalist rebellion in 1648 the castle escaped slighting and was garrisoned by Parliament, but fell into ruin around 1660, eventually forming part of a local stately home and park in the 19th century. In the 21st century the ruined castle is managed by Cadw as a tourist attraction.
Historian Arnold Taylor described Beaumaris Castle as Britain's "most perfect example of symmetrical concentric planning". The fortification is built of local stone, with a moated outer ward guarded by twelve towers and two gatehouses, overlooked by an inner ward with two large, D-shaped gatehouses and six massive towers. The inner ward was designed to contain ranges of domestic buildings and accommodation able to support two major households. The south gate could be reached by ship, allowing the castle to be directly supplied by sea. UNESCO considers Beaumaris to be one of "the finest examples of late 13th century and early 14th century military architecture in Europe", and it is classed as a World Heritage site.
Grade I listed building
History
Beaumaris Castle was begun in 1295, the last of the castles built by Edward I to create a defensive ring around the N Wales coast from Aberystwyth to Flint. The master mason was probably James of St George, master of the king's works in Wales, who had already worked on many of Edward's castles, including Harlech, Conwy and Caernarfon. Previously he had been employed by Philip of Savoy and had designed for him the fortress palace of St Georges d'Esperanche.
Unlike most of its contemporaries, Beaumaris Castle was built on a flat site and was designed on the concentric principle to have 4 defensive rings - moat, outer curtain wall, outer ward and inner curtain wall. It was originally intended to have 5 separate accommodation suites. In the event they were not built as work ceased c1330 before the castle was complete. A survey made in 1343 indicates that little has been lost of the fabric in subsequent centuries, despite being besieged during the revolt of Owain Glyndwr. However it was described as ruinous in 1539 and in 1609 by successive members of the Bulkeley family, who had settled in Anglesey and senior officials at Beaumaris from the C15, although they were probably unaware that the castle had never been finished. During the Civil War the castle was held for the king by Thomas, Viscount Bulkeley, who is said to have spent £3000 on repairs, and his son Colonel Richard Bulkeley. After the Restoration it was partly dismantled. The castle was purchased from the crown by the 6th Viscount Bulkeley in 1807, passing to his nephew Sir Richard Bulkeley Williams-Bulkeley in 1822. Sir Richard opened the castle grounds to the public and in 1832 Princess Victoria attended a Royal Eisteddfod held in the inner ward. Since 1925 it has been in the guardianship of the state, during which time the ruins have been conserved and the moat reinstated.
Exterior
A concentrically planned castle comprising an inner ward, which is square in plan, with high inner curtain wall incorporating gatehouses and towers, an outer ward and an outer curtain wall which is nearly square in plan but has shallow facets to form an octagon. The outer curtain wall faces the moat. The castle is built mainly of coursed local limestone and local sandstone, the latter having been used for dressings and mouldings. Openings have mainly shouldered lintels.
The main entrance was the S side, or Gate Next the Sea. This has a central gateway with tall segmental arch, slots in the soffit for the drawbridge chains, loop above it and machicolations on the parapet. The entrance is flanked by round gatehouse towers which, to the L, is corbelled out over a narrower square base set diagonally, and on the R is corbelled out with a square projecting shooting platform to the front. The towers have loops in both stages, and L-hand (W) tower has a corbelled latrine shaft in the angle with the curtain wall. The shooting platform has partially surviving battlements, and is abutted by the footings of the former town wall, added in the early C15. On the R side of the gatehouse is the dock, where the curtain wall has a doorway for unloading provisions. The dock wall, projecting at R angles further R has a corbelled parapet, a central round tower that incorporated a tidal mill and, at the end, a corbelled shooting platform, perhaps for a trebuchet, with machicolations to the end (S) wall. The E side of the dock wall has loops lighting a mural passage.
The curtain walls have loops at ground level of the outer ward, some blocked, and each facet to the E, W and N sides has higher end and intermediate 2-stage round turrets, and all with a corbelled parapet. The northernmost facet of the W side and most of the northern side were added after 1306 and a break in the building programme. The towers at the NW and NE corners are larger and higher than the other main turrets. On the N side, in the eastern facet, is the N or Llanfaes Gate. This was unfinished in the medieval period and has survived much as it was left. The gateway has a recessed segmental arch at high level, a portcullis slot and a blocked pointed arch forming the main entrance, into which a modern gate has been inserted. To the L and R are irregular walls, square in plan, of the proposed gatehouse towers, the N walls facing the moat never having been built. Later arches were built to span the walls at high level in order to facilitate a wall walk. The NE tower of the outer curtain wall has a corbelled latrine shaft in the angle with the E curtain wall, and in the same stretch of wall is a corbelled shaft retaining a gargoyle. The SE tower also has a corbelled latrine shaft in the angle with the E curtain wall.
In the Gate Next the Sea the passage is arched with 2 murder slots, a loop to either side, and a former doorway at the end, of which draw-bar slots have survived. In the R-hand (E) gatehouse is an irregular-shaped room with garderobe chamber. On its inner (N) side are mural stair leading to the wall walk and to a newel stair to the upper chamber. The upper chamber has a fireplace with missing lintel, and a garderobe. The L-hand (W) gatehouse has an undercroft. Its lower storey was reached by external stone steps against the curtain wall, and retains a garderobe chamber and fireplace, formerly with projecting hood. The upper chamber was reached from the wall walk.
