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nrhp # 66000006- New Harmony Historic District- New Harmony is a historic town on the Wabash River in Harmony Township, Posey County, Indiana.[6] It lies 15 miles (24 km) north of Mount Vernon, the county seat, and is part of the Evansville metropolitan area. The town's population was 789 at the 2010 census.
Established by the Harmony Society in 1814 under the leadership of George Rapp, the town was originally known as Harmony (also called Harmonie, or New Harmony). In its early years the 20,000-acre (8,100 ha) settlement was the home of Lutherans who had separated from the official church in the Duchy of Württemberg and immigrated to the United States.[7] The Harmonists built a new town in the wilderness, but in 1824 they decided to sell their property and return to Pennsylvania.[8] Robert Owen, a Welsh industrialist and social reformer, purchased the town in 1825 with the intention of creating a new utopian community and renamed it New Harmony. While the Owenite social experiment failed two years after it began, the community made some important contributions to American society.[9]
New Harmony became known as a center for advances in education and scientific research. Town residents established the first free library, a civic drama club, and a public school system open to men and women. Its prominent citizens included Owen's sons: Robert Dale Owen, an Indiana congressman and social reformer who sponsored legislation to create the Smithsonian Institution; David Dale Owen, a noted state and federal geologist; William Owen, a New Harmony businessman; and Richard Owen, Indiana state geologist, Indiana University professor, and first president of Purdue University. The town also served as the second headquarters of the U.S. Geological Survey. Numerous scientists and educators contributed to New Harmony's intellectual community, including William Maclure, Marie Louise Duclos Fretageot, Thomas Say, Charles-Alexandre Lesueur, Joseph Neef, Frances Wright, and others.
from Wikipedia
De Zimmertoren is een toren in Lier, in de Belgische provincie Antwerpen. De toren is genoemd naar uurwerkmaker Louis Zimmer, en is het resultaat van het verbouwen van de middeleeuwse Corneliustoren, die een deel was van de tweede omwalling rond de stad. De toren staat op het Zimmerplein, het vroegere Wilsonplein. Dit plein ligt aan de binnennete. De kade hier werd vroeger gebruikt om schepen te laden en lossen. Lierenaars spreken daarom ook nog vaak van de "kade" of "kaai" als ze verwijzen naar het Zimmerplein.
Het bouwjaar van de oorspronkelijke toren, een oude vestigingstoren (de corneliustoren), is niet precies bekend, maar ligt vóór 1425. De toren behoorde tot de tweede omwalling van de stad. De toren werd in 1812 door het gemeentebestuur verkocht, maar werd na de Eerste Wereldoorlog weer aangekocht, omdat het stadsbestuur de toren wilde afbreken. In 1928 schonk Zimmer aan de stad Lier een uurwerkmechanisme (de Jubelklok, gemaakt met zijn rechterhand Frans Dirckx en zo genoemd omwille van de viering van 100 jaar Belgische onafhankelijkheid in 1930 bij de officiële inhuldiging van de toren) dat diverse tijden en kosmische en andere periodieke verschijnselen aangeeft. Er werd besloten dit uurwerk onder te brengen in de bouwvallige Corneliustoren, die daartoe tussen 1928 en 1930 werd verbouwd en gerestaureerd en sindsdien Zimmertoren wordt genoemd. De inhuldiging van de Zimmertoren vond plaats op 29 juni 1930. De hele verbouwing werd voor het grootste deel uitgevoerd door vrijwilligers en de kostprijs bedroeg 169.230,40 Belgische frank.
Op het pleintje vóór de toren lag tot 2013 een voorstelling van het zonnestelsel, met de voorstelling van de planetoïden Felix (1664) en Zimmer (3064), die respectievelijk naar Felix Timmermans en Louis Zimmer werden genoemd en die ontdekt werden in 1929 en 1984. In 2013 is de planetencirkel verwijderd en vervangen door een didactische versie in het paviljoen.
De werken van Louis Zimmer worden sedert 1930 in eigendom beheerd door de onafhankelijke vzw Zimmertorencomité Lier die tevens huurster is van de gebouwen tot in 2045.
Sinds 1980 is de toren beschermd als monument. De Zimmertoren behoort tot een van de meest karakteristieke klokken van Europa.
The Zimmer tower (Dutch: Zimmertoren) is a tower in Lier, Belgium, also known as the Cornelius tower, that was originally a keep of Lier's fourteenth century city fortifications. In 1930, astronomer and clockmaker Louis Zimmer (1888–1970) built the Jubilee (or Centenary) Clock, which is displayed on the front of the tower, and consists of 12 clocks encircling a central one with 57 dials. These clocks showed time on all continents, phases of the moons, times of tides and many other periodic phenomena.
In 1980 the tower became a state-protected monument.
The original tower was built no later than 1425, though the precise date of construction is unknown. In 1812 the tower was sold by the municipal authorities, but after World War I, they repurchased it and slated it for demolition. In 1930 astronomer and clockmaker Louis Zimmer donated a complex clock which was installed in the old tower, which had to be substantially reconstructed for this. In honor of the astronomer the structure was renamed the Zimmer tower.
In 1960 a pavilion for the new clock was built next to the tower to present Zimmer's masterpiece the wonder-clock. (Dutch: Wonderklok). These wonder-clocks were prepared for the 1935 world exhibition in Brussels; later they were demonstrated in the U.S.. Around one of these dials moves the slowest pointer in the world - its complete revolution will take 25800 years, which corresponds to the period of the precession of the Earth's axis. Subsequently, Zimmer attached to the clocks a mechanical planetarium. The wonder-clocks impressed Albert Einstein, who congratulated Zimmer on the creation of these unusual mechanisms.
On the small square at the foot of the tower an exhibition of the solar system was arranged with the aid of metallic circles and the rings (circles designate the sun and planets, rings the orbits of planets). These also show asteroids Felix (№ 1664) and Zimmer (№ 3064), which were named after Felix Timmermans and Louis Zimmer when discovered in 1929, and 1984. In 1980 the tower obtained the status of state protected monument. Now the Zimmer tower and pavilion with the wonder-clocks is a museum.
The Centenary clock has one large dial in the centre, measure 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) in diameter. This dial shows the exact time (UTC+1; during daylight saving time UTC+2 is used instead). The twelve dials around the centre dial show the following (starting from the dial in the 2 o'clock position and going clockwise): the equation of time, the zodiac, the solar cycle and the dominical letter, the week, the globe, the months, the calendar dates, the seasons, the tides, the age of the moon, the phases of the moon and the metonic cycle and the epact.
The equation of time
This dial shows the difference in minutes between the apparent solar time and the mean solar time. Positive values indicate that the apparent solar time is ahead (fast) of the mean solar time, with maxima around November 3 and May 15. Negative values indicate that the apparent solar time is behind (slow) of the mean solar time, with a maximum lag around February 12 and July 27.
The difference is zero four times a year; around April 16, June 15, September 1 and December 25.
The zodiac
Every year the sun describes an imaginary circle around the earth, called the zodiac. The zodiac is divided in twelve segments, each denoted by a sign associated with a constellation. This dial shows the zodiac signs. The signs of spring; Ram, Bull and Twins. The signs of the summer; Crab, Lion and Virgin. The signs of the fall; Balance, Scorpion and Bowman. The signs of winter; Capricorn, Water-bearer and Fishes. One revolution of this dial takes a year.
The solar cycle and the dominical letter
The solar cycle is a 28-year cycle. After the 28 years, dates reappear in the same order. On the inner circle, the hand indicates the current year of the solar cycle. On the outer circle, the hand shows the corresponding dominical letter. The dominical letter gives the day upon which the first Sunday of the year falls. The letter A means that the first Sunday of the year will fall on January 1. The letter E for example, indicates that the first Sunday will be on January 5. Leap years have two dominical letters because the dominical letter changes end February. The first letter covers January and February, the second covers March to December. For leap years, the outer circle will show two dominical letters.
The week
This dial marks the seven days of the week, represented by ancient gods and their symbol.
SundayApollosun
MondayDianamoon
TuesdayMarslance
WednesdayMercuriusgolden staff
ThursdayJupiterflash of lightning
FridayVenusmirror
SaturdaySaturnsickle and scythe
The globe
The rotation of the Earth causes day and night. It is day on the part of the globe that is currently visible. The places on earth that pass under the fixed meridian (the golden belt running from the North Pole to the South Pole) have noon at the same time. The globe rotates once every 24 hours.
The months
This dial depicts the twelve months. The hand shows the current month. One revolution takes a year.
NumberMonthAlternative name
1JanuaryIce-month
2FebruaryDuck-month
3MarchFish-month
4AprilHarlequin-month
5MayFlower-month
6JuneShearing-month
7JulyHay-month
8AugustHarvest-month
9SeptemberFruit-month
10OctoberWine-month
11NovemberSlaughter-month
12DecemberResting-month
The calendar dates
This dial shows the exact date. The numbering goes to 31, the maximum number of days in a month. In months that have less days (28, 29 or 30), the hand automatically moves forward to the first day of the following month.
The seasons
The dial shows four drawings by Felix Timmermans, representing the four seasons. Spring is represented by a child with flowers (upper left). The duration of the season is indicated with Arabic numerals for the days and Roman numerals for the hours. Spring lasts for 92 days and 11 hours. The summer is represented by a mower and lasts 93 days and 8 hours. Autumn is symbolised by a cornucopia and lasts 89 days and 10 hours. Winter is represented by an old lady reading by the fireside. The duration of the winter is exact 90 days.
On the dividing lines between the drawings is a small globe indicating the part of the globe that is being lit by the sun at the start of the season. The differences in illumination during the year are caused by the Earth's axial tilt. The hand completes one revolution a year and shows the current season.
The tides
The dial indicates the tides at Lier, Belgium. The biggest ship and the flag without the streamer indicate high water. When the streamer is above the flag it is flood. It is ebb when the streamer is below the flag. At Lier, the water is rising for 3 hours and 53 minutes and falling in the other hours. This dial completes almost two revolutions a day.
The age of the moon
The time between two full moons is about 29 days, 12 hours, 44 minutes. This is the time it takes the Moon to make one orbit around the Earth. The dial shows how many days passed since last new moon, indicating the day in the cycle of the moon and showing on the inner circumference the phases of New Moon (Dutch: Nieuwe Maan, N.M.), First Quarter (Dutch: Eerste Kwartier, E.K.), Full Moon (Dutch: Volle Maan, V.M.) and Last Quarter (Dutch: Laatste Kwartier, L.K.).
The phases of the moon
This globe, colored half-gold and half-blue with golden stars, shows the phases of the moon. The golden part represents the visible part of the moon.
The metonic cycle and the epact
The hand on this dial revolves once in 19 years. After this period, the different phases of the moon will fall again on the same dates in the year. The Greek astronomer Meton proved this in 432 BC. On the outer ring, the hand points to the golden number, or the number of the current year in the metonic cycle. The inner ring shows the epact, which is the age of the moon on the first of January of the current year.
Ace & Rusty’s arch nemesis passed by a few minutes ago and they both went ballistic. Now they are staring at the fence in anticipation that he will return so they can take him down. Which, of course, is impossible with a fence between them, but it’s worth a try, right?
of some roast duck and a BCS Title. WAR EAGLE.
2010 National Champion AUBURN TIGERS
Nature Winner in PvN!!!
(Taken at the Audubon Zoo, New Orleans)
© Copyright rsr418. This image is not to be used by any party other than Flickr for any reason unless consent is given from rsr418.
A planned conversion into a local GP's surgery came to nothing so here it lies, boarded up awaiting it's fate.
Gullaug kirke er en langkirke fra 1905 i Frogner sogn i Lier kommune, Buskerud fylke. Byggverket er i tre og har 100 plasser.
Strasbourg (/ˈstræzbɜrɡ/, French pronunciation: [stʁaz.buʁ, stʁas.buʁ]; German: Straßburg, [ˈʃtʁaːsbʊɐ̯k]) is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in north eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace were historically Alemannic-speaking, hence the city's Germanic name.[5] In 2006, the city proper had 272,975 inhabitants and its urban community 467,375 inhabitants. With 759,868 inhabitants in 2010, Strasbourg's metropolitan area (only the part of the metropolitan area on French territory) is the ninth largest in France. The transnational Eurodistrict Strasbourg-Ortenau had a population of 884,988 inhabitants in 2008.[6]
Strasbourg is the seat of several European institutions, such as the Council of Europe (with its European Court of Human Rights, its European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines and its European Audiovisual Observatory) and the Eurocorps, as well as the European Parliament and the European Ombudsman of the European Union. The city is also the seat of the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine and the International Institute of Human Rights.[7]
Strasbourg's historic city centre, the Grande Île (Grand Island), was classified a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1988, the first time such an honour was placed on an entire city centre. Strasbourg is immersed in the Franco-German culture and although violently disputed throughout history, has been a bridge of unity between France and Germany for centuries, especially through the University of Strasbourg, currently the second largest in France, and the coexistence of Catholic and Protestant culture. The largest Islamic place of worship in France, the Strasbourg Grand Mosque, was inaugurated by French Interior Minister Manuel Valls on 27 September 2012.[8]
Economically, Strasbourg is an important centre of manufacturing and engineering, as well as a hub of road, rail, and river transportation. The port of Strasbourg is the second largest on the Rhine after Duisburg, Germany.
Etymology and Names
The city's Gallicized name (Lower Alsatian: Strossburi, [ˈʃd̥rɔːsb̥uri]; German: Straßburg, [ˈʃtʁaːsbʊɐ̯k]) is of Germanic origin and means "Town (at the crossing) of roads". The modern Stras- is cognate to the German Straße and English street, all of which are derived from Latin strata ("paved road"), while -bourg is cognate to the German Burg and English borough, all of which are derived from Proto-Germanic *burgz ("hill fort, fortress").
Geography
Strasbourg seen from Spot Satellite
Strasbourg is situated on the eastern border of France with Germany. This border is formed by the River Rhine, which also forms the eastern border of the modern city, facing across the river to the German town Kehl. The historic core of Strasbourg however lies on the Grande Île in the River Ill, which here flows parallel to, and roughly 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from, the Rhine. The natural courses of the two rivers eventually join some distance downstream of Strasbourg, although several artificial waterways now connect them within the city.
The city lies in the Upper Rhine Plain, at between 132 metres (433 ft) and 151 metres (495 ft) above sea level, with the upland areas of the Vosges Mountains some 20 km (12 mi) to the west and the Black Forest 25 km (16 mi) to the east. This section of the Rhine valley is a major axis of north-south travel, with river traffic on the Rhine itself, and major roads and railways paralleling it on both banks.
The city is some 400 kilometres (250 mi) east of Paris. The mouth of the Rhine lies approximately 450 kilometres (280 mi) to the north, or 650 kilometres (400 mi) as the river flows, whilst the head of navigation in Basel is some 100 kilometres (62 mi) to the south, or 150 kilometres (93 mi) by river.
Climate
In spite of its position far inland, Strasbourg's climate is classified as Oceanic (Köppen climate classification Cfb), with warm, relatively sunny summers and cold, overcast winters. Precipitation is elevated from mid-spring to the end of summer, but remains largely constant throughout the year, totaling 631.4 mm (24.9 in) annually. On average, snow falls 30 days per year.
The highest temperature ever recorded was 38.5 °C (101.3 °F) in August 2003, during the 2003 European heat wave. The lowest temperature ever recorded was −23.4 °C (−10.1 °F) in December 1938.
Strasbourg's location in the Rhine valley, sheltered from the dominant winds by the Vosges and Black Forest mountains, results in poor natural ventilation, making Strasbourg one of the most atmospherically polluted cities of France.[10][11] Nonetheless, the progressive disappearance of heavy industry on both banks of the Rhine, as well as effective measures of traffic regulation in and around the city have reduced air pollution.
Prehistory
The first traces of human occupation in the environs of Strasbourg go back many thousands of years.[16] Neolithic, bronze age and iron age artifacts have been uncovered by archeological excavations. It was permanently settled by proto-Celts around 1300 BC. Towards the end of the third century BC, it developed into a Celtic township with a market called "Argentorate". Drainage works converted the stilthouses to houses built on dry land.[17]
From Romans
The Romans under Nero Claudius Drusus established a military outpost belonging to the Germania Superior Roman province at Strasbourg's current location, and named it Argentoratum. (Hence the town is commonly called Argentina in medieval Latin.[18]) The name "Argentoratum" was first mentioned in 12 BC and the city celebrated its 2,000th birthday in 1988. "Argentorate" as the toponym of the Gaulish settlement preceded it before being Latinized, but it is not known by how long. The Roman camp was destroyed by fire and rebuilt six times between the first and the fifth centuries AD: in 70, 97, 235, 355, in the last quarter of the fourth century, and in the early years of the fifth century. It was under Trajan and after the fire of 97 that Argentoratum received its most extended and fortified shape. From the year 90 on, the Legio VIII Augusta was permanently stationed in the Roman camp of Argentoratum. It then included a cavalry section and covered an area of approximately 20 hectares. Other Roman legions temporarily stationed in Argentoratum were the Legio XIV Gemina and the Legio XXI Rapax, the latter during the reign of Nero.
The centre of Argentoratum proper was situated on the Grande Île (Cardo: current Rue du Dôme, Decumanus: current Rue des Hallebardes). The outline of the Roman "castrum" is visible in the street pattern in the Grande Ile. Many Roman artifacts have also been found along the current Route des Romains, the road that led to Argentoratum, in the suburb of Kœnigshoffen. This was where the largest burial places were situated, as well as the densest concentration of civilian dwelling places and commerces next to the camp. Among the most outstanding finds in Kœnigshoffen were (found in 1911–12) the fragments of a grand Mithraeum that had been shattered by early Christians in the fourth century. From the fourth century, Strasbourg was the seat of the Bishopric of Strasbourg (made an Archbishopric in 1988). Archaeological excavations below the current Église Saint-Étienne in 1948 and 1956 unearthed the apse of a church dating back to the late fourth or early fifth century, considered to be the oldest church in Alsace. It is supposed that this was the first seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Strasbourg.
The Alemanni fought the Battle of Argentoratum against Rome in 357. They were defeated by Julian, later Emperor of Rome, and their King Chonodomarius was taken prisoner. On 2 January 366, the Alemanni crossed the frozen Rhine in large numbers to invade the Roman Empire. Early in the fifth century, the Alemanni appear to have crossed the Rhine, conquered, and then settled what is today Alsace and a large part of Switzerland.
In the fifth century Strasbourg was occupied successively by Alemanni, Huns, and Franks. In the ninth century it was commonly known as Strazburg in the local language, as documented in 842 by the Oaths of Strasbourg. This trilingual text contains, alongside texts in Latin and Old High German (teudisca lingua), the oldest written variety of Gallo-Romance (lingua romana) clearly distinct from Latin, the ancestor of Old French. The town was also called Stratisburgum or Strateburgus in Latin, from which later came Strossburi in Alsatian and Straßburg in Standard German, and then Strasbourg in French. The Oaths of Strasbourg is considered as marking the birth of the two countries of France and Germany with the division of the Carolingian Empire.[19]
A major commercial centre, the town came under the control of the Holy Roman Empire in 923, through the homage paid by the Duke of Lorraine to German King Henry I. The early history of Strasbourg consists of a long conflict between its bishop and its citizens. The citizens emerged victorious after the Battle of Oberhausbergen in 1262, when King Philip of Swabia granted the city the status of an Imperial Free City.