On the inner side facing the outer ward, the outer curtain wall is corbelled out to the upper level, except on the N side where only a short section is corbelled out. To the W of the gatehouse are remains of stone steps to the gatehouse, already mentioned, and stone steps to the wall walk. Further R the loops in the curtain wall are framed by an arcade of pointed arches added in the mid C14. The curtain wall towers have doorways to the lower stage, and were entered from the wall walk in the upper stage. In some places the wall walk is corbelled out and/or stepped down at the entrances to the towers. On the W side, the southernmost facet has a projecting former garderobe, surviving in outline form on the ground and with evidence of a former lean-to stone roof. Just N of the central tower on the W side are the footings of a former closing wall defining the original end of the outer ward before the curtain wall was completed after 1306. Further N in the same stretch of wall are stone steps to the wall walk. The NW corner tower has a doorway with draw-bar socket, passage with garderobe chamber to its L, and a narrow fireplace which formerly had a projecting hood. The upper stage floor was carried on a cross beam, of which large corbels survive, and corbel table that supported joists. In the upper stage details of a former fireplace have been lost.
In the Llanfaes Gate the proposed gatehouses both have doorways with ovolo-moulded surrounds. The L-hand (W) doorway leads to a newel stair. The NE curtain wall tower is similar to the NW tower, with garderobe, fireplaces and corbels supporting the floor of the upper stage. Both facets on the E side have remains of garderobes with stone lean-to roofs, of which the northernmost is better preserved. The SE tower was heated in the upper stage but the fireplace details are lost. In the dock wall, a doorway leads to a corbelled mural passage.
The inner ward is surrounded by higher curtain walls with corbelled parapets. It has S and N gatehouses, and corner and intermediate round towers in the E and W walls. The towers all have battered bases and in the angles with the curtain walls are loops lighting the stairs. The curtain walls have loops lighting a first floor mural passage, and the S and N sides also have shorter passages with loops in the lower storey. The inner curtain wall has a more finely moulded corbel table than the outer curtain wall, and embattlements incorporating arrow loops. The main entrance to the inner ward was by the S Gatehouse. It has an added barbican rectangular in plan. The entrance in the W end wall has a plain pointed arch, of which the voussoirs and jamb are missing on the L side. The S wall has 3 loops and 2 gargoyles, the L-hand poorly preserved, and has a single loop in the E wall. Inside are remains of stone steps against the E wall leading to the parapet. The 2-storey S gatehouse has a 2-centred arch, a pointed window above, retaining only a fragment of its moulded dressings, spanned by a segmental arch with murder slot at high level. The towers to the R and L are rounded and have loops in the lower stage, and square-headed windows in the middle stage.
The SW, W (Middle) and NW towers have similar detail, a loop in the lower stage and blocked 2-light mullioned window in the middle stage. The 3-storey N Gatehouse, although similar in plan and conception to the S Gatehouse, differs in its details. It has a central 2-centred arch and pintles of former double gates. In the middle storey is a narrow square-headed window and in the upper storey a 2-light window with cusped lights and remains of a transom. A high segmental arch, incorporating a murder slot, spans the entrance. The rounded towers have loops in the lower stage. The R-hand (W) has a window opening in the middle storey, of which the dressings are missing, and in the upper storey a single cusped light to the N and remains of a pair of cusped lights, with transom, on the W side. The L-hand (E) tower has a single square-headed window in the middle storey (formerly 2-light but its mullion is missing) and in the upper storey a single cusped light and square-headed window on the E side. The NE and SE towers are similar to the towers on the W side. In the middle of the E curtain wall is the chapel tower, which has 5 pointed windows in the middle storey.
The S gateway has a well-defended passage. The outer doorway has double draw-bar sockets, followed by a portcullis slot, 4 segmental arches between murder slots, loops in each wall, then another portcullis slot and a segmental arch where the position of a doorway is marked by double draw-bar sockets. Beyond, the passage walls were not completed, but near the end is the position of another doorway with draw-bar socket and the base of a portcullis slot.
The gatehouses have a double depth plan, but only the outer (S) half was continued above ground-floor level. The N side has the footings of guard rooms, each with fireplaces and NE and NW round stair turrets, of which the NW retains the base of a newel stair. Above ground floor level the N wall of the surviving building, originally intended as a dividing wall, has doorways in the middle storey. Both gatehouses have first-floor fireplaces, of which the moulded jambs and corbels have survived, but the corbelled hood has been lost.
Architectural refinement was concentrated upon the N gatehouse, which was the principal accommodation block, and the chapel. The S elevation of the N gatehouse has a central segmental arch to the entrance passage. To its R is a square-headed window and to its L are 2 small dressed windows, set unusually high because an external stone stair was originally built against the wall. In the 5-bay middle storey are a doorway at the L end and 4 windows to a first-floor hall. All the openings have 4-centred arches with continuous mouldings, sill band and string course at half height. The R-hand window retains a transom but otherwise no mullions or transoms have survived. Projecting round turrets to the R and L house the stairs, lit by narrow loops. To the N of the R-hand (E) stair tower the side wall of the gatehouse has the segmental stone arch of a former undercroft.