Around 1200, Gottfried von Straßburg wrote the Middle High German courtly romance Tristan, which is regarded, alongside Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival and the Nibelungenlied, as one of great narrative masterpieces of the German Middle Ages.
A revolution in 1332 resulted in a broad-based city government with participation of the guilds, and Strasbourg declared itself a free republic. The deadly bubonic plague of 1348 was followed on 14 February 1349 by one of the first and worst pogroms in pre-modern history: over a thousand Jews were publicly burnt to death, with the remainder of the Jewish population being expelled from the city.[20] Until the end of the 18th century, Jews were forbidden to remain in town after 10 pm. The time to leave the city was signalled by a municipal herald blowing the Grüselhorn (see below, Museums, Musée historique);.[21] A special tax, the Pflastergeld (pavement money), was furthermore to be paid for any horse that a Jew would ride or bring into the city while allowed to.[22]
Construction on Strasbourg Cathedral began in the twelfth century, and it was completed in 1439 (though, of the towers, only the north tower was built), becoming the World's Tallest Building, surpassing the Great Pyramid of Giza. A few years later, Johannes Gutenberg created the first European moveable type printing press in Strasbourg.
In July 1518, an incident known as the Dancing Plague of 1518 struck residents of Strasbourg. Around 400 people were afflicted with dancing mania and danced constantly for weeks, most of them eventually dying from heart attack, stroke or exhaustion.
In the 1520s during the Protestant Reformation, the city, under the political guidance of Jacob Sturm von Sturmeck and the spiritual guidance of Martin Bucer embraced the religious teachings of Martin Luther. Their adherents established a Gymnasium, headed by Johannes Sturm, made into a University in the following century. The city first followed the Tetrapolitan Confession, and then the Augsburg Confession. Protestant iconoclasm caused much destruction to churches and cloisters, notwithstanding that Luther himself opposed such a practice. Strasbourg was a centre of humanist scholarship and early book-printing in the Holy Roman Empire, and its intellectual and political influence contributed much to the establishment of Protestantism as an accepted denomination in the southwest of Germany. (John Calvin spent several years as a political refugee in the city). The Strasbourg Councillor Sturm and guildmaster Matthias represented the city at the Imperial Diet of Speyer (1529), where their protest led to the schism of the Catholic Church and the evolution of Protestantism. Together with four other free cities, Strasbourg presented the confessio tetrapolitana as its Protestant book of faith at the Imperial Diet of Augsburg in 1530, where the slightly different Augsburg Confession was also handed over to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.
After the reform of the Imperial constitution in the early sixteenth century and the establishment of Imperial Circles, Strasbourg was part of the Upper Rhenish Circle, a corporation of Imperial estates in the southwest of Holy Roman Empire, mainly responsible for maintaining troops, supervising coining, and ensuring public security.
After the invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg around 1440, the first printing offices outside the inventor's hometown Mainz were established around 1460 in Strasbourg by pioneers Johannes Mentelin and Heinrich Eggestein. Subsequently, the first modern newspaper was published in Strasbourg in 1605, when Johann Carolus received the permission by the City of Strasbourg to print and distribute a weekly journal written in German by reporters from several central European cities.
From Thirty Years' War to First World War
The Free City of Strasbourg remained neutral during the Thirty Years' War 1618-1648, and retained its status as a Free Imperial City. However, the city was later annexed by Louis XIV of France to extend the borders of his kingdom.
Louis' advisors believed that, as long as Strasbourg remained independent, it would endanger the King's newly annexed territories in Alsace, and, that to defend these large rural lands effectively, a garrison had to be placed in towns such as Strasbourg.[23] Indeed, the bridge over the Rhine at Strasbourg had been used repeatedly by Imperial (Holy Roman Empire) forces,[24] and three times during the Franco-Dutch War Strasbourg had served as a gateway for Imperial invasions into Alsace.[25] In September 1681 Louis' forces, though lacking a clear casus belli, surrounded the city with overwhelming force. After some negotiation, Louis marched into the city unopposed on 30 September 1681 and proclaimed its annexation.[26]
This annexation was one of the direct causes of the brief and bloody War of the Reunions whose outcome left the French in possession. The French annexation was recognized by the Treaty of Ryswick (1697). The official policy of religious intolerance which drove most Protestants from France after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685 was not applied in Strasbourg and in Alsace, because both had a special status as a province à l'instar de l'étranger effectif (a kind of foreign province of the king of France). Strasbourg Cathedral, however, was taken from the Lutherans to be returned to the Catholics as the French authorities tried to promote Catholicism wherever they could (some other historic churches remained in Protestant hands). Its language also remained overwhelmingly German: the German Lutheran university persisted until the French Revolution. Famous students included Goethe and Herder.
The Duke of Lorraine and Imperial troops crossing the Rhine at Strasbourg during the War of the Austrian Succession, 1744
During a dinner in Strasbourg organized by Mayor Frédéric de Dietrich on 25 April 1792, Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle composed "La Marseillaise". The same year François Christophe Kellermann, a child of Strasbourg was appointed the head of the Mosel Army. He led his company to victory at the battle of Valmy and saved the young French republic. He was later appointed Duke of Valmy by Napoléon in 1808.
During this period Jean-Baptiste Kléber, also born in Strasbourg, led the French army to win several decisive victories. A statue of Kléber now stands in the centre of the city, at Place Kléber, and he is still one of the most famous French officers. He was later appointed Marshal of France by Napoléon.
Strasbourg's status as a free city was revoked by the French Revolution. Enragés, most notoriously Eulogius Schneider, ruled the city with an increasingly iron hand. During this time, many churches and monasteries were either destroyed or severely damaged. The cathedral lost hundreds of its statues (later replaced by copies in the 19th century) and in April 1794, there was talk of tearing its spire down, on the grounds that it was against the principle of equality. The tower was saved, however, when in May of the same year citizens of Strasbourg crowned it with a giant tin Phrygian cap. This artifact was later kept in the historical collections of the city until it was destroyed by the Germans in 1870 during the Franco-Prussian war.[27]
In 1805, 1806 and 1809, Napoléon Bonaparte and his first wife, Joséphine stayed in Strasbourg.[28] In 1810, his second wife Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma spent her first night on French soil in the palace. Another royal guest was King Charles X of France in 1828.[29] In 1836, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte unsuccessfully tried to lead his first Bonapartist coup in Strasbourg.
During the Franco-Prussian War and the Siege of Strasbourg, the city was heavily bombarded by the Prussian army. The bombardment of the city was meant to break the morale of the people of Strasbourg.[30] On 24 and 26 August 1870, the Museum of Fine Arts was destroyed by fire, as was the Municipal Library housed in the Gothic former Dominican church, with its unique collection of medieval manuscripts (most famously the Hortus deliciarum), rare Renaissance books, archeological finds and historical artifacts. The gothic cathedral was damaged as well as the medieval church of Temple Neuf, the theatre, the city hall, the court of justice and many houses. At the end of the siege 10,000 inhabitants were left without shelter; over 600 died, including 261 civilians, and 3200 were injured, including 1,100 civilians.[31]
In 1871, after the end of the war, the city was annexed to the newly established German Empire as part of the Reichsland Elsass-Lothringen under the terms of the Treaty of Frankfurt. As part of Imperial Germany, Strasbourg was rebuilt and developed on a grand and representative scale, such as the Neue Stadt, or "new city" around the present Place de la République. Historian Rodolphe Reuss and Art historian Wilhelm von Bode were in charge of rebuilding the municipal archives, libraries and museums. The University, founded in 1567 and suppressed during the French Revolution as a stronghold of German sentiment,[citation needed] was reopened in 1872 under the name Kaiser-Wilhelms-Universität.
Strasbourg in the 1890s.
A belt of massive fortifications was established around the city, most of which still stands today, renamed after French generals and generally classified as Monuments historiques; most notably Fort Roon (now Fort Desaix) and Fort Podbielski (now Fort Ducrot) in Mundolsheim, Fort von Moltke (now Fort Rapp) in Reichstett, Fort Bismarck (now Fort Kléber) in Wolfisheim, Fort Kronprinz (now Fort Foch) in Niederhausbergen, Fort Kronprinz von Sachsen (now Fort Joffre) in Holtzheim and Fort Großherzog von Baden (now Fort Frère) in Oberhausbergen.[32]
Those forts subsequently served the French army (Fort Podbielski/Ducrot for instance was integrated into the Maginot Line[33]), and were used as POW-camps in 1918 and 1945.
Two garrison churches were also erected for the members of the Imperial German army, the Lutheran Église Saint-Paul and the Roman Catholic Église Saint-Maurice.
1918 to the present
A lost, then restored, symbol of modernity in Strasbourg : a room in the Aubette building designed by Theo van Doesburg, Hans Arp and Sophie Taeuber-Arp.
Following the defeat of the German empire in World War I and the abdication of the German Emperor, some revolutionary insurgents declared Alsace-Lorraine as an independent Republic, without preliminary referendum or vote. On 11 November 1918 (Armistice Day), communist insurgents proclaimed a "soviet government" in Strasbourg, following the example of Kurt Eisner in Munich as well as other German towns. French troops commanded by French general Henri Gouraud entered triumphantly in the city on 22 November. A major street of the city now bears the name of that date (Rue du 22 Novembre) which celebrates the entry of the French in the city.[34][35][36] Viewing the massive cheering crowd gathered under the balcony of Strasbourg's town hall, French President Raymond Poincaré stated that "the plebiscite is done".[37]
In 1919, following the Treaty of Versailles, the city was annexed by France in accordance with U.S. President Woodrow Wilson's "Fourteen Points" without a referendum. The date of the assignment was retroactively established on Armistice Day. It is doubtful whether a referendum in Strasbourg would have ended in France's favour since the political parties striving for an autonomous Alsace or a connection to France accounted only for a small proportion of votes in the last Reichstag as well as in the local elections.[38] The Alsatian autonomists who were pro French had won many votes in the more rural parts of the region and other towns since the annexation of the region by Germany in 1871. The movement started with the first election for the Reichstag; those elected were called "les députés protestataires", and until the fall of Bismarck in 1890, they were the only deputies elected by the Alsatians to the German parliament demanding the return of those territories to France.[39] At the last Reichstag election in Strasbourg and its periphery, the clear winners were the Social Democrats; the city was the administrative capital of the region, was inhabited by many Germans appointed by the central government in Berlin and its flourishing economy attracted many Germans. This could explain the difference between the rural vote and the one in Strasbourg. After the war, many Germans left Strasbourg and went back to Germany; some of them were denounced by the locals or expelled by the newly appointed authorities. The Saverne Affair was vivid in the memory among the Alsatians.
In 1920, Strasbourg became the seat of the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine, previously located in Mannheim, one of the oldest European institutions. It moved into the former Imperial Palace.
When the Maginot Line was built, the Sous-secteur fortifié de Strasbourg (fortified sub-sector of Strasbourg) was laid out on the city's territory as a part of the Secteur fortifié du Bas-Rhin, one of the sections of the Line. Blockhouses and casemates were built along the Grand Canal d'Alsace and the Rhine in the Robertsau forest and the port.[40]
Between the German invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 and the Anglo-French declaration of War against the German Reich on 3 September 1939, the entire city (a total of 120,000 people) was evacuated, like other border towns as well. Until the arrival of the Wehrmacht troops mid-June 1940, the city was, for ten months, completely empty, with the exception of the garrisoned soldiers. The Jews of Strasbourg had been evacuated to Périgueux and Limoges, the University had been evacuated to Clermont-Ferrand.
After the ceasefire following the Fall of France in June 1940, Alsace was annexed to Germany and a rigorous policy of Germanisation was imposed upon it by the Gauleiter Robert Heinrich Wagner. When, in July 1940, the first evacuees were allowed to return, only residents of Alsatian origin were admitted. The last Jews were deported on 15 July 1940 and the main synagogue, a huge Romanesque revival building that had been a major architectural landmark with its 54-metre-high dome since its completion in 1897, was set ablaze, then razed.[41]
In September 1940 the first Alsatian resistance movement led by Marcel Weinum called La main noire (The black hand) was created. It was composed by a group of 25 young men aged from 14 to 18 years old who led several attacks against the German occupation. The actions culminated with the attack of the Gauleiter Robert Wagner, the highest commander of Alsace directly under the order of Hitler. In March 1942, Marcel Weinum was prosecuted by the Gestapo and sentenced to be beheaded at the age of 18 in April 1942 in Stuttgart, Germany. His last words will be: "If I have to die, I shall die but with a pure heart". From 1943 the city was bombarded by Allied aircraft. While the First World War had not notably damaged the city, Anglo-American bombing caused extensive destruction in raids of which at least one was allegedly carried out by mistake.[42] In August 1944, several buildings in the Old Town were damaged by bombs, particularly the Palais Rohan, the Old Customs House (Ancienne Douane) and the Cathedral.[43] On 23 November 1944, the city was officially liberated by the 2nd French Armoured Division under General Leclerc. He achieved the oath that he made with his soldiers, after the decisive Capture of Kufra. With the Oath of Kuffra, they swore to keep up the fight until the French flag flew over the Cathedral of Strasbourg.
Many people from Strasbourg were incorporated in the German Army against their will, and were sent to the eastern front, those young men and women were called Malgré-nous. Many tried to escape from the incorporation, join the French Resistance, or desert the Wehrmacht but many couldn't because they were running the risk of having their families sent to work or concentration camps by the Germans. Many of these men, especially those who did not answer the call immediately, were pressured to "volunteer" for service with the SS, often by direct threats on their families. This threat obliged the majority of them to remain in the German army. After the war, the few that survived were often accused of being traitors or collaborationists, because this tough situation was not known in the rest of France, and they had to face the incomprehension of many. In July 1944, 1500 malgré-nous were released from Soviet captivity and sent to Algiers, where they joined the Free French Forces. Nowadays history recognizes the suffering of those people, and museums, public discussions and memorials have been built to commemorate this terrible period of history of this part of Eastern France (Alsace and Moselle). Liberation of Strasbourg took place on 23 November 1944.
In 1947, a fire broke out in the Musée des Beaux-Arts and devastated a significant part of the collections. This fire was an indirect consequence of the bombing raids of 1944: because of the destruction inflicted on the Palais Rohan, humidity had infiltrated the building, and moisture had to be fought. This was done with welding torches, and a bad handling of these caused the fire.[44]
In the 1950s and 1960s the city was enlarged by new residential areas meant to solve both the problem of housing shortage due to war damage and that of the strong growth of population due to the baby boom and immigration from North Africa: Cité Rotterdam in the North-East, Quartier de l'Esplanade in the South-East, Hautepierre in the North-West. Between 1995 and 2010, a new district has been built in the same vein, the Quartier des Poteries, south of Hautepierre.
In 1958, a violent hailstorm destroyed most of the historical greenhouses of the Botanical Garden and many of the stained glass windows of St. Paul's Church.
In 1949, the city was chosen to be the seat of the Council of Europe with its European Court of Human Rights and European Pharmacopoeia. Since 1952, the European Parliament has met in Strasbourg, which was formally designated its official 'seat' at the Edinburgh meeting of the European Council of EU heads of state and government in December 1992. (This position was reconfirmed and given treaty status in the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam). However, only the (four-day) plenary sessions of the Parliament are held in Strasbourg each month, with all other business being conducted in Brussels and Luxembourg. Those sessions take place in the Immeuble Louise Weiss, inaugurated in 1999, which houses the largest parliamentary assembly room in Europe and of any democratic institution in the world. Before that, the EP sessions had to take place in the main Council of Europe building, the Palace of Europe, whose unusual inner architecture had become a familiar sight to European TV audiences.[45] In 1992, Strasbourg became the seat of the Franco-German TV channel and movie-production society Arte.
In 2000, a terrorist plot to blow up the cathedral was prevented thanks to the cooperation between French and German police that led to the arrest in late 2000 of a Frankfurt-based group of terrorists.
On 6 July 2001, during an open-air concert in the Parc de Pourtalès, a single falling Platanus tree killed thirteen people and injured 97. On 27 March 2007, the city was found guilty of neglect over the accident and fined €150,000.[46]
In 2006, after a long and careful restoration, the inner decoration of the Aubette, made in the 1920s by Hans Arp, Theo van Doesburg, and Sophie Taeuber-Arp and destroyed in the 1930s, was made accessible to the public again. The work of the three artists had been called "the Sistine Chapel of abstract art".
Architecture
Strasbourg, Cathedral of Our Lady
The city is chiefly known for its sandstone Gothic Cathedral with its famous astronomical clock, and for its medieval cityscape of Rhineland black and white timber-framed buildings, particularly in the Petite France district or Gerberviertel ("tanners' district") alongside the Ill and in the streets and squares surrounding the cathedral, where the renowned Maison Kammerzell stands out.
Notable medieval streets include Rue Mercière, Rue des Dentelles, Rue du Bain aux Plantes, Rue des Juifs, Rue des Frères, Rue des Tonneliers, Rue du Maroquin, Rue des Charpentiers, Rue des Serruriers, Grand' Rue, Quai des Bateliers, Quai Saint-Nicolas and Quai Saint-Thomas. Notable medieval squares include Place de la Cathédrale, Place du Marché Gayot, Place Saint-Étienne, Place du Marché aux Cochons de Lait and Place Benjamin Zix.
Maison des tanneurs.
In addition to the cathedral, Strasbourg houses several other medieval churches that have survived the many wars and destructions that have plagued the city: the Romanesque Église Saint-Étienne, partly destroyed in 1944 by Allied bombing raids, the part Romanesque, part Gothic, very large Église Saint-Thomas with its Silbermann organ on which Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Albert Schweitzer played,[49] the Gothic Église protestante Saint-Pierre-le-Jeune with its crypt dating back to the seventh century and its cloister partly from the eleventh century, the Gothic Église Saint-Guillaume with its fine early-Renaissance stained glass and furniture, the Gothic Église Saint-Jean, the part Gothic, part Art Nouveau Église Sainte-Madeleine, etc. The Neo-Gothic church Saint-Pierre-le-Vieux Catholique (there is also an adjacent church Saint-Pierre-le-Vieux Protestant) serves as a shrine for several 15th-century wood worked and painted altars coming from other, now destroyed churches and installed there for public display. Among the numerous secular medieval buildings, the monumental Ancienne Douane (old custom-house) stands out.
The German Renaissance has bequeathed the city some noteworthy buildings (especially the current Chambre de Commerce et d'Industrie, former town hall, on Place Gutenberg), as did the French Baroque and Classicism with several hôtels particuliers (i.e. palaces), among which the Palais Rohan (1742, now housing three museums) is the most spectacular. Other buildings of its kind are the "Hôtel de Hanau" (1736, now the city hall), the Hôtel de Klinglin (1736, now residence of the préfet), the Hôtel des Deux-Ponts (1755, now residence of the military governor), the Hôtel d'Andlau-Klinglin (1725, now seat of the administration of the Port autonome de Strasbourg) etc. The largest baroque building of Strasbourg though is the 150 m (490 ft) long 1720s main building of the Hôpital civil. As for French Neo-classicism, it is the Opera House on Place Broglie that most prestigiously represents this style.