The N gate passage is best described from its outer side, and is similar to the S gate. It has a doorway with double draw-bar sockets, portcullis slot, springers of former arches between murder slots, loops in each wall, another portcullis slot, a pointed doorway with double draw-bar sockets, doorways to rooms on the R and L, and a 3rd portcullis slot. The gatehouses have, in the lower storey, 2 simple unheated rooms. The first-floor hall has pointed rere arches, moulded C14 corbels and plain corbel table supporting the roof, a lateral fireplace formerly with corbelled hood, and a similar fireplace in the E wall (suggesting that the hall was partitioned) of which the dressings are mostly missing. Rooms on the N side of the hall are faceted in each gatehouse, with fireplaces and window seats in both middle and upper storeys. Stair turrets have newels stairs, the upper portion of which is renewed in concrete on the W side.
The Chapel tower has a pointed rubble-stone tunnel vault in the lower storey. In the middle storey is a pointed doorway with 2 orders of hollow moulding, leading to the chapel. Above are 2 corbelled round projections in the wall walk. The chapel doorway opens to a small tunnel-vaulted lobby. Entrance to the chapel itself is through double cusped doorways, which form part of a blind arcade of cusped arches with trefoiled spandrels, 3 per bay, to the 2-bay chapel. The chapel has a polygonal apse and rib vault on polygonal wall shafts. The W side, which incorporates the entrance, also has small lancet openings within the arcading that look out to the mural passage. Windows are set high, above the arcading. The W bay has blind windows, into which small windows were built that allowed proceedings to be viewed from small chambers contained within the wall on the N and S sides of the chapel, reached from the mural passage and provided with benches.
The SW, NW, NE, SE and the Middle tower are built to a standard form, with round lower-storey rooms, octagonal above. They incorporate newel stairs, of which the NW has mostly collapsed, and the SW is rebuilt in concrete at the upper level. The lower storey, which has a floor level lower than the passage from the inner ward, was possibly used as a prison and has a single inclined vent but no windows. Upper floors were supported on diaphragm arches, which have survived supporting the middle storeys of the Middle and SE towers, whereas the SW and NE towers retain only the springers of former arches, and the NE tower has a diaphragm arch supporting the upper storey. In the middle storey of each tower is the remains of a fireplace with corbelled hood.
Each section of curtain wall contains a central latrine shaft, with mural passages at first-floor level incorporating back-to-back garderobes. The N and S walls also have short mural passages in the lower storey to single garderobes in each section of wall. Mural passages have corbelled roofs. The S side is different as it has tunnel-vaulted lobbies adjacent to the towers, between which are short sections of corbelled passage with garderobes. The wall walk also incorporates back-to-back latrines, in this case reached down stone steps.
There is evidence of buildings within the inner ward. Footings survive of a building constructed against the E end of the N wall. In the curtain wall are 2 fireplaces, formerly with corbelled hoods, to a first-floor hall. On the S side of the chapel tower is the stub wall of a larger building. On the N side of the W curtain wall are the moulded jambs of a former kitchen fireplace, and adjacent to it against the N wall is the base of a bake oven. On the E side of the S curtain wall the wall is plastered to 2-storey height.
Reasons for Listing
Listed grade I as one of the outstanding Edwardian medieval castles of Wales.
Scheduled Ancient Monument AN001
World Heritage Site
swans in the moat
The final stages of the removal of "Unconditional Surrender" at Tuna Harbor Park. (Photos courtesy Dale Frost/Port of San Diego).
BANGABANDHU SHEIKH MUJIBUR RAHMAN
The life of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is the saga of a great leader turning peoplepower into an armed struggle that liberated a nation and created the world’s ninth most populous state. The birth of the sovereign state of Bangladesh in December 1971, after a heroic war of nine months against the Pakistani colonial rule, was the triumph of his faith in the destiny of his people. Sheikh Mujib, endearingly called Bangabandhu or friend of Bangladesh, rose from the people, molded their hopes and aspirations into a dream and staked his life in the long battle for making it real. He was a true democrat, and he employed in his struggle for securing justice and fairplay for the Bengalees only democratic and constitutional weapons until the last moment. It is no accident of history that in an age of military coup d’etat and ‘strong men’, Sheikh Mujib attained power through elections and mass movement and that in an age of decline of democracy he firmly established democracy in one of the least developed countries of Asia.
Sheikh Mujib was born on 17 March 1920 in a middle class family at Tungipara in Gopalganj district. Standing 5 feet 11 inches, he was taller than the average Bengalee. Nothing pleased him more than being close to the masses, knowing their joys and sorrows and being part of their travails and triumphs. He spoke their soft language but in articulating their sentiments his voice was powerful and resonant. He had not been educated abroad, nor did he learn the art of hiding feelings behind sophistry; yet he was loved as much by the urban educated as the common masses of the villages. He inspired the intelligentsia and the working class alike. He did not, however, climb to leadership overnight.