Strasbourg also offers high-class eclecticist buildings in its very extended German district, the Neustadt, being the main memory of Wilhelmian architecture since most of the major cities in Germany proper suffered intensive damage during World War II. Streets, boulevards and avenues are homogeneous, surprisingly high (up to seven stories) and broad examples of German urban lay-out and of this architectural style that summons and mixes up five centuries of European architecture as well as Neo-Egyptian, Neo-Greek and Neo-Babylonian styles. The former imperial palace Palais du Rhin, the most political and thus heavily criticized of all German Strasbourg buildings epitomizes the grand scale and stylistic sturdiness of this period. But the two most handsome and ornate buildings of these times are the École internationale des Pontonniers (the former Höhere Mädchenschule, girls college) with its towers, turrets and multiple round and square angles[50] and the École des Arts décoratifs with its lavishly ornate façade of painted bricks, woodwork and majolica.[51]
Notable streets of the German district include: Avenue de la Forêt Noire, Avenue des Vosges, Avenue d'Alsace, Avenue de la Marseillaise, Avenue de la Liberté, Boulevard de la Victoire, Rue Sellénick, Rue du Général de Castelnau, Rue du Maréchal Foch, and Rue du Maréchal Joffre. Notable squares of the German district include: Place de la République, Place de l'Université, Place Brant, and Place Arnold
As for modern and contemporary architecture, Strasbourg possesses some fine Art Nouveau buildings (such as the huge Palais des Fêtes and houses and villas like Villa Schutzenberger and Hôtel Brion), good examples of post-World War II functional architecture (the Cité Rotterdam, for which Le Corbusier did not succeed in the architectural contest) and, in the very extended Quartier Européen, some spectacular administrative buildings of sometimes utterly large size, among which the European Court of Human Rights building by Richard Rogers is arguably the finest. Other noticeable contemporary buildings are the new Music school Cité de la Musique et de la Danse, the Musée d'Art moderne et contemporain and the Hôtel du Département facing it, as well as, in the outskirts, the tramway-station Hoenheim-Nord designed by Zaha Hadid.
Place Kléber
The city has many bridges, including the medieval and four-towered Ponts Couverts that, despite their name, are no longer covered. Next to the Ponts Couverts is the Barrage Vauban, a part of Vauban's 17th-century fortifications, that does include a covered bridge. Other bridges are the ornate 19th-century Pont de la Fonderie (1893, stone) and Pont d'Auvergne (1892, iron), as well as architect Marc Mimram's futuristic Passerelle over the Rhine, opened in 2004.
The largest square at the centre of the city of Strasbourg is the Place Kléber. Located in the heart of the city's commercial area, it was named after general Jean-Baptiste Kléber, born in Strasbourg in 1753 and assassinated in 1800 in Cairo. In the square is a statue of Kléber, under which is a vault containing his remains. On the north side of the square is the Aubette (Orderly Room), built by Jacques François Blondel, architect of the king, in 1765–1772.
Parks
The Pavillon Joséphine (rear side) in the Parc de l'Orangerie
The Château de Pourtalès (front side) in the park of the same name
Strasbourg features a number of prominent parks, of which several are of cultural and historical interest: the Parc de l'Orangerie, laid out as a French garden by André le Nôtre and remodeled as an English garden on behalf of Joséphine de Beauharnais, now displaying noteworthy French gardens, a neo-classical castle and a small zoo; the Parc de la Citadelle, built around impressive remains of the 17th-century fortress erected close to the Rhine by Vauban;[52] the Parc de Pourtalès, laid out in English style around a baroque castle (heavily restored in the 19th century) that now houses a small three-star hotel,[53] and featuring an open-air museum of international contemporary sculpture.[54] The Jardin botanique de l'Université de Strasbourg (botanical garden) was created under the German administration next to the Observatory of Strasbourg, built in 1881, and still owns some greenhouses of those times. The Parc des Contades, although the oldest park of the city, was completely remodeled after World War II. The futuristic Parc des Poteries is an example of European park-conception in the late 1990s. The Jardin des deux Rives, spread over Strasbourg and Kehl on both sides of the Rhine opened in 2004 and is the most extended (60-hectare) park of the agglomeration. The most recent park is Parc du Heyritz (8,7 ha), opened in 2014 along a canal facing the hôpital civil.
E se vai all'Hotel Supramonte e guardi il cielo
tu vedrai una donna in fiamme e un uomo solo
e una lettera vera di notte falsa di giorno
poi scuse accuse e scuse senza ritorno
e ora viaggi ridi, vivi o sei perduta
col suo ordine discreto dentro il cuore
ma dove dov'è il tuo amore, ma dove è finito il tuo amore?
F. De André
Xidi village lies in the east of Yi County, Huangshan City, Anhui Province. It’s about 54 kilometers away from Tunxi and 40 kilometers away from Huangshan Scenic Spot.
Xidi was originally known as Xichuan. Xidi village was built in Yuanfeng Year of Song Dynasty. Several years later, this place was renamed “Xidi”. Now in the village, there are 124 brick-wood buildings with neat layout and structure, beautiful decoration and deep cultural connotation, which belong to Ming and Qing Dynasties style. All of its features are rare to see in China. So Xidi village is known as “The Most Beautiful Village in the World” and “The Ancient Treasures of the Vernacular Architecture”.
--- travelchinatour
Xidi village, Anhui province, China. Dec 30, 2012.
No Backside
1 of 3 copies, not identical.
www.discogs.com/Mahler-Heather-Harper-Norma-Procter-Werne...
Gramophone Review 1974:
Mahler's symphonic ballad, a Gothic tale of fratricide in a forest glade and a singing flute fashioned by a minstrel from a stray bone of the murdered knight, has a special claim on the attention of Mahlerians. Written when Mahler was barely out of his teens, it is a telling prelude to the achievement of the symphonies—the early Wunderhorn symphonies and symphonies as far distant as the Seventh and Eighth. Orchestrally it introduces us, brilliantly and precociously, to the Mahler language (Mahler's revisions of 1899-1901 involved more tidying than re-working). Emotionally and psychologically, too, it is echt Mahlerisch: potent, allusive, and neither redundantly pictorial nor unconsciously naive, Indeed it is difficult to see the relevance of Professor Redlich's stricture that the work suffers from its association with "the threadbare costumes of obsolescent romantic conventions". From the first, Mahler's musical imagination (like Elliot's poetic imagination a decade or two later) was a modifying and transforming one. "The instruments Mahler played", Sir Neville Cardus once observed, in a felicitous aside on Das klagende Lied, "were always revealing to him buried bones".
Haitink, having completed his integral recording of the symphonies, now busies himself adding the coping stones to the edifice (one wonders whether Solti will give us Das klagende Lied too). To have Haitink's Mahler cycle made genuinely complete in this way will obviously please those collectors who have invested in the symphonies; and the new performance, scrupulously judged, poised and beautifully alert certainly doesn't disappoint. Whether it outclasses either of the rival versions, the Morris now on the mid-price Ace of Diamonds label or the Boulez, which has the passing advantage of a recording of Waldmiirchen, the work's discarded first section, on a complementary CBS/Boulez disc (72865, 10/70), is a matter that needs finely weighing.
The first point to stress is that to catch the full bloom of the Philips recording and the special quality of the Concertgebouw acoustic one does need to play the recording at a fairly high level—something that presents no problems with finished pressings as beautifully engineered as these. Played at a generous level the sound, spacious, warm and cleanly focused, mirrors a performance which is similarly spacious and unclaustrophobic. Where with Wyn Morris one is struck by the immediacy of the sound, the rich solid New Philharmonia horn tone and (at fig. 2) the first sinister flurry of fff tremolando strings (shades of the corybantic happenings at the start of the Third Symphony), with Haitink it is the steady tread of the march rhythm which catches the attention; and later the restrained, stylish shaping of the minstrel's wayfaring motif (fig. 6), with Haitink eschewing that touch of roughness in the string tone which Morris uses (most beguilingly, you might argue) to point up the music's ambling, carressive, rustic mood.
By and large Haitink's fine-grained attention to orchestral detail does pay off. Little (apart from a subdued and sinister drum roll just before fig. 17) escapes his notice. As it happens, Morris brings that drum roll up to a distant yet menacingly explicit mp. But it's not individual details which are relevant in making one's comparisons (one could counter the fig. 17 example by pointing to Haitink's uniquely atmospheric balancing of voice and solo trumpet at the flute's eerie "Ach Spielmann, lieber Spielmann mein"). More important is the way that shifts of detail point to major shifts in the dramatic presentation of the work. In the coda to Part 1, for instance, one notices the extreme care with which Haitink terraces the quiet choral entries and the lines of the orchestral texture itself. Where Morris is less obviously sensitive, deliberately urging the music on and drawing on its haunted, phantasmagoric mood, Haitink (the shape of the movement as a whole beautifully perceived) stresses the pathos of the mood. With Morris it is the minstrel's fearfulness which we experience, with Haitink his sense of loss.
To complicate matters further, though, it is Boulez who is most commanding at the start of Part 2—the wedding feast evoked with an irresistible splendour (one would like to hear Boulez in the festive finale of the Seventh Symphony). Haitink is initially a shade disappointing, but the big maestoso climax and the ghostly diminution of the music (shades of Wagner and Der fliegende Hollander) is strongly brought off and the balance between the off-stage band and the on-stage band and solo voices—an extraordinarily sophisticated juggling with spatial perspectives by the 19 year-old Mahler—is both subtler and more coherent in the Philips recording than in either of its rivals. And good as the placing of the off-stage band is on the Decca/Delyse and CBS recordings (the CBS closer than Mahler indicates but compensatingly brilliant and bizarre) the Philips, very distant yet beautifully definite, is arguably the most atmospheric of all.
But increasingly as the tension mounts in Part 2 the contribution of the soloists and the chorus becomes more and more crucial. And it's here that Boulez is rather let down, both by Grace Hoffman and Evelyn Lear. Haitink is better served. When the flute first reveals the murder to the astounded court Norma Procter, who is splendidly in command throughout the recording, handles the cruel leap of a tenth on "wonnig Weib" almost as adeptly as Decca's Anna Reynolds (arguably the finest of the contralto soloists) and Haitink's control of the slow, swirling climax— marked Vorwiirts, and beautifully timed— is equally satisfying. Yet when the flute, now blown by the newly-wed murdered king, repeats the tale two verses later Haitink is oddly restrained and Heather Harper, though she gets the notes, is no match for Morris's gloriously sure-toned Teresa Zylis-Gara.
Ultimately I find it is the choral contributions which fairly unequivocally tip the balance back in Morris's favour. In the brilliant choral description of the king, like Claudius in Hamlet, rising frenzied from his stool (the choral writing itself distantly predicting the surging motion of the Eighth Symphony's first movement) the Dutch choir strains on the high notes in a way that neither Boulez's LSO Chorus nor Morris's Ambrosian Singers do. Then in the description of the destruction of the palace Morris alone does what Mahler asks. Restraint is essential here (the critic, quoted in Kurt Blaukopf's new book on Mahler, who sneered that "compared with the collapse of the castle in this ballad the twilight of the gods is a purely local event" must have been totally innocent of the final pages of Gotterdammerung). Except for a final, towering six-bar crescendo Mahler asks for a long, sustained pianissimo line from the chorus; only the second and third flutes, and a single clarinet, marked if and f respectively, are asked to play louder. On the records, Haitink's choir sing with imperfect tone and on a long crescendo; Boulez also allows the crescendo, though the Arthur Oldham-trained LSO Chorus does sing with exemplary clarity. It is Wyn Morris, though, with the Ambrosian Singers who vividly and movingly reveals the rightness of Mahler's own intentions; and he caps this with an intensely beautiful (and daringly slow) reading of the work's profoundly desolate coda. Andor Kaposy and Teresa Zylis-Gara are tellingly sensitive here too. Kaposy's soaring rise into the words "Die Lichter verlosen" is more memorable even than Stuart Burrows's on CBS, and is richer by far than Werner Hollweg's detached, rather cool and obviously expert encompassing of the phrase on the Haitink.
A long review, then, but as both EG and AB indicated in their miller reviews of the Morris and the Boulez this is an enthralling and rewarding work to write about. All three performances deserve the closest attention, and if in the process of working through my comparisons I am left in little doubt that the bargain-priced Wyn Morris recording is still the one to have, it is equally clear that the Boulez and the Haitink each offers us a distinctive, workmanlike reading—and an exemplary recording—of this important early score.
R.O.
I seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the outcast.
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
Allah’s peace be upon Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W), the glorious Prophet of Islam, and on his Companions and his followers.
TASAWWUF
"There is no doubt that Tasawwuf is an important branch of Islam. The word itself may have been derived form the Arabic word "Soof" (Wool) or from "Safa" (cleanliness), but its foundation lies in one’s personal sincerity in seeking Allah’s nearness and trying to live a life pleasing to Him. Study of the Quran, the Hadith, and the practical life of the holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) and his faithful Companions provide unmistakable support to this reality." (Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan (R.A)
SUFISM, AN ESSENTIAL PART OF ISLAM
Doubts exist not only in the minds of the Muslim faithful but also among the Ulema, notably the exoteric about Tasawwuf and its votaries. Often they lead to misunderstanding, as if Shariah and Tariqah were two separate entries, or that Tasawwuf was some obscure discipline foreign to Islam, or that it was altogether above the established laws and injunctions of our Religion. To help remove these misgivings and to reassure seekers, as well as scholars, our Sheikh Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan (R.A), Sheikh Silsila Naqshbandia Awaisia, wrote Al-Jamal Wal Kamal, Aqaid-O-Kamalaat Ulmai-e-Deoband, Binat-e-Rasool (S.A.W), Daamad-e-Ali (R.A), Dalael-us-Salook, Ejaad-e-Mazhab Shia, Hayat-un-Nabi (S.A.W), Hayat Barzakhia, Ilm-o-Irfan, Niffaz-e-Shariat Aur Fiqah-e-Jaferia, Saif-e-Owaisi, Shikast-e-Ahdai Hussain and Tahkeek Halal Haram books.
BIOGRAPHY
Sheikh Allah Yar Khan was born in Chakrala, a remote village of Mianwali District of Pakistan, in 1904. He completed his religious education in 1934. The very year, he met Shaykh Abdul Rahim, who took him to the shrine of Shaykh Allah Deen Madni. By Divine Will his spiritual connection was right away established with the saint of the 10th century Hijra (sixteenth century) and he started receiving spiritual beneficence. His sublime education in Sufism, signifying progressive spiritual growth and advancement, continued for about twenty-five years. In 1962 he was directed to carry out the propagation of Prophetic blessings - a noble mission that he accomplished with singular enthusiasm and devotion for a period spanning half a century. Anybody who visited him was duly rewarded with a share of spiritual bliss as per his/her sincerity and capacity. Shaykh Allah Yar Khan's mission produced men and women of deep spiritual vision and distinction.
Although Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan (R.A) have lived a major portion of his life as a scholar, with the avowed mission of illuminating the truth of Islam and the negation of fallacious sects, and this would appear quite removed from Tasawwuf, yet the only practical difference between the two, namely the use of the former as a media to expound the truth, and the latter to imbue people with positive faith. Nevertheless, people are amazed that a man, who until the other day, was known as a dialectician and a preacher of Islam, is not only talking of Mystic Path, but is also claiming spiritual bonds with the veteran Sufi Masters of the Past. This amazement is obviously out of place in the view of Quranic injunction: This is the bounty of Allah which He gives to whom He wills. (62:4)
THE PURIFICATION OF THE SOUL
The purification of the soul always formed part of the main mission of the Prophets; that is, the dissemination and propagation of the Devine Message. This responsibility later fell directly on the shoulders of the true Ulema in the Ummah of the last Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W), who, as his genuine successors, have continued to shed brave light in every Dark Age of materialism and sacrilege. In the present age of ruinous confusion, the importance of this responsibility has increased manifold; of the utter neglect of Islam by Muslims has not only driven them to misery, but also grievously weakened their bonds of faith in Allah and His Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W). The decay in their belief and consequent perversion in their conduct has reached a stage that any attempt to pull them out of the depth of ignominy and the heedless chaos of faithlessness, attracts grave uncertainties and apprehensions rather than a encouraging will to follow the Shariah, to purify the soul and to reform within. The Quranic Verse: Layers upon layers of darkness… (24:40) provides the nearest expression of their present state.
SHARIAH & SUFISM
Any action against the Sunnah (Prophet’s way of life) cannot be called Sufism. Singing and dancing, and the prostration on tombs are not part of Sufism. Nor is predicting the future and predicting the outcome of cases in the courts of law, a part of Sufism. Sufis are not required to abandon their worldly possessions or live in the wilderness far from the practical world. In fact these absurdities are just its opposites. It is an established fact that Tazkiyah (soul purification) stands for that inner purity which inspires a person’s spirit to obey the holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W). If a false claimant of Sufism teaches tricks and jugglery, ignoring religious obligations, he is an impostor. A true Sheikh will lead a believer to the august spiritual audience of the holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W). If you are fortunate enough to be blessed with the company of an accomplished spiritual guide and Sheikh of Sufism, and if you follow his instructions, you will observe a positive change in yourself, transferring you from vice to virtue.
ISLAM, AS A COMPLETE CODE OF LIFE
Islam, as a complete code of life or Deen, was perfected during the life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W). He was the sole teacher and his mosque was the core institution for the community. Although Islam in its entirety was practiced during that blessed era, the classification and compilation of its knowledge into distinct branches like ‘Tafsir’ (interpretation of the Quran), Hadith (traditions or sayings of the holy Prophet- SAWS), Fiqh (Islamic law), and Sufism (the soul purification) were undertaken subsequently. This Deen of Allah passed from the holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) to his illustrious Companions in two ways: the outward and the inward. The former comprised the knowledge defined by speech and conduct, i.e., the Quran and Sunnah. The latter comprised the invisible blessings or the Prophetic lights transmitted by his blessed self. These blessings purified the hearts and instilled in them a passionate desire to follow Islam with utmost love, honesty and loyalty.
WHAT’S SUFISM
Sufism is the attempt to attain these Barakah (Blessings). The Companions handed down Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) teachings as well as blessings to the Taba’een. Their strong hearts were capable of infusing these blessings into the hearts of their followers. Both aspects of Islam were similarly passed on by the Taba’een to the Taba Taba’een. The compilation of knowledge and its interpretation led to the establishment of many schools of religious thought; famous four being the Hanafi, the Hanbali, the Maliki, and the Shafa'i, all named after their founders. Similarly, in order to acquire, safeguard and distribute his blessings, an organized effort was initiated by four schools of Sufism: The Naqshbandia, the Qadria, the Chishtia, and the Suharwardia. These schools were also named after their organizers and came to be known as Sufi Orders. All these Orders intend to purify the hearts of sincere Muslims with Prophetic lights. These Sufi Orders also grew into many branches with the passage of time and are known by other names as well. The holy Quran has linked success in this life and the Hereafter with Tazkiyah (soul purification). He, who purified, is successful. (87: 14) Sufi Orders of Islam are the institutions where the basics of Tazkiyah (soul purification) and its practical application are taught. They have graded programs in which every new seeker is instructed in Zikr-e Lisani (oral Zikr) and is finally taught the Zikr-e Qalbi (Remembrance in heart).