Early Political Life: His political life began as an humble worker while he was still a student. He was fortunate to come in early contact with such towering personalities as Hussain Shaheed Suhrawardy and A K Fazlul Huq, both charismatic Chief Ministers of undivided Bengal. Adolescent Mujib grew up under the gathering gloom of stormy politics as the aging British raj in India was falling apart and the Second World War was violently rocking the continents. He witnessed the ravages of the war and the stark realities of the great famine of 1943 in which about five million people lost their lives. The tragic plight of the people under colonial rule turned young Mujib into a rebel.
This was also the time when he saw the legendary revolutionary Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose challenging the British raj. Also about this time he came to know the works of Bernard Shaw, Karl Marx, Rabindranath Tagore and rebel poet Kazi Nazrul Islam. Soon after the partition of India in 1947 it was felt that the creation of Pakistan with its two wings separated by a physical distance of about 1,200 miles was a geographical monstrosity. The economic, political, cultural and linguistic characters of the two wings were also different. Keeping the two wings together under the forced bonds of a single state structure in the name of religious nationalism would merely result in a rigid political control and economic exploitation of the eastern wing by the all-powerful western wing which controlled the country’s capital and its economic and military might.
Early Movement: In 1948 a movement was initiated to make Bengali one of the state languages of Pakistan. This can be termed the first stirrings of the movement for an independent Bangladesh. The demand for cultural freedom gradually led to the demand for national independence. During that language movement Sheikh Mujib was arrested and sent to jail. During the blood-drenched language movement in 1952 he was again arrested and this time he provided inspiring leadership of the movement from inside the jail.
In 1954 Sheikh Mujib was elected a member of the then East Pakistan Assembly. He joined A K Fazlul Huq’s United Front government as the youngest minister. The ruling clique of Pakistan soon dissolved this government and Shiekh Mujib was once again thrown into prison. In 1955 he was elected a member of the Pakistan Constituent Assembly and was again made a minister when the Awami League formed the provincial government in 1956. Soon after General Ayub Khan staged a military coup in Pakistan in 1958, Sheikh Mujib was arrested once again and a number of cases were instituted against him. He was released after 14 months in prison but was re-arrested in February 1962. In fact, he spent the best part of his youth behind the prison bars.
Supreme Test: March 7, 1971 was a day of supreme test in his life. Nearly two million freedom loving people assembled at the Ramna Race Course Maidan, later renamed Suhrawardy Uddyan, on that day to hear their leader’s command for the battle for liberation. The Pakistani military junta was also waiting to trap him and to shoot down the people on the plea of suppressing a revolt against the state. Sheikh Mujib spoke in a thundering voice but in a masterly well-calculated restrained language. His historic declaration in the meeting was: "Our struggle this time is for freedom. Our struggle this time is for independence." To deny the Pakistani military an excuse for a crackdown, he took care to put forward proposals for a solution of the crisis in a constitutional way and kept the door open for negotiations.
The crackdown, however, did come on March 25 when the junta arrested Sheikh Mujib for the last time and whisked him away to West Pakistan for confinement for the entire duration of the liberation war. In the name of suppressing a rebellion the Pakistani military let loose hell on the unarmed civilians throughout Bangladesh and perpetrated a genocide killing no less than three million men, women and children, raping women in hundreds of thousands and destroying property worth billions of taka. Before their ignominious defeat and surrender they, with the help of their local collaborators, killed a large number of intellectuals, university professors, writers, doctors, journalists, engineers and eminent persons of other professions. In pursuing a scorch-earth policy they virtually destroyed the whole of the country’s infrastructure. But they could not destroy the indomitable spirit of the freedom fighters nor could they silence the thundering voice of the leader. Tape recordings of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib’s 7th March speech kept on inspiring his followers throughout the war.
Return and Reconstruction: Forced by international pressure and the imperatives of its own domestic predicament, Pakistan was obliged to release Sheikh Mujib from its jail soon after the liberation of Bangladesh and on 10 January 1972 the great leader returned to his beloved land and his admiring nation.
But as he saw the plight of the country his heart bled and he knew that there would be no moment of rest for him. Almost the entire nation including about ten million people returning from their refuge in India had to be rehabilitated, the shattered economy needed to be put back on the rail, the infrastructure had to be rebuilt, millions had to be saved from starvation and law and order had to be restored. Simultaneously, a new constitution had to be framed, a new parliament had to be elected and democratic institutions had to be put in place. Any ordinary mortal would break down under the pressure of such formidable tasks that needed to be addressed on top priority basis. Although simple at heart, Sheikh Mujib was a man of cool nerves and of great strength of mind. Under his charismatic leadership the country soon began moving on to the road to progress and the people found their long-cherished hopes and aspirations being gradually realized.
Assassination: But at this critical juncture, his life was cut short by a group of anti-liberation reactionary forces who in a pre-dawn move on 15 August 1975 not only assassinated him but 23 of his family members and close associates. Even his 10 year old son Russel’s life was not spared by the assassins. The only survivors were his two daughters, Sheikh Hasina - now the country’s Prime Minister - and her younger sister Sheikh Rehana, who were then away on a visit to Germany. In killing the father of the Nation, the conspirators ended a most glorious chapter in the history of Bangladesh but they could not end the great leader’s finest legacy- the rejuvenated Bengali nation. In a fitting tribute to his revered memory, the present government has declared August 15 as the national mourning day. On this day every year the people would be paying homage to the memory of a man who became a legend in his won lifetime. Bangabandhu lives in the heart of his people. Bangladesh and Bangabandhu are one and inseparable. Bangladesh was Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s vision and he fought and died for it.