ZIKR-E QALBI
However, in the Naqshbandia Order, Zikr-e Qalbi is practiced from the very beginning. Adherence to the Sunnah (Prophet’s way of life) is greatly emphasized in this Order, because the seeker achieves greater and quicker progress through its blessings. The essence of Zikr is that the Qalb should sincerely accept Islamic beliefs and gain the strength to follow the Sunnah with even greater devotion. ‘If the heart is acquainted with Allah and is engaged in His Zikr; then it is filled with Barakaat-e Nabuwwat (Prophetic blessings) which infuse their purity in the mind and body. This not only helps in controlling sensual drives but also removes traces of abhorrence, voracity, envy and insecurity from human soul. The person therefore becomes an embodiment of love, both for the Divine and the corporeal. This is the meaning of a Hadith, “There is a lump of flesh in the human body; if it goes astray the entire body is misguided, and if it is reformed the entire body is reformed. Know that this lump is the Qalb”.’
PAS ANFAS
Recent History Khawajah Naqshband (d. 1389 CE) organized the Naqshbandia Order at Bukhara (Central Asia). This Order has two main branches – the Mujaddidia and the Owaisiah. The former is identified with Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi, known as Mujaddid Alif Sani (literally: reviver of the second Muslim millennium), a successor to Khawajah Baqi Billah, who introduced the Order to the Indo- Pakistan sub-continent. The Owaisiah Order employs a similar method of Zikr but acquires the Prophetic blessings in the manner of Khawajah Owais Qarni, who received this beneficence from the Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) without a formal physical meeting. The Zikr employed by the Naqshbandia is ‘Zikr-e Khafi Qalbi’ (remembrance of Allah’s Name within the heart) and the method is termed ‘Pas Anfas’, which (in Persian) means guarding every breath. The Chain of Transmission of these Barakah, of course, emanates from the holy Prophet- SAWS.
SPIRITUAL BAI’AT (OATH OF ALLEGIANCE
It is necessary in all Sufi Orders that the Sheikh and the seekers must be contemporaries and must physically meet each other for the transfer of these blessings. However, the Naqshbandia Owaisiah Order goes beyond this requirement and Sufis of this Order receive these Barakah regardless of physical meeting with their Sheikh or even when the Sheikh is not their contemporary. Yet, it must be underscored that physical meeting with the Sheikh of this Order still holds great importance in dissemination of these Barakah. Sheikh Sirhindi writes about the Owaisiah Order in his book ‘Tazkirah’: ‘It is the most sublime, the most exalted, and the most effective…and the highest station of all others is only its stepping stone.’ By far the greatest singular distinction of the Naqshbandia Owaisiah Order is the honor of Spiritual Bai’at (Oath of Allegiance) directly at the blessed hands of the holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W).
SHEIKH HAZRAT MOULANA ALLAH YAR KHAN (R.A)
The Reviver Sheikh Allah Yar Khan was born in Chikrala, a remote village of Mianwali District of Pakistan, in 1904. He completed his religious education in 1934. The same year, he met Sheikh ‘Abdul Rahim, who took him to the shrine of Sheikh Allah Deen Madni. By Divine Will his spiritual connection was immediately established with the saint of the 10th century Hijra (sixteenth century CE) and he started receiving spiritual beneficence. His sublime education in Sufism, signifying progressive spiritual growth and advancement, continued for about twenty-five years, after which he was directed to undertake the propagation of Prophetic blessings - a noble mission that he accomplished with singular zeal and dedication for a period spanning half a century. Anybody who visited him was duly rewarded with a share of spiritual bliss commensurate with his/her sincerity and capacity. Sheikh Allah Yar Khan’s mission produced men and women of deep spiritual vision and eminence. He authored eighteen books, the most distinguished being Dalael us-Sulook (Sufism - An Objective Appraisal), Hayat-e Barzakhiah (Life Beyond Life) and Israr ul- Haramain (Secrets of the two holy Mosques). He was undoubtedly one of the most distinguished Sufi saints of the Muslim Ummah and a reviver of the Naqshbandia Owaisiah Order. He passed away on 18 February 1984 in Islamabad at the age of eighty.
THE CHAIN OF TRANSMISSION OF NAQSHBANDIA OWAISIAH
1. Hazrat Muhammad ur-Rasool Allah (Sall Allah-o Alaihi wa Sallam), 2. Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiq (Radhi Allah-o Unho), 3. Hazrat Imam Hassan Basri (Rahmat Ullah Alaihi), 4. Hazrat Daud Tai (Rahmat Ullah Alaihi), 5. Hazrat Junaid Baghdadi (Rahmat Ullah Alaihi), 6. Hazrat Ubaid Ullah Ahrar (Rahmat Ullah Alaihi), 7. Hazrat Abdur Rahman Jami (Rahmat Ullah Alaihi), 8. Hazrat Abu Ayub Muhammad Salih (Rahmat Ullah Alaihi), 9. Hazrat Allah Deen Madni (Rahmat Ullah Alaihi), 10. Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan (Rahmat Ullah Alaihi).
THE SPIRIT OR RUH
The spirit or Ruh of every person is a created reflection of the Divine Attributes and it originates in Alam-e Amar (Realm of Command). Its food is the Light of Allah or the Divine Refulgence, which it acquires from the Realm of Command through the holy Prophet Muhammad (may Allah’s choicest favors and peace be upon him), whose status in the spiritual world is like that of the sun in the solar system. The Quran refers to him as the ‘bright lamp’. Indeed, he is the divinely selected channel of all Barakah. All Exalted Messengers themselves receive these Barakah from him.
LATAIF
The human Ruh also possesses vital organs like the physical body; through which it acquires its knowledge, food and energy. These are called Lataif (singular Latifah: subtlety). Scholars of various Sufi Orders have associated them with specific areas of the human body. The Naqshbandia Owaisiah Order identifies these Lataif as follows. First - Qalb: This spiritual faculty is located within the physical heart. Its function is Zikr. Its strength increases one’s capacity for Allah’s Zikr. Second – Ruh: The site of this Latifah, which is a distinct faculty of the human Ruh, is on the right side of the chest at the level of Qalb. Its primary function is concentration towards Allah. Third – Sirri: This is located above the Qalb and functions to make possible Kashf. Forth – Khaffi: This is located above the Ruh and functions to perceive the omnipresence of Allah. Fifth – Akhfa: This is located in the middle of chest, at the centre of the first four Lataif and makes it possible for the Ruh to perceive the closeness of Allah, Who is closer to us than our own selves. Sixth – Nafs: This Latifah is located at the forehead and functions to purify the human soul. Seventh – Sultan al-Azkar: This Latifah is located at the top centre of the head and serves to absorb the Barakah of Allah into the entire body, so that every cell resonates with Zikr.
FIVE EXALTED MESSENGERS OF GOD
There are Five Exalted Messengers among the many known and unknown Messengers of Allah. They are Hazrat Muhammad, Hazrat Nuh (Noah), Hazrat Ibrahim (Abraham), Hazrat Musa (Moses), and Hazrat Esa (Jesus), peace be upon them all. Hazrat Adam is the first Prophet of Allah and the father of mankind. Each Latifah is associated with a particular Prophet. The Barakah and lights from Hazrat Adam (peace be upon him), descend on the first Latifah Qalb; its lights are reflected from the first heaven and are yellowish. The second Latifah is associated with Hazrat Nuh and Hazrat Ibrahim (peace be upon them). Its lights descend from the second heaven and appear as golden red. The lights descending upon the third Latifah are from Hazrat Musa (peace be upon him) and are white. One the fourth Latifah, the lights of Hazrat Esa (peace be upon him) descend from the fourth heaven and are deep blue. The fifth Latifah receives its Barakah directly from the holy Prophet Muhammad (may Allah’s choicest favors and peace be upon him). The lights associated with this Latifah are green, descend from the fifth heaven, and overwhelm all the first four Lataif. The Lights descending upon the sixth and seventh Lataif are the Divine Lights, whose color and condition cannot be determined. These are like flashes of lightening that defy comprehension. If Allah blesses a seeker with Kashf, he can observe all of this. The vision is slightly diffused in the beginning, but gradually the clarity improves.
SULOOK
Stages of the Path After all seven Lataif of a seeker have been illuminated with Divine Lights through Tawajjuh of the Sheikh and his Ruh has acquired the ability to fly, the Sheikh initiates its journey on the sublime Path of Divine nearness. The Path is known as Sulook, and its stages are not hypothetical imaginations but real and actually existing stations on the spiritual Path. These are also referred to as Meditations, because a seeker mentally meditates about a station while his/her Ruh actually ascends towards it. The first three stations that form the base of whole Sulook are described as; Ahadiyyat, a station of Absolute Unity of Divinity. It is above and beyond the seven heavens. It is so vast a station that the seven heavens and all that they encompass are lost within Ahadiyyat as a ring is lost in a vast desert. Its lights are white in color. Maiyyat station denotes Divine Company, ‘He is with you, wherever you might be.’ This station is so vast that Ahadiyyat along with the seven heavens beneath are lost within it as a ring is lost in a desert. Its lights are green in color. Aqrabiyyat station denotes Divine Nearness, ‘He is nearer to you than your life- vein.’ Again, Aqrabiyyat is vast as compared to Maiyyat in the same proportion. Its lights are golden red and are reflected from the Divine Throne. It is indeed the greatest favor of Almighty Allah that He blesses a seeker with an accomplished Sheikh, who takes him to these sublime stations. The final station that a seeker attains to during his/her lifetime becomes his/her Iliyyeen (blessed abode) in Barzakh and his/her Ruh stays at this station after death.
ZIKR
Why is Zikr Necessary for Everyone? Allah ordains every soul in the Quran to Perform Zikr. This not only means reciting the Quran and Tasbeeh but also Zikr-e Qalb. It is only through Zikr-e Qalbi that Prophetic Lights reach the depths of human soul and purify it from all vice and evil. Zikr infuses a realization of constant Divine Presence and a seeker feels great improvement in the level of sincerity and love towards Allah and the holy Prophet- SAWS. Such levels of sincerity, love and feelings of Divine Presence can never be obtained without Zikr. It would be a mistake to believe that Zikr may be a requirement only for the very pious and virtuous people. Zikr provides the Prophetic blessings which are in effect the life line of every human soul. It transforms even the most corrupted humans into virtuous souls by bringing out the best in them. The fact is that Zikr is the only way to achieve true contentment and satisfaction in life. The holy Quran has pointed to this eternal fact that it is only through Zikr Allah that hearts can find satisfaction. Such satisfaction and peace are the ultimate requirements of every person, regardless of religion, race and ethnicity. Practicing Zikr regularly removes all traces of anxiety and restlessness, and guides the human soul to eternal bliss and peace.
KHALIFA MAJAZEEN
Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan (R.A), during his life time in 1974, presented a nomination list to Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W), during Maraqba, of expected Khalifa Majazeen for Silsila Naqshbandia Awaisia. Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) approved some names, deleted some of the names, and added down the name of Major Ghulam Muhammad as also Khalifa Majaaz of Silsila Naqshbandia Awaisia (which was not previously included in the list)
The approved names at that time included:
1. Mr. Muhammad Akram Awan Sahib,
2. Mr. Sayed Bunyad Hussain Shah Sahib,
3. Mr. Major Ahsan Baig Sahib,
4. Mr. Col. Matloob Hussain Sahib,
5. Mr. Major Ghulam Muhammad Sahib of Wan Bhachran Mianwali,
6. Mr. Molvi Abdul Haq Sahib,
7. Mr. Hafiz Abdul Razzaq Sahib,
8. Mr. Hafiz Ghulam Qadri Sahib,
9. Mr. Khan Muhammad Irani Sahib,
10. Mr. Maolana Abdul Ghafoor Sahib,
11. Mr. Syed Muhammad Hassan Sahib of Zohb.
These Majazeen were authorized to; held Majalis of Zikar (Pas Anfas) in their respective areas, arrange Majalis of Zikar in neighboring areas, train them on the way of Sulook, prepare them for Spiritual Bai’at (Oath of Allegiance), and present them to Sheikh Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan for Spiritual Bai’at at the Hand of Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W), in the life of Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan (R.A), and were all equal in status as Khalifa Majaaz of Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan (R.A).
Presently we are following Hazrat Major ® Ghulam Muhammad Sahib, Khalifa Majaaz of Hazrat Moulana Allah Yar Khan (R.A).
Lie Detectors taldearen kontzertu argazkiak, Gazteszenako Ttan-ttakun festan...
Fotos de concierto del grupo Lie Detectors, en la fiesta Ttan-ttakun de Gazteszena...
Yashica Electro 35 MC with f/2.8 40mm Yashinon-DX lens. Very compact; much smaller than the big Electro 35 rangefinder. Zone focus w. symbols in the VF. Aperture priority automatic.
It am the weekend again, but after a week off, so one belnds smoothly into the other.
And next week I have a four day trip to the Isle of Wight for work, which will do me good too.
Not much planned for the day, once shopping was done. And I do that as Jools is still coughing and so did not want to go round the supermarket coughing like that.
So, I d the week's shop, though not much needed as I will be away four days, so I am back with three bags of shopping, and we have the usual Saturday breakfast of fruit followed by bacon sandwiches.
Posting shots on other social media showed me many churches had to be revisited. Just about the last one to be thus revisited was Minster-in-Thanet, as the album had 55 shots from two previous visits, and I thought such a large and imposing church deserved more.
So, it was a quiet drive over to Sandwich, taking the bypass round Stonar, then turning off at the delightfully named Sevenscore for the drive along the back lanes into Minster, passing by the Abbey, outside of which was an actual nun, all dressed in cowl and long black gown.
A little further on is St Mary, and parking is easy just outside the churchyard, and although it looked locked, the west door under the tower was unlocked, and inside there were no others inside, so I had it to myself.
I had hoped I had missed whole or fragments of glass, but there was none to be seen, some nice arts and crafts ones of Queen Bertha, which I record. I think I snap everything, so after half an hour we are done.
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Minster Abbey on the Isle of Thanet was founded in AD 669 by Domneva, niece of King Erconbert of Kent. The enormous parish church, built some distance to the south-west of the abbey, dates from two distinct periods. The nave is Norman, a magnificent piece of twelfth-century arcading with tall cylindrical pillars. The chancel and transepts are thirteenth century, with a three-light east window, each one double shafted inside. This end of the church has a simple stone vaulted ceiling which adds greatly to the grandeur. The glass is by Thomas Willement and dates from 1861. Ewan Christian restored the church in 1863 and added vaulted ceilings to the transepts. They had been intended by the medieval designers, but were never built. There is a set of eighteen fifteenth-century stalls with misericords and an excellent sixteenth-century font and cover.
kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Minster+in+Thanet
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MINSTER.
THE next parish to Monkton eastward is Minster, antiently written both Mynstre, and Menstre, being so named from the Saxon word Minstre, signifying a church or monastery. It is divided into two boroughs, viz. Way Borough and Street Borough; the former of which lies on the ascent on the northern side of the street; the latter contains the street and church, with the southern part of the parish.
THIS PARISH is about three miles and an half from east to west, and near as much from north to south. The farms in it are perhaps as large as in any other parish in this county; the occupiers of which are, in general, men of considerable ability. The west part of this parish is bounded by a lynch or balk, which goes quite across the island to Westgate, called St. Mildred's Lynch, an account of which has already been given before, and which is the bounds of this manor from that of Monkton, as well as of the parish. This lynch has formerly been much broader than it is now, many of the farmers, who occupy lands bounding on or near it, having through a coveteous humour, not only dug up the mould or top of it, to lay on their land, but in some places have ploughed upon it. Too many instances of this kind are practised in other places, not only of this island, but of the county in general, so that there is scarce a remembrance left where those balks or lynches have been; such has the greedy avarice of the occupiers been, and this is one instance of the ill consequence of the neglect of the courts leet and baron. The village of Minster lies nearly in the centre of it, on low ground at the foot of the high lands, having the church on the south side of it; northward of the village it rises to high land, being a fine open champion country of uninclosed corn land, on which are situated Minster mill, Allan Grange, and Powcies, the latter at the extremity of the parish, close to which was, till lately, a small grove of oaks, the only one in this island. Lower down, about a mile southward, is Thorne manor, and beyond that Sevenscore farm. At the south-eastern extremity of the parish, and partly in St. Laurence, is Cliffsend, or Clyvesend, so called from its being at the end of the cliff, which extends from Ramsgate; it was antieutly a part of the estate of St. Augustine's monastery, and is called by Thorne in his Chronicle, the manor of Clyvesend. Here are now two considerable farms besides cottages.
About a mile and an half south-east from Minster church, is Ebbsfleet, formerly called by the various names of Hipwines, Ippeds, and Wipped's fleet; this seems to have been a usual place of landing from the ocean in this island; here it is said Hengist and Horsa, the two Saxon generals, first landed with their forces, about the year 449. Here St. Augustine, often called the Apostle of the English, first landed, in the year 596; and here too St. Mildred, of whom mention has been made likewise before, first landed from France, where she had been for instruction in the monastic life; and not many years ago there was a small rock at this place, called St. Mildred's rock, where, on a great stone, her footstep was said, by the monkish writers, to have remained impressed. (fn. 1) Below the church of Minster, southward, is the large level of marshes, called Minster level, at the southern extremity of which runs the river Stour, formerly the Wantsume, which, as has already been noticed before, was antiently of a much greater depth and width than it is at present, flowing up over the whole space of this level, most probably almost to the church-yard fence, being near a mile and an half distance; but the inning of the salts by the landholders, which had been in some measure deserted by the waters of the Wantsume at different places, so far lessened the force of the tide, and of the river waters mixing with it, that it occasioned the sands to increase greatly near this place, where it was at length entirely choaked up, so that a wall of earth was made by the abbot of St. Augustine, since called the Abbot's wall, to prevent the sea at high water overslowing the lands, which now comprehend this great level of marshes, at present under the direction and management of the commissioners of sewers for the district of East Kent. A part of these marsh lands have been much improved by means of shortening the course of the river Stour to the sea, by the cut at Stonar, which lets off the superfluous water in wet seasons with greater expedition, and a very valuable tract of near two hundred acres has been lately inclosed by a strong wall from the sea near Ebbs-fleet. Between the above-mentioned wall and the river Stour lie a great many acres of land, which the inhabitants call the salts, from their being left without the wall, and subject to the overflowing of the tide, so long as it continued to flow all around this island. Over against the church is a little creek, which seems to have been the place antiently called Mynstrefleet, into which the ships or vessels came, which were bound for this place. As a proof of this, there was found some years ago in a dyke bounding on this place, in digging it somewhat deeper than usual, some fresh coals, which very probably had fallen aside some lighter or boat in taking them out of it. (fn. 2)
I ought not to omit mentioning, that on the downs on the north part of this parish, where the old and present windmills were placed, is a prospect, which perhaps is hardly exceeded in this part of the kingdom. From this place may be seen, not only this island and the several churches in it, one only excepted; but there is a view at a distance, of the two spires of Reculver, the island of Sheppy, the Nore, or mouth of the river Thames, the coast of Essex, the Swale, and the British channel; the cliffs of Calais, and the kingdom of France; the Downs, and the town of Deal, the bay and town of Sandwich, the fine champion country of East Kent, the spires of Woodnesborough and Ash, the ruins of Richborough castle, the beautiful green levels of Minister, Ash, &c. with the river Stour winding between them; the fine and stately tower of the cathedral of Canterbury, and a compass of hills of more than one hundred miles in extent, which terminate the sight.
In the marshes on the south of this parish, there was found in 1723, an antique gold ring; on the place of the seal, which seemed to represent an open book, was engraved on one side an angel, seemingly kneeling, and on the other side a woman standing with a glory round her head; on the woman's side was engraved in old English characters, bone; on that of the angel, letters of the same character, but illegible. A fair is kept in this village on a Good Friday for pedlary and toys.