My practical experience, some of new leaders of BNP (retired amla) wants to be leader. They want to show something to Khaleda Zia in strike period. Want to be talk of the day as like Sadek Hossain Khoka. Khoka hold liquid tomato pack with him and blasted in due time while police caught him on the streets. Remember people? Shamsher Mobin Choudhury Beer Bikram Freedom fighter, I salute for his contribution, but I enjoyed his acting on strike period with police SI. He want to be arrested then news will be like this “Beer Bikram Shamsher Mobin Choudhury didn’t relief from the police tortured.
Good attitude but no need to do this simple acting for growing the attraction of Khaleda. Next time he will be foreign Minister if BNP comes to the power.
This is a long description but worth the time.
Col. Peter J. Ortiz USMC
A Leathernecks war in Africa and Europe
By Rocklin D. Lyons
The obituary for Col. Peter J. Ortiz on May 21, 1988 read “Col. Peter J. Ortiz, a legendary officer in the Marine Corps, died of cancer Monday at the Veterans Medical Center in Prescott Arizona. He was 75 years old and lived in Prescott”.
During his active military service Ortiz was awarded two Navy Crosses, The Legion of Merit with combat V, Two Purple Hearts, The Order of the British Empire, and five Croix de Guerre. The French government also made him a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor along with numerous other military honors.
In a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery Col. Ortiz was laid to rest with full military honors with representatives of the British and French governments in attendance along with a large delegation of Marines. Thus ended a remarkable life. Two not very memorable films 13 Rue Madeleine (1947) and Operation Secret (1952) were based on his exploits.
Born in 1913 in New York City to a French father and an American mother, Ortiz spent most of his early years in La Jolla in Southern California. However, after elementary school, at the insistence of his father he moved to France and attended the Lycée de Pau and Bayonne. Later he spent a year at the College du Montcel in Versailles. Young Ortiz enjoyed sports and outdoor activity more than study and in 1932 at the age of 19 he enlisted in the French Foreign legion. When his father, a wealthy publisher, learned what he had done he tried to buy young Peter’s way out but Ortiz refused.
The true motivation for young Peter Ortiz to join the Foreign Legion will probably never be known. Many who join the Legion are running away from the law or serious family problems. There is no evidence that that was the case with Ortiz, who was from a upper class background and had never been in any serious trouble. Perhaps it was merely a youthful desire for adventure. Whatever the reasons for his joining, he did well in the Legion.
Over the next five years he rose from private to acting lieutenant within the Legion. During this time he fought boredom more than the Riff Berbers. He was a model soldier in the 7th Regiment where he received his initial parachute training and advanced to the rank of sergeant in charge of an armoured car squadron. Wounded in 1933 while serving in Africa he received numerous decorations, including the Croix De Guerre with two palms, one gold star, one silver star, five citations, the Croix de Combatants, the Ouissam Alouite and the Medal Militaire. Although offered a permanent commission if he would re-enlist, he resigned in 1937 and returned to the states.
For a brief period Ortiz acted as a technical director in Hollywood on military matters, however when war broke out in 1939 he was determined to return to France to fight. Sailing out of Canada for Europe, his ship was torpedoed by a German U-boat but his luck held and he was picked up and continued on to France.
In October of 1939 he once again enlisted in the French Foreign Legion and in May of 1940 he received a battlefield commission and rose to First lieutenant. During this period he received numerous additional French decorations. Ortiz was badly wounded in June of 1940 when he drove a motorcycle through a German camp and blew up a gasoline storage facility. His wound left him temporarily paralyzed and he was captured and imprisoned as a POW by the Germans
For the next year Ortiz was moved from one prison camp to another in Germany, Poland and Austria. Having made several escape attempts the Germans regarded him as a troublemaker and treated him accordingly. Finally, in October of 1941 he was successful in his escape and in evading the Gestapo and made it safely into Portugal. While in Lisbon both the British and the Free French offered him commissions but his back was not yet completely healed and he wanted to serve as an American.
Returning to the States by way of Lisbon, Ortiz found himself the subject of intense interest by the Army and Navy intelligence services who debriefed him extensively. He was promised a commission but when it was not forthcoming by June of 1942 he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and reported to Parris Island for recruit training.
One can imagine the consternation of his drill instructors when he appeared wearing his decorations (as he was entitled to do) while a recruit in training. His unique history quickly came to the attention of Colonel Louis R. Jones the Chief of Staff of the recruit depot who promptly recommended Ortiz for a commission. His recommendation included the comment "We spotted him shortly after his arrival. From appearances, the Marine Corps would be unbeatable if all our men were like him."
On August 1st of 1942 Peter J. Ortiz was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps reserve and due to his special qualifications he was promoted again on December 3, 1942 to the rank of Captain. Shortly after receiving his commission he received orders to attend the Parachute school at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina even though he was a qualified parachutist with over one hundred jumps with the Legion.
Among his other unique skills, Ortiz spoke ten languages, five fluently, including French and Arabic. On December 21st 1942 he was assigned duties as assistant naval attaché in Tangiers Morocco. Ortiz's orders were extraordinarily general which allowed him to attach himself to any unit he saw fit. In his after action report Captain Ortiz wrote:
I was, for excellent personal reasons and as a representative of the Marine Corps, particularly desirous of seeing and taking part in action against the Germans. I happened to be in Gafsa* when the evacuation order was received. Although later claimed by the press as a perfect example of an orderly and well-planned retreat, I thought it characterized by confusion and an alarming contagion of panic. Dozens of vehicles were damaged or abandoned and an number of American soldiers and local civilians run over through inadequate traffic control. Bridges were prematurely blown up, stranding our men on the wrong side
In the weeks following, Ortiz attached himself first to the British Derbyshire Yoemanry; next with a Foreign Legion unit and then with the American 1st Armored Division. During this time he came under fire from mortars, aircraft and the deadly German 88mm dual-purpose guns.
On 8 March Ortiz reported to The British Colonel commanding BRANDON at Guelmna and wsa sent forward to a base at Le Kouif supporting the 2nd Corps. Here he was assigned a mixed squad of 5 Spaniards and a British radio operator and ordered to meet up with another commando unit and “do some mischief with the jerries.”
In his excellent paper written for the Marine Corps Command and Staff College Major Robert E. Mattingly USMC described Ortiz actions: On the night of 18 March, Ortiz' squad pushed off in a pouring rain. Three days later, they were well beyond the Allied lines and moving across the rough cross-compartments northwest of the pass. It was still raining. At 2300, Ortiz called a halt. Leaving his assistant, a Spaniard named Amando, in charge, he struck out alone for the main roadway far below. Crossing a valley in which he constantly sank to his knees in mud, Ortiz finally reached the highway and began cautiously looking for tank tracks. It was pitch black and the downpour blotted out any sound.
Moving slowly in and out of the shallow wadis which cut across the roadbed, Ortiz spent nearly two hours on his personal reconnaissance. Then, just before turning back, the enemy he was seeking found him.
Ortiz was hit by the first burst of fire. One bullet shattered his right hand and another grazed his left leg. Rolling to his left, he saw the flashes of a machine gun 30 yards to his front. Rising to one knee he began throwing Petard anti-tank grenades left-handed. The first fell short, but the second scored a direct hit, exploding with "a terrific blast that stopped all automatic fire"
With rifle shots still singing around him from another position further to the right, Ortiz crawled away. Despite loss of blood and the effects of shock, he managed to reach his men, who carried and dragged him all the way back to friendly lines.
Ortiz was hospitalized and after successful surgery on his hand he returned to his commander and requested more combat duty. Instead he was ordered back to the states to recuperate. He arrived in Washington DC on April 27 and rather than take a well deserved rest he reported immediately to Headquarters Marine Corps for further assignment.
After recovering from his wounds he was assigned to the OSS and in July of 1943 Cpt. Ortiz flew to London for further assignment in France with the French resistance. Assigned to a team of British, French and American agents in Southeastern France in the Haute Savole region with a former British schoolmaster and an excellent French radio operator known as “Monnier” the team parachuted into France on January 6.
Code named UNION, the teams’ primary function was to organize guerilla warfare activity behind the German lines and to determine the military capabilities of the French units. Finding many of the French willing to fight but without weapons, UNION arranged for the clandestine delivery of weapons and then trained the French in their operation.
One of the episodes attributed to Col. Ortiz during this period appeared in Leatherneck magazine in January 1991.
“In the course of his duties he began frequenting a nightclub in Lyons that catered to German officers. This enabled Ortiz to gain much information regarding German activities in the area, which he turned to good use against the Germans. This Marine had worn his Marine uniform when leading Maquis groups in raids. To have an Allied officer leading them bolstered their morale immensely, especially when the uniform bore such impressive decorations.
One night, while Ortiz sat with the German officers at the club in Lyons, an enemy soldier damned President Franklin Roosevelt. He then damned the United States of America. And then, for whatever reason, he damned the United States Marine Corps (Ortiz later wrote that he "could not, for the life of me, figure why a German officer would so dislike American Marines when, chances were, he'd never met one.")
Perhaps Ortiz was bored. Perhaps he......he excused himself from the table and returned to his apartment where....changed into the uniform of a U.S. Marine....he then shrugged into a raincoat and returned to the club....he ordered a round of drinks ... refreshments were served.... removed his raincoat and stood brandishing his pistol. "A toast, he said, beaming, respendent in full greens and decorations, "to the President of the United States!" As the pistol moved from German officer to German officer, they emptied their glasses. He ordered another round of drinks and then offered a toast to the United States Marine Corps! After the Germans had drained their glasses, the Marine backed out, pistol leveled at his astonished hosts. He disappeared into the rainy, black night.”
A slightly different version of this story has Cpt. Ortiz in uniform but covered with an overcoat sitting at an outside café when upon hearing a German Officer curse the United State Marine Corps, Ortiz jumped up, threw off his coat and drawing two 45 caliber M1911 pistols proceeded to shoot the offending officers. Neither version explains why this German would single out the Marine Corps for his remarks as the Marines were not fighting in Europe other than a very few such as Ortiz on special assignments.