By the return made to the council's letter, by archbishop Parker's order, in the year 1563, there were then computed to be in this parish fifty-three housholds. By an exact account taken of Minster in 1774, there were found to be in this parish one hundred and forty-nine houses, and six hundred and ninety-six inhabitants; of the houses, sixteen were farm-houses, and one hundred and thirty three were inhabited by tradesmen, labourers, and widows.
THE MANOR and ABBEY OF MINSTER was antiently called Thaket manor, and continued so till, from the foundation of the abbey or minster within it, it acquired the name of the manor of Minster, though in the survey of Domesday, taken in the year 1080, it is still called Tanet manor, Kar exoxnv; but I have met with it no where else so late by that name.
This manor was in the year 670 in the possession of Egbert, king of Kent, whose two nephews Ethelred and Ethelbright, sons of his father's elder brother Ermenfride, deceased, (who left likewise two daughters, Ermenburga, called also Domneva, married to Merwald, son of Penda, king of Mercia, and Ermengitha, were left to his care, under promise of their succeeding to the kingdom. These princes were kept under the inspection of one Thunnor, a flattering courtier, who persuaded the king to have them murdered, left they should disturb him in the possession of the throne; which Thunnor undertook and perpetrated. To expiate this crime, the king, by the advice of archbishop Theodore, and Adrian, abbot of St. Augustine's, sent to Domneva, who had taken the vow of chastity on her, to offer her any satisfaction for this crime, when, as an atonement, she requested of the king, according to the custom of those times, to grant her a place in Tenet, where she might build a monastery to their memory, with a sufficient maintenance, in which she, with her nuns, might continually pray for the king's forgiveness, who immediately by his charter, which concludes with a singular curse on the infringers of it, (fn. 3) granted her for the endowment of it full one half of this island, being the eastern part of it, comprehended within the bounds of this manor, and since separated from the western part of the island and manor of Monkton, by a broad bank or lynch, made quite across the island, since called St. Mildred's Lynch, and remaining at this day.
The story of this grant, as told by Thorn, a native of this parish, and a monk of St. Augustine's monastery, in his chronicle of that abbey, is, that Egbert granting Domneva's petition, demanded of her how much land she desired; who replied, as much as her deer could run over at one course; this being granted, the deer was let loose at Westgate, in Birchington, in the presence of the king, his nobles, and a great concourse of people. Among them was Thunnor, the petrator of the murder, who, ridiculing the king for the lavishness of his gift and the method of its decision, endeavoured by every means to obstruct the deer's course, both by riding across and meeting it; but Heaven, continues the chronicler, being offended at his impiety, whilst he was in the midst of his career, the earth opened and swallowed him up, leaving the name of Tunnor's-leap, or Thunor's hyslepe, to the ground and place where he fell, to perpetuate the memory of his punishment, though it was afterwards called Heghigdale. Meanwhile the deer having made a small circle eastward, directed its course almost in a strait line south-westward across the island from one side to the other, running over in length and breadth forty-eight plough-lands; and the king, immediately afterwards delivered up to Domneva the whole tract of land which the deer had run over.
This tract or course of the deer, which included above ten thousand acres of some of the best lands in Kent, is said to have been marked out by the broad bank, or lynch, across the island, since called St. Mildred's Lynch, thrown up in remembrance of it; (fn. 4) but notwithstanding this well-invented story of Thorn, it is more probable that this lynch was made to divide the two capital manors of Minster and Monkton, before this gift to Domneva.
Puteus Thunor, (or Thunor's leap) says the annalist of St. Augustine's monastery, apparet prope Cursum Cervi juxta Aldelond; and the place where the king stood to see this course is represented to be by it, where formerly was a beacon, it being some of the highest land hereabouts, where the king might see the course. This Puteus Thunor, or Thunorslep, is very plainly the old chalk pit, called Minster chalk-pit, which its not unlikely was first sunk when the abbey and church here were built, and the bottom of it in process of time, being overgrown with grass, gave occasion for the invention of this sable of Thunor's being swallowed up by the earth at this place. The name of Thunorslep has been long since obliterated, and even the more modern one of Heghigdate has been long forgotten. Weever says, he lieth buried under an heap of stones, which to that day was called Thunniclam.
Domneva being thus furnished with wealth and all things necessary, founded, in honor of the B.V. Mary, a monastery, or cloyster of nuns, afterwards called ST. MILDRED'S ABBEY, on part of this land, on the south side of the island near the water, in the same placewhere the present parochial church stands. Archbishop Theodore, at the instance of Domneva, consecrated the church of it, and she afterwards appointed the number of nuns to be seventy, and was appointed by the archbishop, the first abbess of it; she died here and was buried on the glebe of the new monastery. Ermengitha, her sister, was after her death sainted, and lived with Domneva, in the abbey here, where she died, and was buried in a place about a mile eastward of it, where the inhabitants have found numbers of bones, and where it is probable, she built some chapel or oratory. In a field or marsh called the twenty acres, a little more than a quarter of a mile eastward of the church of Minster, are several foundations, as if some chapel or oratory had been built there. (fn. 5)
Domneva was succeeded as abbess by her daughter Mildred, who was afterwards sainted. She is said to have been buried in this church. On her death Edburga succeeded in the government of this monastery, who finding it insufficient for so great a number of nuns, built another just by, larger and more stately, which was consecrated by archbishop Cuthbert, and dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul; and to this church she, about the year 750, removed the body of St. Mildred, at whose tomb many miracles were said to be wrought afterwards. Edburga was buried at Minster in her own new church, and was afterwards sainted. She was succeeded as abbess of this monastery by Sigeburga. In her time was the first depredation of the Danes in Thanet; who sell upon the people, laid every thing waste, and pludered the religious in this monastery; from this time they continued their ravages throughout this island almost every year; hence by degrees, this monastery fell to decay, and the nuns decreased in number, being vexed with grief and worn down with poverty, by the continual insults of these merciless pirates, who landed in this island in 978, and entirely destroyed by fire this monastery of St. Mildred, in which the clergy and many of the people were shut up, having fled thither for sanctuary; but they were, together with the nuns, all burnt to death, excepting Leofrune the abbess, who is said to have been carried away prisoner.
The Danes, however, spared the two chapels of St. Mary, and of St. Peter and St. Paul, in one of which divine service was afterwards performed, for the inhabitants of this parish and the adjoining neighbourhood. The antient scite of the monastery, together with this manor, and all the rest of the possessions of it remained in the king's hands, and they continued so till king Cnute, in the year 1027, gave the body of St. Mildred, together with the antient scite of the monastery, this manor and all its land within this island and without, and all customs belonging to this church, to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine, which gift was confirmed by king Edward the Confessor. (fn. 6)
The abbot and convent of St. Augustine becoming thus possessed of this manor, fitted up the remains of the abbey to serve as the court-lodge of it; accordingly it has ever since borne the name of Minstercourt. In the survey of Domesday, taken in the 15th year of the Conqueror's reign, anno 1080, this manor is thus described, under the general title of Terra æcclæ Sci Augustini, the land of the church of St. Augustine.
In Tanet hundred. St. Mildred's.
The abbot himself holds Tanet manor, which was taxed at forty-eight sulings. The arable land is sixty-two carucates. In demesne there are two, and one hundred and fifty villeins, with fifty borderers having sixty-three carucates. There is a church and one priest, who gives twenty shillings per annum. There is one salt-pit and two fisheries of three pence, and one mill.
In the time of king Edward the Confessor it was worth four times twenty pounds, when the abbot received it forty pounds, now one hundred pounds.
Of this manor three knights hold so much of the land of the villeins as is worth nine pounds, when there is peace in the land, and there they have three carucates.
After which king Henry I. granted to the monastery of St. Augustine, about the 4th of his reign, a market, to be yearly held within this their manor of Minster, with all customs, forseitures, and pleas; which was confirmed among other liberties by Edward III. in his 36th year, by inspeximus.
King Henry III. in his 54th year, anno 1270, granted to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine, free-warren in all their demesne lands of Minster. (fn. 7) King Edward II. in his 6th year, confirmed to the abbot free-warren in this manor among others, and next year anno 1313, in the iter of H. de Stanton and his sociates, justices itinerant, the abbot, upon a quo warranto, claimed and was allowed sundry liberties therein mentioned, in this manor, among others, and likewise free-warren in all his demesne lands of it, view of frank pledge, and wreck of the sea; one market weekly on a Friday, and one fair yearly on the eve and day of St. Mildred the Virgin, and other liberties therein mentioned; as having been granted and confirmed by divers of the king's predecessors, and allowed in the last iter of J. de Berewick and his sociates, justices itinerant; and that king Edward II. by his charter in his 6th year had sully confirmed all of them, and by the register of this monastery, of about this time, it appears that this manor had within its court the same liberties as those of Chistlet and Sturry. King Edward III. in his 5th year, exempted the abbot's homagers and tenants of this, among other of their manors, from their attendance at the sheriff's tourne, and afterwards by his charter of inspeximus in his 36th year, confirmed to this abbey all the manors and possessions given to it by former kings; and by another charter, the several grants of liberties and confirmations made by his predecessors, among which were those abovementioned; and king Henry VI. afterwards confirmed the same.
Next year the abbot and his servants taking distresses on their tenants of this manor, the tenants, to the number of six hundred, met and continued together for the space of five weeks, having got with them a greater number of people, who coming armed with bows and arrows, swords and staves, to the court of this manor and that of Salmanstone, belonging likewise to the abbot, laid siege to them, and after several attacks set fire to the gates of them. For fear of these violences, the monks and their servants at Salmanstone kept themselves confined there for fifteen days, so that the people enraged at not being able to encompass their ends in setting fire to the houses, destroyed the abbot's ploughs and husbandry utensils, which were in the fields; and cut down and carried away the trees on both these manors.
At the same time they entered into a confederacy and raised money here by tallages and assessments, by means of which they drew to them no small number of others of the cinque ports, who had nothing to lose, so that the abbot dared not sue for justice in the king's courts; but a method it seems was found to punish these rioters, or at least the principal of them, who were fined to the abbot for these damages six hundred pounds, a vast sum in those days, and were imprisoned at Canterbury till the fine was paid. The uneasiness of the tenants under such respective suits and services, seems to have occasioned the abbot and convent to have compounded with them, which they did in the year 1441, anno 20 Henry VI. By this composition the abbot and convent agreed, that the tenants should not in future be distrained for the rents and services they used to pay; but instead of them should pay compositions for every acre of the land called Cornegavel and Pennygavel, (fn. 8) which composition for the Cornegavel and Pennygavel land, continues in force at this time, being sixpence an acre now paid for the Cornegavel land.
In the time of king Richard II. this manor, with its rents and other appurtenances, was valued among the temporalities of the abbot and convent, at 232l. 4s. 3d. per annum; and the quantity of land belonging to it was by admeasurement 2149 acres and one rood.
In which state this manor continued till the final dissolution of the abbey of St. Augustine, which happened in the 30th year of Henry VIII. when it was surrendered, together with the rest of the possessions of the monastery, into the king's hands; at which time the manor and rents were of the value of 276l. yearly. (fn. 9) After which, the see of this manor, with the antient court-lodge of it, formerly the monastery, and then called Minster-court, with all the lands and appurtenances belonging to it, continued in the crown, till king James I. in his 9th year, by his letters patent, granted to Sir Philip Cary, William Pitt, esq. afterwards knighted; and John Williams, citizen and goldsmith of London, this lordship and manor of Menstre, with its rights, members, and appurtenances, late parcel of St. Augustine's monastery, except and reserved to the king's use, all advowsons and patronages of churches, chapels, &c. belonging to this manor; and he granted likewise all the rents of assize called Cornegavel land, in the parish of St. John, parcel of this manor; and the rents of assize of free tenement called Pennygavel land, in the parishes of St. Peter and St. Laurence, (fn. 10) to hold the manor, with its right, members and appurtenances, of the king, as of his manor of East Greenwich, by sealty only, in free and common socage, and not in capite, nor by knight's service; and to hold the rents of assize of the king in capite, by the service of one knight's fee; which grant and letters patent were conconfirmed by an act specially passed for the purpose, that year.
Some years after which, the heirs of the beforementioned Sir Philip Carey and John Williams, then Sir John Williams, bart. of Carmarthenshire, divided this estate; in which division, the manor itself with the court-lodge, part of the demesne lands, royalties, and appurtenances, was allotted to Sir John Williams, bart. (who died in 1668, and was buried in the Temple church, London); whose descendant of the same name, bart. of Carmarthenshire, dying without male issue, his daughter and sole heir, then the widow of the earl of Shelburne, carried it in marriage, at the latter end of king Charles II.'s reign, to Col. Henry Conyngham, afterwards a major-general in king William's reign, who died possessed of it in 1705. He left two sons, William and Henry, and a daughter Mary, married to Francis Burton, esq. of Clare, in Ireland. William, the eldest son of the general, succeeded him in this manor and estate in Minster, but died without surviving issue, upon which this estate descended to Henry Conyngham, esq. his younger brother, second son of the general, who was in 1753, anno 27 George II. created baron Conyngham, of Mount Charles, in Donegall, in Ireland; and afterwards by further letters patent, in 1756, viscount Conyngham, of the same kingdom; and again in 1780, earl Conyngham, and likewise baron Conyngham, of the same kingdom, with remainder of the latter title to his sister's sons. He married Ellen, only daughter of Solomon Merret, esq. of London, by whom he had no issue. He died s.p. in 1781, and was succeeded in his title of baron Conyngham by his nephew Francis Pierpoint Burton Conyngham, eldest son of his sister Mary, by her husband Francis Burton, esq. above-mentioned, which Francis, lord Conyngham, died in 1787, leaving by his wife Elizabeth, eldest daughter of Nathaniel Clements, esq. and sister of Robert, lord Leitrim, (who survived him) two sons, Henry, who succeeded him in title, and Nathaniel, and three daughters, Catherine married to the Rev. John Shirley Fermor, of Sevenoke; Ellen, to Stewart Weldon, esq. and Henrietta.
Henry, so succeeding his father as lord Conyngham, was created in December 1789, viscount Conyngham and baron Conyngham, of Mount Charles, in Donegall, to whom the inheritance of this manor and estate now belongs; but the possession of it for life is vested in the right hon. Ellen, countess dowager Conyngham; widow of Henry, earl Conyngham, above-mentioned. The arms of lord viscount Conyngham are, Argent, a shake-sork, between three mullets, sable. Supporters. The dexter—An horse charged on the breast with an eagle, displayed, or, maned and hoofed of the last. The sinister—A buck proper, charged on the breast with a griffin's head, erased, or, attired and unguled of the last. Crest—Anunicorn's head erased, argent, armed and maned, or. Motto—Over fork over.
A court leet and court baron is held for this manor, by the stile of the courtleet, and view of frank pledge, for the manor of Minster, in the hundred of Ringslow, alias Tenet, and the court baron for the said manor.
The court-lodge, formerly a part of the nunnery, was, after the dissolution of it, made use of as a farmhouse, in which some of the monks of St. Augustine resided, to manage the estate of it, which they kept in their own hands. On the north side of it, which seems to have been the front or entrance, is a handsome stone portal, on the top of which, in the middle, within a circle, are the arms of the abbey of St. Augustine, viz. Sable, a cross, argent. At a small distance from it stood antiently a very large barn, sufficient to hold the corn growing on all the demesnes, being in length 352 feet, and in breadth 47 feet, and the height of the walls 12 feet, with a roof of chesnut. When the estate was divided, 154 feet in length of this building was carried to Sevenscore farm, where it was burnt, by an accident unknown in 1700, and the remaining part here was burnt by lightning afterwards. On the south side of the house stood a chapel, said to have been built by St. Eadburga, the third abbess here. In it the body of St. Mildred is said to have been placed by her, or rather translated from the other monastery. Some of the walls and foundations of this chapel were remaining within the memory of some not long since deceased, but it is now so entirely demolished, that there is nothing to be seen of it, excepting a small part of the tower, and of the stairs leading up into it. Just by these ruins of the tower is a small piece of ground, in which lately in digging for mould, several human bones were dug up. There is a view of the remains of this nunnery in Lewis's Thanet.
THE OTHER PART of this estate, the scite of which lies about a mile eastward from Minster-court, since known by the name of SEVENSCORE, on which is built a substantial farm-house, with large barns and other necessary buildings, was allotted to —Carey, in whose successors viscounts Falkland, this estate continued down to Lucius Ferdinand, viscount Falkland, who not many years since alienated it to Josiah Wordsworth, esq. of London, whose son of the same name died possessed of it about the year 1784, leaving two sisters his coheirs, one of whom married Sir Charles Kent, bart. and the other, Anne, married Henry Verelst, esq. who afterwards, in right of their respective wives, became possessed of this estate in undivided moieties; in which state it still continues, Sir Charles Kent being at this time entitled to one moiety, and Mrs. Verelst, the widow of Henry Verelst, esq. above-mentioned, who died in 1785, and lies buried in this church, being entitled to the other moiety of it.
WASCHESTER is an estate lying at a small distance westward from Minster church, part of which was formerly parcel of the demesnes of the manor of Minster, and was included in king James's grant to Sir Philip Carey, William Pitt, esq. and John Williams, goldsmith, as has been mentioned before in the account of that manor; they in the year 1620, joined in the sale of them to Jeffry Sandwell, gent. of Monkton, who purchased other lands of different persons in this parish, Monkton and Birchington, the whole of which he sold in 1658, to John Peters, M. D. Philip le Keuse, and Samuel Vincent, which two latter alienated their shares soon afterwards to Dr. Peters; at which time all these lands together, not only comprehended Waschester farm, but likewise part, if not the whole of another called Acol. From Dr. Peters this estate descended to Peter Peters, M. D. of Canterbury, who died in 1697, upon which the inheritance of it descended to his sole daughter and heir Elizabeth, who in 1722 carried it in marriage to Thomas Barrett, esq. of Lee, whose second wife she was; he died possessed of it in 1757, upon which it descended to their only daughter and heir Elizabeth, who entitled her husband, the Rev. William Dejovas Byrche, to the fee of it. He died in 1792, leaving an only daughter Elizabeth, married to Samuel Egerton Brydges, esq. of the Middle Temple, barrister-atlaw, but now of Denton-court, who in her right possessed it, and afterwards sold it to Mr. Ambrose Maud, who now owns it.
SHERIFFS COURT is an estate lying somewhat less than a mile westward from Waschester, in the hamlet of Hoo in this parish; it was formerly called Sheriffs Hope, from the hope, or place of anchorage for ships, which sailed in the river Wantsume, which once ran close by this place. It is said by some to have taken its name from its having been part of the possessions of Reginald de Cornhill, who was so long sheriff of this county that he lost his own name and took that of Le Sheriff, from whence this place gained the name of Sheriffs hope, or court. He was sheriff from the 4th to the 9th years of king Richard I. in the last year of that reign and during the whole reign of king John. His arms are on the stone roof of the cloysters at Canterbury, being Two lions passant, debruised of a bendlet, impaling three piles. After this name was extinct here, the family of Corbie became possessed of this estate; one of whom, Robert de Corbie, died possessed of it in the 39th year of king Edward III. whose son Robert Corbie, esq. of Boughton Malherb, leaving a sole daughter and heir Joane, she carried it in marriage to Sir Nicholas Wotton, who, anno 3 Henry V. was lord mayor of London. His descendant Sir Edward Wotton procured his lands in this county to be disgavelled by the acts both of 31 Henry VIII. and 2 and 3 Edward VI. and from him this manor descended to Thomas, lord Wotton, who dying anno 6 Charles I. without male issue, his four daughters became his coheirs, of whom Catherine the eldest carried this estate in marriage to Henry, lord Stanhope, son and heir of Philip, earl of Chesterfield, whose widow Catherine, lady Stanhope, sold it to Henry Paramor. He was the tenant and occupier of Sheriff's court, being the eldest son of John Paramor, of Preston, the grandson of Thomas Paramor, of Paramor-street, in Ash, near Sandwich. They bore for their arms, Azure, a fess embattled, counter embairled, between three etoils of six points, or. (fn. 11) . He left it to his brother Thomas Paramor, whose grandson of the same name died possessed of it in 1652, and was buried with his ancestors in this church; from his heirs this estate was alienated to Thatcher, in which name it continued, till at length it was sold by one of them, to Mr. Robert Wilkins, gent. of St. Margaret's, Rochester, who possessed it for many years. He died without issue, and it has since become the property of Mrs. Terry, the present owner of it.
TO THIS MANOR is appurtenant the small MANOR OF PEGWELL, or COURT STAIRS, in the parish of St. Laurence.
ALDELOND GRANGE, usually called Allen Grange, situated about a mile northwardfrom Minster church, on the open high land, was so called in opposition to Newland Grange, in St. Laurence parish. It was antiently part of the possessions of the abbey of St. Augustine, and was in the year 1197, assigned by Roger, the abbot of it, to the sacristy of the abbey, for the purpose of upholding and maintaining the abbey church, as well in the fabric as ornaments, but on the condition that the sacrist for the time being, should perform all such services to the court of Minster as were due, and had been accustomed to be done for the land of it. (fn. 12)
The measurement of this land, according to Thorne, amounted to sixty-two acres; and to this Grange belong all the tithes of corn and grain, within the limits of the borough of Wayborough, excepting those which are received by the vicar. On the dissolution of the abbey of St. Augustine, in the 30th year of Henry VIII. this estate, then amounting to six score acres, came, with the rest of the possessions of the monastery, into the king's hands, where it did not continue long, for he settled it in his 33d year, by his dotation charter, on his new founded dean and chapter of Canterbury, with whom the inheritance of it continues at this time.
It has been demised by the dean and chapter, on a beneficial lease, the rack rent of it being 413l. per annum, for twenty one years, to Mr. Edward Pett, of Cleve-court, the present lessee of it. Messrs. Jessard and Paramor are the under lessees and occupiers of it.
POWCIES, which stands about half a mile northeastward from Allan grange, was formerly a gentleman's mansion, a large handsome building standing on much more ground than it does at present, with a gate house at the entrance into the court before it; all which being pulled down, a modern farm-house of brick has been built on the antient scite of it.
This seat was once in the possession of the family of Goshall, of Goshall, in Ash, where Sir John Goshall resided in king Edward III.'s reign, and in his descendants it continued till about the reign of king Henry IV. when it was carried in marriage by a female heir to one of the family of St. Nicholas, owners likewise of the adjoining manor of Thorne, in whom it continued down to Roger St. Nicholas, who died in 1484, leaving a sole daughter and heir Elizabeth, who entitled her husband John Dynley, of Charlton, in Worcestershire, to the possession of it. By her he had two sons, Henry and Edward, the eldest of whom succeeded to this estate, which he afterwards alienated, about the middle of queen Elizabeth's reign, to John Roper, esq. of Linsted, afterwards knighted, and anno 14 James I. created baron of Teynham; whose great grandson Christopher, lord Teynham, in king Charles I.'s reign, conveyed it to Sir Edward Monins, bart. of Waldershare, who died possessed of it in 1663, leaving Elizabeth his widow surviving, who held it in jointure at her death in 1703; upon which it devolved to the heirs and trustees of Susan, his eldest daughter and coheir, late wife of Peregrine Bertie, deceased, second son of Montague, earl of Lindsey; and they, in the reign of king William and queen Mary, joined in the sale of it to Sir Henry Furnese, bart. of Waldershare, who died possessed of it in 1712, as did his son Sir Robert in 1733. After which it became, with his other estates, vested in his three daughters and coheirs, and on a partition of them, anno 9 George II. this estate of Powcies was wholly allotted, among others, to Anne the eldest sister, wife of John, viscount St. John, which partition was confirmed by an act passed next year; after which it descended down to their grandson George, viscount Bolingbroke, who in 1790 alienated it to Mr. Henry and John Harnett, the present possessors of it.
THORNE, or as it is vulgarly called, Thourne, is a manor in this parish, situated about a mile southward from Powcies above mentioned, being so named from the quantity of thorny bushes growing on and about it. This manor was antiently the seat of a family which took their name from it, one of them, Henry de Thorne, was owner of it in the year 1300, anno 29 Edward I. and resided here; against whom it seems complaint was made to the abbot of St. Augustine, that he caused mass to be publicly said in his private oratory, or chapel, (the remains of which are still so entire as to be made use of as a granary, &c.) at this his manor of Thorne, (apud spinam) to the prejudice of the mother church, and the ill example of others; and he accordingly was inhibited from so doing in future, by the archbishop's letters to the vicar of Minster, dated that year. And under the cross in this church, in the north wall of it, is an antient tomb or coffin of solid stone, let into the wall under an arch of antient Saxon ornaments. On the stone which covers the tomb is a cross flory, on each side of which are two blank shields, and round the edge of the stone these words in old French letters: Ici gift Edile de Thorne, que fust Dna del Espine. This seems probable to have been one of the family, owners of this manor.
After this family of Thorne were become extinct here, that of Goshall, of Goshall, in Ash, appear to have been possessors of this manor; in whom it continued till about the reign of king Henry IV. when it went by marriage by a female heir to one of the family of St. Nicholas, in whose descendants it continued down to Roger St. Nicholas, who died in 1474, and as appears by his will, was buried before the image of St. Nicholas, in the chancel of Thorne, at Minster. Roger St. Nicholas, his son and heir, left an only daughter Elizabeth, who entitled her husband John Dynley, esq. of Charlton, in Worcestershire, to the possession of it. After which it continued down in the same owners as Powcies last above-described, till it came into the possession of George, viscount Bolingbroke, who in 1790 alienated it to Mr. Henry Wooton, the present owner of it.
See a custom for the demise of tenements by will within the borough of Menstre, secundum consuetudinem manerii, anno 55 Henry III. Itin. Kanc. rot. 18, in Robinson's Gavelkind, p. 236.
Charities.
THE OCCUPIER of Salmeston Grange, in St. John's parish, is bound by his lease to distribute to six poor inhabitants of the parish of Minster, to be nominated by the minister and churchwardens, in the first week, and on the middle Monday of Lent, to each of them, nine loaves and eighteen herrings; and to three poor people of the same, to each of them, two yards of blanket; and every Monday and Friday in each week, from the Invention of the Holy Cross to the feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, to every poor person coming to Salmeston Grange, one dishfull of peas dressed.
THOMAS APPLETON, of Eastry, yeoman, by his will in 1593, gave to the relief of the poor of this parish, the sum of 5l. to be paid to the churchwardens yearly, for the use of the poor people, inhabitants there, fourteen days before Christmas day, the same to be paid out of certain lands belonging to him, called Hardiles, in the parish of Woodnesborough.
RICHARD CLERK, D. D. vicar of Minster, partly by deed in 1625, and partly by will on Nov 6, 1634, gave 120l. to be lent unto four parishioners, born in Minster, whose fathers were deceased, and they not sufficiently stocked, for the term of one, two, or three years, but not exceeding that; the interest arising from it to be divided among the poor of the parish. With this money the trustees purchased houses, which are at present divided into four tenements, besides the parish work-house, called the seoffees houses; and seven other tenements, called Cheap Row, the rent of which is annually distributed in clothing to the poor persons of the parish. They are all at present let to the churchwardens and overseers for the time being, by a lease of 99 years, from 1729, at the rent of 6l. This trust is now vested in Mr. William Fuller, of Doctors Commons, as heir of the last trustee; the trust not having been filled up since the year 1696.
JOHN CAREY, esq of Stanwell, in Middlesex, by will in 1685, gave 10l. per annum to be paid yearly to the churchwardens, out of his farm of Sevenscore; to be disposed of to the poor yearly, on St. Thomas's day.
THIS PARISH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Westbere.
The church, which is dedicated to St. Mary, is a very handsome structure, consisting of a nave and two side isles, a cross sept, and east chancel; the nave is of Saxon, the transept and chancel of gothic architecture; the last is curiously vaulted with stone, and provision was made for the same in the transept, but it was never completed. In it are eighteen collegiate stalis, in good preservation. At the west end of the church is a tall spire steeple, in which is a clock and five bells.
When the Danes plundered and burnt the abbey of Minster, they seem to have spared the two chapels of St. Mary, and of St. Peter and St. Paul, or however the stone work of them was preserved, and not burnt with the roof and other works of timber. The former of these was afterwards made into the present parish church, and has since been considerably enlarged.—The nave or body of the church seems to have been the old building; the pillars of which are thick and short, and the arches all circular, and a low roof was probably upon them, according to the simplicity and plainness of those times; but since the wall has been built higher, as appears by the distance there is, betwixt the top of the arches and the wall plate across; and an handsome chancel added at the east end, and a square tower on the west, with a high spire covered with lead placed on it. The chancel or choir and the middle of the cross are vaulted, and by the footings which are left, it was certainly intended that the whole cross should have been finished in the same manner. The eighteen stalls mentioned before, have very handsome wainscot behind, according to the mode of those times; in these the monks, vicars, and priests used to sit during the performance of divine service. Besides the high altar in this church, there were before the reformation other altars in it, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, St. James, and St. Anne. At these, as likewise before the Holy Cross, were lights constantly burning; for the maintenance of which, there were societies or fellowships, who contributed towards the maintenance of them, and those who died left in their last wills constantly small sums of money for that purpose. Under the middle of the cross was the rood-lost, the going up to which out of the chancel is yet to be seen, as are the mortice holes in which the timbers were put, on which the lost was built. On the north wall of it is the antient tomb of Edile de Thorne. On the pavement, as well as in the church porch, are several large flat gravestones, the inscriptions, if any on them, entirely worn away; they seem very antient, and are not improbably, memorials of some of the religious of this place, but they do not seem always to have lain where they do now. On the front of the tower of the steeple is a shield, carved in the stone work, viz. A fess, between three lion's passant. Among other memorials in this church, in the chancel, is one for Francis, son and heir to Edward Saunders, gent. of Norbourne-court, which Edward married the female heir of Francis Pendrick, esq. by his wife, who was nurse to queen Elizabeth. He died anno 1643; arms, A chevron, between three elephants heads, impaling a saltier, ermine, between three leopards faces. In the middle isle a monument for Bartholomew Sanders, gent. and Mary his wife, daughter of Henry Oxenden, esq. of Wingham; arms, Per chevron, sable and argent, three elephants heads, counterchanged, impaling Oxenden. On a mural monument are the effigies of a man and woman. kneeling at a desk, for Thomas Paramor, esq. sometime mayor of Canterbury, and Anne his first wife; arms, Azure, a fess embattled, between three stars of six points, or, impaling or, on a chevron, three stars of six points, sable, between as many dragons heads, quartered. In the north isle are several memorials for the Paramors. On a wooden frame, near the altar, a memorial for Col. James Pettit, obt. 1730. On the south side of the chancel, a mural monument for Mary, youngest daughter of Robert Knowler, gent. of Herne, wife of John Lewis, vicar of this church, obt. 1719. A memorial for John Lewis, formerly vicar of this church, obt. 1746, æt. 72. A memorial for Elizabeth Blome, daughter and coheir of John Blome, gent. of Sevenoke, obt. 1731; arms, in a lozenge, A cross fitchee, and cinquefoil, quartered with a greybound, current. A mural monument for Harry Verelst, esq. of Aston, in Yorkshire, formerly governor of Bengal, obt. 1785; he married Anne, coheir of Josiah Wordsworth, esq. of Wadworth, in Yorkshire, and of Sevenscore, in this parish, and left by her four sons and five daughters. In the south isle memorials for the Harnetts, Kennetts, and Colemans. In the middle isle are memorials for several of the Jenking's. Leland, in his Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 130 says, S. Florentius jacet in Cemiterio S. Mariæ in Thanet, cujus Tumba Crescit signis. (fn. 13)
On the top of the spire was formerly a globe, and upon that a great wooden cross, covered with lead, over which was a vane, and above that, an iron cross; but about the year 1647, the noted fanatic Richard Culmer, having got the sequestration of this vicarage, took it into his fancy that these were monuments of superstition and idolatry, and got these crosses demolished by two persons of the parish, whom he had hired, after he had himself before day, by moon light, fixed ladders for them to go up and down, from the square of the tower to the top of the spire. But if all the figures of a cross are monuments of idolatry, and to be removed, the poor caitiff has done his work but by halves, or rather not all, when he took down these from the spire and left the church standing, which is itself built in the form of a cross.
The church of Minster was antiently appendant to the manor, and as such was granted with it, first to Domneva, and afterwards became part of the possessions of the abbey founded by her here; and after the destruction of it came with the manor, by king Cnute's grant, to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine, to which it became appropriated in the year 1128, anno 29 Henry I. and was at that time assigned, with the chapels of St. John, St. Peter, and St. Laurence, with all rents, tithes, and other things, belonging to them, to the sacristy of that monastery; which regulation was confirmed by archbishop Theobald, and afterwards, in 1168, by pope Alexander, who consigned it to the reparation of the church of the monastery, which had been but just before burnt down. (fn. 14)
In the year 1176, anno 23 Henry II. the tenants of the Halimot, or manor court of Minster, agreed, that from thenceforth they would all cop their corn; and that they and their heirs, then and for ever afterwards, should pay all their tithes lawfully by cops, and all other matters of tithes, which they were accustomed to pay, as amply as they had ever paid them from the time of the dedication of the church of St. Mary of Menstre.
By an agreement entered into in 1182, between the archbishop and the abbot of St. Augustine's, this church was exempted from the payments of all dues and procurations to the archdeacon; and that year the archbishop confirmed this church to the monastery; which agreement was renewed in 1237, by archbishop Edmund; and further, that the abbot and convent should present to the archbishop, in the chapels of St. Peter, St. John, and St. Laurence, fit perpetual chaplains to the altarages in them, provided those altarages were worth ten marcs, with which the chaplains should be content, on pain of forfeiting the same; the vicar of the mother church of Menstre, having a sufficient vicarage taxed from antient time in the same, taking and receiving in right of his vicarage, the tenths of small tithes, viz. of lambs and pigs, and the obventions arising from marriages and churchings, which were forbid at the chapels, and were solemnized, &c. at the mother church only, and the burials of certain corpses, being those of the tenants or occupiers of lands in these chapelries, who were to be buried at Minster, unless the vicar gave leave to the contrary. At the same time the archbishop, with the consent of the archdeacon, confirmed this church to the abbot and convent, together with the several archiepiscopal confirmations of it, and those of the several kings of England. This part above-mentioned of the revenue of the vicarage of Minster, arising from these chapelries, has long since been lost, except that out of Salmestone Grange, amounting to 10s. a year; which, perhaps, might be a composition for the tenths of the small tithes, &c. in them. The altarages above-mentioned were the customary and voluntary offerings at the altar, for some religious office or service of the priest. To augment these, the regular and secular priests invented many things. For it is to be observed, that only a portion of these offerings, to the value of ten marcs, or 6l. 13s. 4d. was what the chaplains of these three chapels were presented to, and that they were accountable for the residue to the abbot and convent, and that if they presumed to detain any more of these offerings beyond that sum, they were to be deprived even of that. For this reason, they were to swear to the abbot and convent, to give a true account of the offerings made at their several altars, on their respective offering days, and in no shape to detriment their parish of Menstre, as to legacies or obventions, personal or predial, but to conserve all the parochial rights of the same, entire and untouched, to the utmost of their power. Then marcs appear now but a small sum for the maintenance of a parish minster; but when the value of money at the time when this composition was made is considered, it will be found to be a handsome and generous allowance to a chaplain, especially as their stipends were then paid by authority; ten marcs were then equal to more than sixty pounds now, and in a council held at Oxford but fifteen years before, it was decreed, that where the churches had a revenue as far as five marcs per annum, they should be conferred on none but such as should constantly reside in person, on the place, as being a sufficient maintenance. In 1348 H. Kinghton informs us, a chaplain's usual stipend was no more than four or five marcs, or two and his board; as for the chaplains of these three chapels, though they were to receive no more than ten marcs of these altarages, they were not excluded the enjoyment of the manses and glebes, given to these chapels when they were first consecrated, which made some addition to their income, and perhaps enabled them to keep a deacon to assist them. (fn. 15)
On the great and principal festivals, the inhabitants of these three chapelries, preceded by their priests and other officers, with their banners, tapers, &c. were used to go in procession to Minster, their mother church, there to join at the solemn mass and other divine service then performed, to make their offerings and pay their accustomed dues, in token of their subjection to their parochial or mother church.
The appropriation of the church of Minster, together with the advowson of the vicarage, continued, in manner as has been already mentioned, with the abbot and convent till the dissolution of their monastery in the 30th year of king Henry VIII. when it was surrendered, together with the rest of the possessions of the monastery, into the king's hands. After the dissolution of the monastery, there could not be said to be any parsonage or appropriation of this church, for the demesne lands of the manor of Minster, which are very extensive in this parish, were subject, as to the tithes of corn, to only a small modus or composition to the vicar, of eighteen shocks or cops of wheat, and eighteen shocks or cops of barley, or thereabouts; and the vicar was intitled, in right of his vicarage, to the corn tithes of the lands in the remaining part of the parish, as will be further noticed hereafter.
When the vicarage of this church was endowed and a vicar instituted, is no where found; but certainly it was before the year 1275; for in the act of consecration of the church or chapel-yard of St. Laurence that year, when that chapel was made parochial, mention is made of the vicar of Menstre, &c. and in the year 1384, anno 8 Richard II. this vicarage was valued at thirty marcs. After the dissolution of the abbey of St. Augustine, the advowson of this vicarage continued in the hands of the crown, till king Edward VI. in his first year, granted it, among other premises, to the archbishop, since which it has continued parcel of the pos sessions of that fee, the archbishop being the present patron of it.
This vicarage is valued in the king's books at 33l. 3s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 3l. 6s. 8d. In 1588 here were three hundred communicants, and it was valued at 1501. It is endowed with a manse and glebe of about twenty-four acres of land, upland and marsh; all the corn tithes, and other tithes of that part of the parish called Street-borough; and of about one hundred acres in the other borough, called Weyborough, except the corn tithes of the demesnes of the manor of Minster, for which the modus or composition above-mentioned is paid.