Lieutenant Colonel Robert Mattingly wrote a similar version in his prize-winning monograph, Herringbone Cloak--GI Dagger: Marines of the OSS:
Ortiz in particular was fond of going straight into the German-occupied towns. On one occasion, he strolled into a cafe dressed in a long cape. Several Germans were drinking and cursing the maquis. One mentioned the fate which would befall the filthy American swine when he was caught. (The Nazis apparently knew of Ortiz' existence in the area with the maquis) This proved a great mistake. Captain Ortiz threw back the cape revealing his Marine uniform. In each hand he held a .45 automatic. When the shooting stopped, there were fewer Nazis to plan his capture and Ortiz was gone into the night.
In spite of numerous difficulties due to lack of supplies, poor security and difficulty coordinating activities among the various resistance groups that often were at cross purposes to each other, Ortiz and his team successfully carried out training and operational missions against the Germans. One of his successful operation resulted in the repatriation of four allied pilots downed in France when he personally led them over the Pyrenees to safety.
In May of 1944 the UNION team was withdrawn to England. While in England Ortiz was promoted to Major and received the first of his Navy Crosses. The citation read::
For extraordinary heroism while attached to the United States Naval Command, Office of Strategic Services, London, England, in connection with military operations against an armed enemy, in enemy-occupied territory, from 8 January to 20 May 1944. Operating in civilian clothes and aware that he would be subject to execution in the event of his capture, Major Ortiz parachuted from an airplane with two other officers of an Inter-Allied mission to reorganize existing Maquis groups and organize additional groups in the region of Rhone. By his tact, resourcefulness and leadership, he was largely instrumental in effecting the acceptance of the mission by the local resistance leaders, and also in organizing parachute operations for the delivery of arms, ammunition and equipment for use by the Maquis in his region. Although his identity had become known to the Gestapo with the resultant increase in personal hazard, he voluntarily conducted to the Spanish border four Royal Air Force officers who had been shot down in his region, and later returned to resume his duties. Repeatedly leading successful raids during the period of this assignment, Major Ortiz inflicted heavy casualties on enemy forces greatly superior in number, with small losses to his own forces. By his heroic leadership and astuteness in planning and executing these hazardous forays, Major Ortiz served as an inspiration to his subordinates and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
The British Government also recognized Cpt. Ortiz bravery. The citation from King George VI which made him a member of the Most Honourable Order of the British Empire reads in part:
For four months this officer assisted in the organization of the Maquis in a most difficult department, where members were in constant danger of attack . . . he ran great risks in looking after four RAF officers who had been brought down in the neighborhood, and accompanied them to the Spanish border.
In the course of his efforts to obtain the release of these officers, he raided a German military garage and took ten Gestapo motors which he used frequently. . . . he procured a Gestapo pass for his own use in spite of the fact that he was well known to the enemy. . . "
On August 1st Maj. Ortiz returned to France in command of a team which included Army Air Forces Captain Francis Coolidge, Gunnery Sergeant Robert La Salle, Sergeants Charles Perry, John P. Bodnar, Frederick J. Brunner, and Jack R. Risler, all Marines, and a Free French officer, Joseph Arcelin, who carried false papers identifying him as a Marine. This mission was listed as UNION II. All team members wore their uniforms throughout this mission to avoid being shot as spies if captured.
The daylight drop into France started badly when Sergeant Perry’s parachute failed and he died in the fall. He was subsequently buried with military honors in spite of the danger that this created for those present. A total of 864 containers of equipment meant for the French Bulle Battalion were also dropped at that time adding substantially to the risk of discovery by the Germans or betrayal by local civilians.
During the days immediately following their insertion, the team instructed the battalion in the operation and maintenance of their new equipment and began patrols intended to link up with other resistance groups operating in the area. In an after action report Sergeant Brunner stated: On 14 August we proceeded to Beaufort where we made contact with other F.F.I. (Forces Francaises de liInterieur) companies and from there went on to Montgirod where we were told there were heavy concentrations of Germans. We were able to enter the town but had no sooner done so than we were heavily shelled by German batteries located in the hills around the city. We were forced to retire and hid out in the mountains near Montgirod with the Bulle Battalion. The Germans quickly surrounded the area.
On August 16th Maj. Ortiz and his men were in the town of Centron when a element consisting of several hundred soldiers of a German Alpine division entered the town surprising them both. Ortiz and his two of his men retreated under heavy fire to the South East part of Centron. The remainder of the team made it across the Isere River and met up with another resistance group.
As Ortiz and his men moved from house to house under fire from the pursuing Germans many French civilians fearing German reprisals begged the American to surrender. Knowing that the Germans had in fact conducted such reprisals Ortiz was faced with a dilemma, as he described after his liberation from a German POW camp.
Since the activities of Mission Union and its previous work were well know to the Gestapo, there was no reason to hope that we would be treated as ordinary prisoners of war. For me personally the decision to surrender was not too difficult. I had been involved in dangerous activities for many years and was mentally prepared for my number to turn up. Sergeant Bodnar was next to me and I explained the situation to him and what I intended to do. He looked me in the eye and replied, "Major, we are Marines, what you think is right goes for me too"
After his surrender with the two sergeants, the German commander wanted to know where the remainder of his troops were. When informed that it was just the tree of them the German was clearly skeptical, however after a thorough search of the town he was forced to accept that only three Marines had held off his battalion.