¶The land in Minster level, which is pasture, paying but four-pence an acre for tithes, Dr. Richard Clarke, vicar here in 1597, made a composition with his parishioners, by which they obliged themselves to pay him at the vicarage house, within three days after every quarter, after the rate of twelve-pence an acre for their marsh land, or else to lose the benefit of the composition. (fn. 16) Dr. Meric Casaubon, who succeeded Dr. Clarke, would not abide by this composition, but afterwards compounded with the occupiers, at the rate of twelve-pence an acre for the worst of the land, and of fourteen pence and sixteen pence for that which is better; and in the year 1638 he demanded his tithes of the marsh land in kind, or eighteen pence per acre, which was agreed to by the parishioners, and paid by them till the year 1643; when the civil wars being begun, and this county in the power of the parliament, Dr. Casaubon, being continually threatened to be turned out of his vicarage, was content to receive one shilling per acre for the marsh land; in which manner he received it till the end of the year 1644, when this vicarage was sequestered, and one Richard Culmer was put into possession of this vicarage, (fn. 17) who to ingratiate himself with the parishioners, agreed to take no more than twelve pence an acre of them, as did Dr. Casaubon in 1660, on his being restored to this vicarage; at which rate the tithes were afterwards uniformly taken, till the time of the present vicar; the several vicars not being disposed to quarrel with their neighbours, though the land now lets for as much again as it did in Dr. Casaubon's time, viz. at 28s. an acre and upwards. There have been several litigations and issues at law tried between the present vicar, Mr. Dodsworth, and his parishioners, on account of this modus for the marsh land, all which have been decided in the vicar's favor, who set aside the modus of one shilling per acre by the verdict in his favor, and now takes from 1s. 6d. to 2s. 6d. for the grass land, according to its goodness; yet there are ten acres of grass land late in the possession of Josias Fuller Farrer, esq. which never having paid more than four-pence per acre, remain at that composition. The present value of it is about 350l. per annum.
Angkor Wat or "Capital Temple" is a temple complex in Cambodia and the largest religious monument in the world. It was first a Hindu and later a Buddhist temple. It was built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century in Yaśodharapura, present-day Angkor, the capital of the Khmer Empire, as his state temple and eventual mausoleum.
Breaking from the Shiva tradition of previous kings, Angkor Wat was instead dedicated to Vishnu. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious center since its foundation. The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors. Angkor Wat combines two basic plans of Khmer temple architecture: the temple-mountain and the later galleried temple, based on early Dravidian architecture, with key features such as the Jagati. It is designed to represent Mount Meru, home of the devas in Hindu mythology: within a moat and an outer wall 3.6 kilometres long are three rectangular galleries, each raised above the next. At the centre of the temple stands a quincunx of towers. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west; scholars are divided as to the significance of this. The temple is admired for the grandeur and harmony of the architecture, its extensive bas-reliefs, and for the numerous devatas adorning its walls.
The modern name, Angkor Wat, means "Temple City" or "City of Temples" in Khmer; Angkor, meaning "city" or "capital city", is a vernacular form of the word nokor (នគរ), which comes from the Sanskrit word nagara (नगर). Wat is the Khmer word for "temple grounds" (Sanskrit: वाट vāṭa ""enclosure").
HISTORY
Angkor Wat lies 5.5 kilometres north of the modern town of Siem Reap, and a short distance south and slightly east of the previous capital, which was centred at Baphuon. It is in an area of Cambodia where there is an important group of ancient structures. It is the southernmost of Angkor's main sites.
According to one legend, the construction of Angkor Wat was ordered by Indra to act as a palace for his son Precha Ket Mealea.
According to the 13th century Chinese traveler Daguan Zhou, it was believed by some that the temple was constructed in a single night by a divine architect. The initial design and construction of the temple took place in the first half of the 12th century, during the reign of Suryavarman II (ruled 1113-C. 1150). Dedicated to Vishnu, it was built as the king's state temple and capital city. As neither the foundation stela nor any contemporary inscriptions referring to the temple have been found, its original name is unknown, but it may have been known as "Varah Vishnu-lok" after the presiding deity. Work seems to have ended shortly after the king's death, leaving some of the bas-relief decoration unfinished.
In 1177, approximately 27 years after the death of Suryavarman II, Angkor was sacked by the Chams, the traditional enemies of the Khmer. Thereafter the empire was restored by a new king, Jayavarman VII, who established a new capital and state temple (Angkor Thom and the Bayon respectively) a few kilometers to the north.
In the late 13th century, Angkor Wat gradually moved from Hindu to Theravada Buddhist use, which continues to the present day. Angkor Wat is unusual among the Angkor temples in that although it was somewhat neglected after the 16th century it was never completely abandoned, its preservation being due in part to the fact that its moat also provided some protection from encroachment by the jungle.
One of the first Western visitors to the temple was António da Madalena, a Portuguese monk who visited in 1586 and said that it "is of such extraordinary construction that it is not possible to describe it with a pen, particularly since it is like no other building in the world. It has towers and decoration and all the refinements which the human genius can conceive of."
In the mid-19th century, the temple was visited by the French naturalist and explorer, Henri Mouhot, who popularised the site in the West through the publication of travel notes, in which he wrote:
"One of these temples - a rival to that of Solomon, and erected by some ancient Michelangelo - might take an honorable place beside our most beautiful buildings. It is grander than anything left to us by Greece or Rome, and presents a sad contrast to the state of barbarism in which the nation is now plunged."
Mouhot, like other early Western visitors, found it difficult to believe that the Khmers could have built the temple, and mistakenly dated it to around the same era as Rome. The true history of Angkor Wat was pieced together only from stylistic and epigraphic evidence accumulated during the subsequent clearing and restoration work carried out across the whole Angkor site. There were no ordinary dwellings or houses or other signs of settlement including cooking utensils, weapons, or items of clothing usually found at ancient sites. Instead there is the evidence of the monuments themselves.
Angkor Wat required considerable restoration in the 20th century, mainly the removal of accumulated earth and vegetation. Work was interrupted by the civil war and Khmer Rouge control of the country during the 1970s and 1980s, but relatively little damage was done during this period other than the theft and destruction of mostly post-Angkorian statues.The temple is a powerful symbol of Cambodia, and is a source of great national pride that has factored into Cambodia's diplomatic relations with France, the United States and its neighbor Thailand. A depiction of Angkor Wat has been a part of Cambodian national flags since the introduction of the first version circa 1863. From a larger historical and even transcultural perspective, however, the temple of Angkor Wat did not become a symbol of national pride sui generis but had been inscribed into a larger politico-cultural process of French-colonial heritage production in which the original temple site was presented in French colonial and universal exhibitions in Paris and Marseille between 1889 and 1937. Angkor Wat's aesthetics were also on display in the plaster cast museum of Louis Delaporte called musée Indo-chinois which existed in the Parisian Trocadero Palace from C. 1880 to the mid-1920s. The splendid artistic legacy of Angkor Wat and other Khmer monuments in the Angkor region led directly to France adopting Cambodia as a protectorate on 11 August 1863 and invading Siam to take control of the ruins. This quickly led to Cambodia reclaiming lands in the northwestern corner of the country that had been under Siamese (Thai) control since 1351 AD (Manich Jumsai 2001), or by some accounts, 1431 AD. Cambodia gained independence from France on 9 November 1953 and has controlled Angkor Wat since that time.
ARCHITECTURE
SITE AND PLAN
Angkor Wat, located at 13°24′45″N 103°52′0″E, is a unique combination of the temple mountain, the standard design for the empire's state temples and the later plan of concentric galleries. The temple is a representation of Mount Meru, the home of the gods: the central quincunx of towers symbolises the five peaks of the mountain, and the walls and moat the surrounding mountain ranges and ocean. Access to the upper areas of the temple was progressively more exclusive, with the laity being admitted only to the lowest level. Unlike most Khmer temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west rather than the east. This has led many (including Maurice Glaize and George Coedès) to conclude that Suryavarman intended it to serve as his funerary temple.Further evidence for this view is provided by the bas-reliefs, which proceed in a counter-clockwise direction - prasavya in Hindu terminology - as this is the reverse of the normal order. Rituals take place in reverse order during Brahminic funeral services. The archaeologist Charles Higham also describes a container which may have been a funerary jar which was recovered from the central tower. It has been nominated by some as the greatest expenditure of energy on the disposal of a corpse. Freeman and Jacques, however, note that several other temples of Angkor depart from the typical eastern orientation, and suggest that Angkor Wat's alignment was due to its dedication to Vishnu, who was associated with the west.
A further interpretation of Angkor Wat has been proposed by Eleanor Mannikka. Drawing on the temple's alignment and dimensions, and on the content and arrangement of the bas-reliefs, she argues that the structure represents a claimed new era of peace under King Suryavarman II: "as the measurements of solar and lunar time cycles were built into the sacred space of Angkor Wat, this divine mandate to rule was anchored to consecrated chambers and corridors meant to perpetuate the king's power and to honor and placate the deities manifest in the heavens above." Mannikka's suggestions have been received with a mixture of interest and scepticism in academic circles. She distances herself from the speculations of others, such as Graham Hancock, that Angkor Wat is part of a representation of the constellation Draco.
STYLE
Angkor Wat is the prime example of the classical style of Khmer architecture - the Angkor Wat style - to which it has given its name. By the 12th century Khmer architects had become skilled and confident in the use of sandstone (rather than brick or laterite) as the main building material. Most of the visible areas are of sandstone blocks, while laterite was used for the outer wall and for hidden structural parts. The binding agent used to join the blocks is yet to be identified, although natural resins or slaked lime has been suggested. The temple has drawn praise above all for the harmony of its design. According to Maurice Glaize, a mid-20th-century conservator of Angkor, the temple "attains a classic perfection by the restrained monumentality of its finely balanced elements and the precise arrangement of its proportions. It is a work of power, unity and style." Architecturally, the elements characteristic of the style include: the ogival, redented towers shaped like lotus buds; half-galleries to broaden passageways; axial galleries connecting enclosures; and the cruciform terraces which appear along the main axis of the temple. Typical decorative elements are devatas (or apsaras), bas-reliefs, and on pediments extensive garlands and narrative scenes. The statuary of Angkor Wat is considered conservative, being more static and less graceful than earlier work. Other elements of the design have been destroyed by looting and the passage of time, including gilded stucco on the towers, gilding on some figures on the bas-reliefs, and wooden ceiling panels and doors.
FEATURES
OUTER ENCLOSURE
The outer wall, 1024 by 802 m and 4.5 m high, is surrounded by a 30 m apron of open ground and a moat 190 m wide. Access to the temple is by an earth bank to the east and a sandstone causeway to the west; the latter, the main entrance, is a later addition, possibly replacing a wooden bridge. There are gopuras at each of the cardinal points; the western is by far the largest and has three ruined towers. Glaize notes that this gopura both hides and echoes the form of the temple proper. Under the southern tower is a statue of Vishnu, known as Ta Reach, which may originally have occupied the temple's central shrine.Galleries run between the towers and as far as two further entrances on either side of the gopura often referred to as "elephant gates", as they are large enough to admit those animals. These galleries have square pillars on the outer (west) side and a closed wall on the inner (east) side. The ceiling between the pillars is decorated with lotus rosettes; the west face of the wall with dancing figures; and the east face of the wall with balustered windows, dancing male figures on prancing animals, and devatas, including (south of the entrance) the only one in the temple to be showing her teeth. The outer wall encloses a space of 820,000 square metres, which besides the temple proper was originally occupied by the city and, to the north of the temple, the royal palace. Like all secular buildings of Angkor, these were built of perishable materials rather than of stone, so nothing remains of them except the outlines of some of the streets. Most of the area is now covered by forest. A 350 m causeway connects the western gopura to the temple proper, with naga balustrades and six sets of steps leading down to the city on either side. Each side also features a library with entrances at each cardinal point, in front of the third set of stairs from the entrance, and a pond between the library and the temple itself. The ponds are later additions to the design, as is the cruciform terrace guarded by lions connecting the causeway to the central structure.
CENTRAL STRUCTURE
The temple stands on a terrace raised higher than the city. It is made of three rectangular galleries rising to a central tower, each level higher than the last. Mannikka interprets these galleries as being dedicated to the king, Brahma, the moon, and Vishnu.
Each gallery has a gopura at each of the points, and the two inner galleries each have towers at their corners, forming a quincunx with the central tower. Because the temple faces west, the features are all set back towards the east, leaving more space to be filled in each enclosure and gallery on the west side; for the same reason the west-facing steps are shallower than those on the other sides.
The outer gallery measures 187 by 215 m, with pavilions rather than towers at the corners. The gallery is open to the outside of the temple, with columned half-galleries extending and buttressing the structure. Connecting the outer gallery to the second enclosure on the west side is a cruciform cloister called Preah Poan (the "Hall of a Thousand Gods"). Buddha images were left in the cloister by pilgrims over the centuries, although most have now been removed. This area has many inscriptions relating the good deeds of pilgrims, most written in Khmer but others in Burmese and Japanese. The four small courtyards marked out by the cloister may originally have been filled with water.
North and south of the cloister are libraries.
Beyond, the second and inner galleries are connected to each other and to two flanking libraries by another cruciform terrace, again a later addition. From the second level upwards, devatas abound on the walls, singly or in groups of up to four. The second-level enclosure is 100 by 115 m, and may originally have been flooded to represent the ocean around Mount Meru.
Three sets of steps on each side lead up to the corner towers and gopuras of the inner gallery. The very steep stairways represent the difficulty of ascending to the kingdom of the gods. This inner gallery, called the Bakan, is a 60 m square with axial galleries connecting each gopura with the central shrine, and subsidiary shrines located below the corner towers. The roofings of the galleries are decorated with the motif of the body of a snake ending in the heads of lions or garudas. Carved lintels and pediments decorate the entrances to the galleries and to the shrines. The tower above the central shrine rises 43 m to a height of 65 m above the ground; unlike those of previous temple mountains, the central tower is raised above the surrounding four. The shrine itself, originally occupied by a statue of Vishnu and open on each side, was walled in when the temple was converted to Theravada Buddhism, the new walls featuring standing Buddhas. In 1934, the conservator George Trouvé excavated the pit beneath the central shrine: filled with sand and water it had already been robbed of its treasure, but he did find a sacred foundation deposit of gold leaf two metres above ground level.
DECORATION
Integrated with the architecture of the building, and one of the causes for its fame is Angkor Wat's extensive decoration, which predominantly takes the form of bas-relief friezes. The inner walls of the outer gallery bear a series of large-scale scenes mainly depicting episodes from the Hindu epics the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Higham has called these, "the greatest known linear arrangement of stone carving".
From the north-west corner anti-clockwise, the western gallery shows the Battle of Lanka (from the Ramayana, in which Rama defeats Ravana) and the Battle of Kurukshetra (from the Mahabharata, showing the mutual annihilation of the Kaurava and Pandava clans). On the southern gallery follow the only historical scene, a procession of Suryavarman II, then the 32 hells and 37 heavens of Hindu mythology.
On the eastern gallery is one of the most celebrated scenes, the Churning of the Sea of Milk, showing 92 asuras and 88 devas using the serpent Vasuki to churn the sea under Vishnu's direction (Mannikka counts only 91 asuras, and explains the asymmetrical numbers as representing the number of days from the winter solstice to the spring equinox, and from the equinox to the summer solstice). It is followed by Vishnu defeating asuras (a 16th-century addition). The northern gallery shows Krishna's victory over Bana (where according to Glaize, "The workmanship is at its worst"). and a battle between the Hindu gods and asuras. The north-west and south-west corner pavilions both feature much smaller-scale scenes, some unidentified but most from the Ramayana or the life of Krishna. Angkor Wat is decorated with depictions of apsaras and devata; there are more than 1,796 depictions of devata in the present research inventory. Angkor Wat architects employed small apsara images (30–40 cm) as decorative motifs on pillars and walls. They incorporated larger devata images (all full-body portraits measuring approximately 95–110 cm) more prominently at every level of the temple from the entry pavilion to the tops of the high towers. In 1927, Sappho Marchal published a study cataloging the remarkable diversity of their hair, headdresses, garments, stance, jewelry and decorative flowers, which Marchal concluded were based on actual practices of the Angkor period.
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES
The stones, as smooth as polished marble, were laid without mortar with very tight joints that are sometimes hard to find. The blocks were held together by mortise and tenon joints in some cases, while in others they used dovetails and gravity. The blocks were presumably put in place by a combination of elephants, coir ropes, pulleys and bamboo scaffolding. Henri Mouhot noted that most of the blocks had holes 2.5 cm in diameter and 3 cm deep, with more holes on the larger blocks. Some scholars have suggested that these were used to join them together with iron rods, but others claim they were used to hold temporary pegs to help manoeuvre them into place. The monument was made out of millions of tonnes of sandstone and it has a greater volume as well as mass than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. The Angkor Wat Temple consumes about 6 million to 10 million blocks of sandstone with an average weight of 1.5 tons each. In fact, the entire city of Angkor used up far greater amounts of stone than all the Egyptian pyramids combined, and occupied an area significantly greater than modern-day Paris. Moreover, unlike the Egyptian pyramids which use limestone quarried barely half a km away all the time, the entire city of Angkor was built with sandstone quarried 40 km (or more) away. This sandstone had to be transported from Mount Kulen, a quarry approximately 40 km to the northeast. The route has been suggested to span 35 kilometres along a canal towards Tonlé Sap lake, another 35 kilometres crossing the lake, and finally 15 kilometres upstream and against the current along Siem Reap River, making a total journey of 90 kilometres. However, Etsuo Uchida and Ichita Shimoda of Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan have discovered in 2012 a shorter 35-kilometre canal connecting Mount Kulen and Angkor Wat using satellite imagery. The two believe that the Khmer used this route instead.
Virtually all of its surfaces, columns, lintels even roofs are carved. There are miles of reliefs illustrating scenes from Indian literature including unicorns, griffins, winged dragons pulling chariots as well as warriors following an elephant-mounted leader and celestial dancing girls with elaborate hair styles. The gallery wall alone is decorated with almost 1000 square metres of bas reliefs. Holes on some of the Angkor walls indicate that they may have been decorated with bronze sheets. These were highly prized in ancient times and were a prime target for robbers. While excavating Khajuraho, Alex Evans, a stonemason and sculptor, recreated a stone sculpture under 1.2 m, this took about 60 days to carve. Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehner also conducted experiments to quarry limestone which took 12 quarrymen 22 days to quarry about 400 tons of stone. The labor force to quarry, transport, carve and install so much sandstone must have run into the thousands including many highly skilled artisans. The skills required to carve these sculptures were developed hundreds of years earlier, as demonstrated by some artifacts that have been dated to the seventh century, before the Khmer came to power.