From September 29th thru April 10th 1945 Ortiz was held at a naval POW camp Marlag/Milag Nord where he tried several escape attempts. On April 10th the camp commandant ordered all prisoners to prepare to leave due to the proximity of allied troops. While enroute the column came under attack by British Spitfires. In the confusion Ortiz and three other prisoners made good their escape.
Once free in the heart of Germany there problems were not over. Maj. Ortiz in a later report stated: We spent ten days hiding, roving at night, blundering into enemy positions hoping to find our way into British lines. Luck was with us. Once we were discovered but managed to get away, and several other times we narrowly escaped detection...By the seventh night, we had returned near our camp. I made a reconnaissance of Marlag O....There seemed to be only a token guard and prisoners of war appeared to have assumed virtual control of the compounds.
Facing the very real threat of starvation the men simply walked back into the camp where they were met with a warm welcome by their fellow prisoners and virtually ignored by the remaining guards. On April 29th the British 7th Guards Armoured Division liberated the camp and Ortiz was flown back to England where he received his second Navy Cross. The citation read: For extraordinary heroism while serving with the Office of Strategic Services during operations behind enemy Axis lines in the Savoie Department of France, from 1 August 1944, to 27 April 1945. After parachuting into a region where his activities had made him an object of intensive search by the Gestapo, Major Ortiz valiantly continued his work in coordinating and leading resistance groups in that section. When he and his team were attacked and surrounded during a special mission designed to immobilize enemy reinforcements stationed in that area, he disregarded the possibility of escape and, in an effort to spare villagers severe reprisals by the Gestapo, surrendered to this sadistic Geheim Staats Polizei (sic). Subsequently imprisoned and subjected to numerous interrogations, he divulged nothing, and the story of this intrepid Marine Major and his team has become a brilliant legend in that section of France where acts of bravery were considered commonplace. By his outstanding loyalty and self-sacrificing devotion to duty, Major Ortiz contributed materially to the success of operations against a relentless enemy, and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
When the war ended, Ortiz was in California being briefed for a mission to Indo-China. After his discharge Ortiz resumed his association with John Ford and appeared in numerous movies in small parts including two with John Wayne. He was never comfortable as an actor and refused to watch his own movies. He also acted as a technical advisor on other films.
Maj. Ortiz remained in the Marine Corps reserve and was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. In 1954 Lt. Col. Ortiz requested to be returned to active duty and assigned to South East Asia as an observer however his offer was declined because "current military policies will not permit the assignment requested." He was promoted to full Colonel upon his retirement in 1955.
In 1994, six years after his death, Col. Ortiz was again honored by the citizens of Centron and Les Saisies in ceremonies commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the events which Col. Ortiz played such a prominent part. In attendance were Colonel Ortiz' wife, Jean, and their son, Marine Lieutenant Colonel Peter J. Ortiz, Jr., retired Sergeant Major John P. Bodnar, and former Sergeant Jack R. Risler. Also present at the ceremonies were Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Parnell II, USMC, assistant Naval Attaché in Paris, and Colonel Peter T. Metzger, commander of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, then in the Mediterranean, together with a color guard and an honor guard from his unit.
A short time later the town of Centron held its own ceremonies when it unveiled a plaque naming the town center ";Place Peter Ortiz"
A final comment about Peter Ortiz came from the son of one of the Royal Air force Pilots who Ortiz assisted to escape in 1944. Ian Bell, the son of Ernest Bell DFC wrote that his father could not talk about the war without talking about the courage of Col. Ortiz. What amazed him most about Ortiz was that throughout the time of their escape Ortiz wore his complete Marine Corps uniform under his coat even in rail stations swarming with Germans and knowing that the Germans would have loved to have captured him. Ian Bell maintained that Peter Ortiz was probably the bravest man he had ever met.
Semper fi, Colonel.
Authors note: Sources for material on Col. Ortiz are limited. Much of the material contained above comes from a monograph written by Marine Historian Benis Frank and Herringbone Cloak—GI Dagger: Marines of the OSS by Major Robert E. Mattingly, USMC.
The final stages of the removal of "Unconditional Surrender" at Tuna Harbor Park. (Photos courtesy Dale Frost/Port of San Diego).
The upper portion of "Unconditional Surrender" is safely placed on the ground at Tuna Harbor Park. (Photos courtesy Dale Frost/Port of San Diego).
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The final stages of the removal of "Unconditional Surrender" at Tuna Harbor Park. (Photos courtesy Dale Frost/Port of San Diego).
Visitors observe and take pictures of the removed sections of "Unconditional Surrender" at Tuna Harbor Park. (Photos courtesy Dale Frost/Port of San Diego).
The final stages of the removal of "Unconditional Surrender" at Tuna Harbor Park. (Photos courtesy Dale Frost/Port of San Diego).
German infantryman surrendering to British Troops. The Manor at War event at Llancaiach Fawr, Nelson, South Wales.