ANGKOR WAT TODAY
The Archaeological Survey of India carried out restoration work on the temple between 1986 and 1992. Since the 1990s, Angkor Wat has seen continued conservation efforts and a massive increase in tourism. The temple is part of the Angkor World Heritage Site, established in 1992, which has provided some funding and has encouraged the Cambodian government to protect the site. The German Apsara Conservation Project (GACP) is working to protect the devatas and other bas-reliefs which decorate the temple from damage. The organisation's survey found that around 20% of the devatas were in very poor condition, mainly because of natural erosion and deterioration of the stone but in part also due to earlier restoration efforts. Other work involves the repair of collapsed sections of the structure, and prevention of further collapse: the west facade of the upper level, for example, has been buttressed by scaffolding since 2002, while a Japanese team completed restoration of the north library of the outer enclosure in 2005. World Monuments Fund began conservation work on the Churning of the Sea of Milk Gallery in 2008 after several years of conditions studies. The project restored the traditional Khmer roofing system and removed cement used in earlier restoration attempts that had resulted in salts entering the structure behind the bas-relief, discoloring and damaging the sculpted surfaces. The main phase of work ended in 2012, and the final component will be the installation of finials on the roof of the gallery in 2013. Microbial biofilms have been found degrading sandstone at Angkor Wat, Preah Khan, and the Bayon and West Prasat in Angkor. The dehydration and radiation resistant filamentous cyanobacteria can produce organic acids that degrade the stone. A dark filamentous fungus was found in internal and external Preah Khan samples, while the alga Trentepohlia was found only in samples taken from external, pink-stained stone at Preah Khan. Angkor Wat has become a major tourist destination. In 2004 and 2005, government figures suggest that, respectively, 561.000 and 677.000 foreign visitors arrived in Siem Reap province, approximately 50% of all foreign tourists in Cambodia for both years. The site has been managed by the private SOKIMEX group since 1990, which rented it from the Cambodian government. The influx of tourists has so far caused relatively little damage, other than some graffiti; ropes and wooden steps have been introduced to protect the bas-reliefs and floors, respectively. Tourism has also provided some additional funds for maintenance - as of 2000 approximately 28% of ticket revenues across the whole Angkor site was spent on the temples - although most work is carried out by foreign government-sponsored teams rather than by the Cambodian authorities. Since Angkor Wat has seen significant growth in tourism throughout the years UNESCO and its International Co-ordinating Committee for the Safeguarding and Development of the Historic Site of Angkor (ICC), in association with representatives from the Royal Government and APSARA, organized seminars to discuss the concept of "cultural tourism". Wanting to avoid commercial and mass tourism, the seminars emphasized the importance of providing high quality accommodation and services in order for the Cambodian government to benefit economically, while also incorporating the richness of Cambodian culture. In 2001, this incentive resulted in the concept of the "Angkor Tourist City" which would be developed with regard to traditional Khmer architecture, contain leisure and tourist facilities, and provide luxurious hotels capable of accommodating large amounts of tourists. The prospect of developing such large tourist accommodations has encountered concerns from both APSARA and the ICC, claiming that previous tourism developments in the area have neglected construction regulations and more of these projects have the potential to damage landscape features. Also, the large scale of these projects have begun to threaten the quality of the nearby town's water, sewage, and electricity systems. It has been noted that such high frequency of tourism and growing demand for quality accommodations in the area, such as the development of a large highway, has had a direct effect on the underground water table, subsequently straining the structural stability of the temples at Angkor Wat. Locals of Siem Reap have also voiced concern over the charming nature and atmosphere of their town being compromised in order to entertain tourism. Since this charming local atmosphere is the key component to projects like Angkor Tourist City, local officials continue to discuss how to successfully incorporate future tourism without sacrificing local values and culture. At the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2012, both parties have agreed Borobudur and Angkor Wat to become sister sites and the provinces will become sister provinces. Two Indonesian airlines are considering the opportunity to open a direct flight from Yogyakarta, Indonesia to Siem Reap.
WIKIPEDIA
Singapore (Listeni/ˈsɪŋɡəpɔːr/), officially the Republic of Singapore, and often referred to as the Lion City, the Garden City, and the Red Dot, is a global city and sovereign state in Southeast Asia and the world's only island city-state. It lies one degree (137 km) north of the equator, at the southernmost tip of continental Asia and peninsular Malaysia, with Indonesia's Riau Islands to the south. Singapore's territory consists of the diamond-shaped main island and 62 islets. Since independence, extensive land reclamation has increased its total size by 23% (130 km2), and its greening policy has covered the densely populated island with tropical flora, parks and gardens.
The islands were settled from the second century AD by a series of local empires. In 1819, Sir Stamford Raffles founded modern Singapore as a trading post of the East India Company; after the company collapsed, the islands were ceded to Britain and became part of its Straits Settlements in 1826. During World War II, Singapore was occupied by Japan. It gained independence from Britain in 1963, by uniting with other former British territories to form Malaysia, but was expelled two years later over ideological differences. After early years of turbulence, and despite lacking natural resources and a hinterland, the nation developed rapidly as an Asian Tiger economy, based on external trade and its human capital.
Singapore is a global commerce, finance and transport hub. Its standings include: "easiest place to do business" (World Bank) for ten consecutive years, most "technology-ready" nation (WEF), top International-meetings city (UIA), city with "best investment potential" (BERI), 2nd-most competitive country (WEF), 3rd-largest foreign exchange centre, 3rd-largest financial centre, 3rd-largest oil refining and trading centre and one of the top two busiest container ports since the 1990s. Singapore's best known global brands include Singapore Airlines and Changi Airport, both amongst the most-awarded in their industry; SIA is also rated by Fortune surveys as Asia's "most admired company". For the past decade, it has been the only Asian country with the top AAA sovereign rating from all major credit rating agencies, including S&P, Moody's and Fitch.
Singapore ranks high on its national social policies, leading Asia and 11th globally, on the Human Development Index (UN), notably on key measures of education, healthcare, life expectancy, quality of life, personal safety, housing. Although income inequality is high, 90% of citizens own their homes, and the country has one of the highest per capita incomes, with low taxes. The cosmopolitan nation is home to 5.5 million residents, 38% of whom are permanent residents and other foreign nationals. Singaporeans are mostly bilingual in a mother-tongue language and English as their common language. Its cultural diversity is reflected in its extensive ethnic "hawker" cuisine and major festivals - Chinese, Malay, Indian, Western - which are all national holidays. In 2015, Lonely Planet and The New York Times listed Singapore as their top and 6th best world destination to visit respectively.
The nation's core principles are meritocracy, multiculturalism and secularism. It is noted for its effective, pragmatic and incorrupt governance and civil service, which together with its rapid development policies, is widely cited as the "Singapore model". Gallup polls shows 84% of its residents expressed confidence in the national government, and 85% in its judicial systems - one of the highest ratings recorded. Singapore has significant influence on global affairs relative to its size, leading some analysts to classify it as a middle power. It is ranked as Asia's most influential city and 4th in the world by Forbes.
Singapore is a unitary, multiparty, parliamentary republic, with a Westminster system of unicameral parliamentary government. The People's Action Party has won every election since self-government in 1959. One of the five founding members of the ASEAN, Singapore is also the host of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Secretariat, and a member of the East Asia Summit, Non-Aligned Movement, and the Commonwealth of Nations.
ETYMOLOGY
The English name of Singapore is derived from the Malay word, Singapura, which was in turn derived from Sanskrit (Singa is "lion", Pura "city"; Sanskrit: सिंहपुर, IAST: Siṃhápura), hence the customary reference to the nation as the Lion City, and its inclusion in many of the nation's symbols (e.g., its coat of arms, Merlion emblem). However, it is unlikely that lions ever lived on the island; Sang Nila Utama, who founded and named the island Singapura, most likely saw a Malayan tiger. It is also known as Pulau Ujong, as far back as the 3rd century, literally 'island at the end' (of the Malay Peninsula) in Malay.
Since the 1970s, Singapore has also been widely known as the Garden City, owing to its extensive greening policy covering the whole island, a priority of its first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, dubbed the nation's "Chief Gardener". The nation's conservation and greening efforts contributed to Singapore Botanic Gardens being the only tropical garden to be inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The nickname, Red Dot, is a reference to its size on the map, contrasting with its achievements. In 2015, Singapore's Golden Jubilee year, the celebratory "SG50" branding is depicted inside a red dot.
HISTORY
Temasek ('Sea Town' in the Malay language), an outpost of the Sumatran Srivijaya empire, is the earliest written record relating to the area now called Singapore. In the 13th century, the Kingdom of Singapura was established on the island and it became a trading port city. However, there were two major foreign invasions before it was destroyed by the Majapahit in 1398. In 1613, Portuguese raiders burned down the settlement, which by then was nominally part of the Johor Sultanate and the island sank into obscurity for the next two centuries, while the wider maritime region and much trade was under Dutch control.
BRITISH COLONISATION 1819-1942
In 1819, Thomas Stamford Raffles arrived and signed a treaty with Sultan Hussein Shah of Johor, on behalf of the British East India Company, to develop the southern part of Singapore as a British trading post. In 1824, the entire island, as well as the Temenggong, became a British possession after a further treaty with the Sultan. In 1826, Singapore became part of the Straits Settlements, under the jurisdiction of British India, becoming the regional capital in 1836.
Prior to Raffles' arrival, there were only about a thousand people living on the island, mostly indigenous Malays along with a handful of Chinese. By 1860, the population had swelled to more than 80,000 and more than half were Chinese. Many immigrants came to work at rubber plantations and, after the 1870s, the island became a global centre for rubber exports.
After the First World War, the British built the large Singapore Naval Base. Lieutenant General Sir William George Shedden Dobbie was appointed General Officer Commanding of the Malaya Command on 8 November 1935, holding the post until 1939;
WORLD WAR II AND JAPANESE OCCUPATION 1942-45
in May 1938, the General Officer Commanding of the Malaya Command warned how Singapore could be conquered by the Japanese via an attack from northern Malaya, but his warnings went unheeded. The Imperial Japanese Army invaded British Malaya, culminating in the Battle of Singapore. When the British surrendered on 15 February 1942, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called the defeat "the worst disaster and largest capitulation in British history". Between 5,000 and 25,000 ethnic Chinese people were killed in the subsequent Sook Ching massacre.
From November 1944 to May 1945, the Allies conducted an intensive bombing of Singapore.
RETURN OF BRITISH 1945-59
After the surrender of Japan was announced in the Jewel Voice Broadcast by the Japanese Emperor on 15 August 1945 there was a breakdown of order and looting and revenge-killing were widespread. The formal Japanese Occupation of Singapore was only ended by Operation Tiderace and the formal surrender on 12 September 1945 at Singapore City Hall when Lord Louis Mountbatten, Supreme Allied Commander of Southeast Asia Command, accepted the capitulation of Japanese forces in Southeast Asia from General Itagaki Seishiro.
A British Military Administration was then formed to govern the island. On 1 April 1946, the Straits Settlements were dissolved and Singapore became a separate Crown Colony with a civil administration headed by a Governor. Much of the infrastructure had been destroyed during the war, including the harbour, electricity, telephone and water supply systems. There was also a shortage of food leading to malnutrition, disease, and rampant crime and violence. High food prices, unemployment, and workers' discontent culminated into a series of strikes in 1947 causing massive stoppages in public transport and other services. In July 1947, separate Executive and Legislative Councils were established and the election of six members of the Legislative Council was scheduled for the following year. By late 1947, the economy began to recover, facilitated by a growing demand for tin and rubber around the world, but it would take several more years before the economy returned to pre-war levels.
The failure of Britain to defend Singapore had destroyed its credibility as an infallible ruler in the eyes of Singaporeans. The decades after the war saw a political awakening amongst the local populace and the rise of anti-colonial and nationalist sentiments, epitomized by the slogan Merdeka, or "independence" in the Malay language.
During the 1950s, Chinese Communists with strong ties to the trade unions and Chinese schools carried out armed uprising against the government, leading to the Malayan Emergency and later, the Communist Insurgency War. The 1954 National Service Riots, Chinese middle schools riots, and Hock Lee bus riots in Singapore were all linked to these events.
David Marshall, pro-independence leader of the Labour Front, won Singapore's first general election in 1955. He led a delegation to London, but Britain rejected his demand for complete self-rule. He resigned and was replaced by Lim Yew Hock, whose policies convinced Britain to grant Singapore full internal self-government for all matters except defence and foreign affairs.
SELF-GOVERNMENT 1959-1963
During the May 1959 elections, the People's Action Party won a landslide victory. Singapore became an internally self-governing state within the Commonwealth, with Lee Kuan Yew as its first Prime Minister. Governor Sir William Allmond Codrington Goode served as the first Yang di-Pertuan Negara (Head of State), and was succeeded by Yusof bin Ishak, who became the first President of Singapore in 1965.
MERGER WITH MALAYSIA 1963-65
As a result of the 1962 Merger Referendum, on 31 August 1963 Singapore joined with the Federation of Malaya, the Crown Colony of Sarawak and the Crown Colony of North Borneo to form the new federation of Malaysia under the terms of the Malaysia Agreement. Singaporean leaders chose to join Malaysia primarily due to concerns over its limited land size, scarcity of water, markets and natural resources. Some Singaporean and Malaysian politicians were also concerned that the communists might form the government on the island, a possibility perceived as an external threat to the Federation of Malaya.However, shortly after the merger, the Singapore state government and the Malaysian central government disagreed on many political and economic issues, and communal strife culminated in the 1964 race riots in Singapore. After many heated ideological conflicts between the two governments, on 9 August 1965, the Malaysian Parliament voted 126 to 0 to expel Singapore from Malaysia with Singaporean delegates not present.
INDEPENDENCE 1965 TO PRESENT
Singapore gained independence as the Republic of Singapore (remaining within the Commonwealth of Nations) on 9 August 1965. Race riots broke out once more in 1969. In 1967, the country co-founded ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and in 1970 it joined the Non-Aligned Movement. Lee Kuan Yew became Prime Minister, leading its Third World economy to First World affluence in a single generation. His emphasis on rapid economic growth, support for business entrepreneurship, limitations on internal democracy, and close relationships with China set the new nation's policies for the next half-century.
In 1990, Goh Chok Tong succeeded Lee as Prime Minister, while the latter continued serving in the Cabinet as Senior Minister until 2004, and then Minister Mentor until May 2011. During Goh's tenure, the country faced the 1997 Asian financial crisis, the 2003 SARS outbreak and terrorist threats posed by Jemaah Islamiyah.
In 2004, Lee Hsien Loong, the eldest son of Lee Kuan Yew, became the country's third Prime Minister. Goh Chok Tong remained in Cabinet as the Senior Minister until May 2011, when he was named Emeritus Senior Minister despite his retirement. He steered the nation through the 2008 global financial crisis, resolved the disputed 79-year old Malayan railways land, and introduced integrated resorts. Despite the economy's exceptional growth, PAP suffered its worst election results in 2011, winning 60% of votes, amidst hot-button issues of high influx of foreign workers and cost of living. Lee initiated a major re-structuring of the economy to raise productivity, improved universal healthcare and grants, especially for the pioneer generation of citizens, amongst many new inclusive measures.
On 23 March 2015, its founding prime minister, Lee Kuan Yew, who had 'personified Singapore to the world' for nearly half a century died. In a week of national mourning, 1.7 million residents and guests paid tribute to him at his lying-in-state at Parliament House and at community sites around the island.
Singapore celebrated its Golden jubilee in 2015 – its 50th year of independence, with a year-long series of events branded SG50. The PAP maintained its dominance in Parliament at the September general elections, receiving 69.9% of the popular vote, its second-highest polling result behind the 2001 tally of 75.3%.
GEOGRAPHY
Singapore consists of 63 islands, including the main island, Pulau Ujong. There are two man-made connections to Johor, Malaysia: the Johor–Singapore Causeway in the north and the Tuas Second Link in the west. Jurong Island, Pulau Tekong, Pulau Ubin and Sentosa are the largest of Singapore's smaller islands. The highest natural point is Bukit Timah Hill at 163.63 m. April and May are the hottest months, with the wetter monsoon season from November to January.
From July to October, there is often haze caused by bush fires in neighbouring Indonesia, usually from the island of Sumatra. Although Singapore does not observe daylight saving time (DST), it follows the GMT+8 time zone, one hour ahead of the typical zone for its geographical location.
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
Singapore is a parliamentary republic with a Westminster system of unicameral parliamentary government representing constituencies. The country's constitution establishes a representative democracy as the political system. Executive power rests with the Cabinet of Singapore, led by the Prime Minister and, to a much lesser extent, the President. The President is elected through a popular vote, and has veto powers over a specific set of executive decisions, such as the use of the national reserves and the appointment of judges, but otherwise occupies a largely ceremonial post.
The Parliament serves as the legislative branch of the government. Members of Parliament (MPs) consist of elected, non-constituency and nominated members. Elected MPs are voted into the Parliament on a "first-past-the-post" (plurality) basis and represent either single-member or group representation constituencies. The People's Action Party has won control of Parliament with large majorities in every election since self-governance was secured in 1959.
Although the elections are clean, there is no independent electoral authority and the government has strong influence on the media. Freedom House ranks Singapore as "partly free" in its Freedom in the World report, and The Economist ranks Singapore as a "flawed democracy", the second best rank of four, in its "Democracy Index". Despite this, in the 2011 Parliamentary elections, the opposition, led by the Workers' Party, increased its representation to seven elected MPs. In the 2015 elections, PAP scored a landslide victory, winning 83 of 89 seats contested, with 70% of popular votes. Gallup polls reported 84% of residents in Singapore expressed confidence in the government, and 85% in its judicial systems and courts – one of the highest ratings in the world.
Singapore's governance model eschews populist politics, focusing on the nation's long-term interest, and is known to be clean, effective and pragmatic. As a small nation highly dependent on external trade, it is vulnerable to geo-politics and global economics. It places great emphasis on security and stability of the region in its foreign policies, and applies global best practices to ensure the nation's attractiveness as an investment destination and business hub.
The legal system of Singapore is based on English common law, but with substantial local differences. Trial by jury was abolished in 1970 so that judicial decisions would rest entirely in the hands of appointed judges. Singapore has penalties that include judicial corporal punishment in the form of caning, which may be imposed for such offences as rape, rioting, vandalism, and certain immigration offences.There is a mandatory death penalty for murder, as well as for certain aggravated drug-trafficking and firearms offences.
Amnesty International has said that some legal provisions of the Singapore system conflict with the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty, and that Singapore has "... possibly the highest execution rate in the world relative to its population". The government has disputed Amnesty's claims. In a 2008 survey of international business executives, Singapore received the top ranking with regard to judicial system quality in Asia. Singapore has been consistently rated among the least corrupt countries in the world by Transparency International.
In 2011, the World Justice Project's Rule of Law Index ranked Singapore among the top countries surveyed with regard to "order and security", "absence of corruption", and "effective criminal justice". However, the country received a much lower ranking for "freedom of speech" and "freedom of assembly". All public gatherings of five or more people require police permits, and protests may legally be held only at the Speakers' Corner.
EDUCATION
Education for primary, secondary, and tertiary levels is mostly supported by the state. All institutions, private and public, must be registered with the Ministry of Education. English is the language of instruction in all public schools, and all subjects are taught and examined in English except for the "mother tongue" language paper. While the term "mother tongue" in general refers to the first language internationally, in Singapore's education system, it is used to refer to the second language, as English is the first language. Students who have been abroad for a while, or who struggle with their "Mother Tongue" language, are allowed to take a simpler syllabus or drop the subject.
Education takes place in three stages: primary, secondary, and pre-university education. Only the primary level is compulsory. Students begin with six years of primary school, which is made up of a four-year foundation course and a two-year orientation stage. The curriculum is focused on the development of English, the mother tongue, mathematics, and science. Secondary school lasts from four to five years, and is divided between Special, Express, Normal (Academic), and Normal (Technical) streams in each school, depending on a student's ability level. The basic coursework breakdown is the same as in the primary level, although classes are much more specialised. Pre-university education takes place over two to three years at senior schools, mostly called Junior Colleges.
Some schools have a degree of freedom in their curriculum and are known as autonomous schools. These exist from the secondary education level and up.
National examinations are standardised across all schools, with a test taken after each stage. After the first six years of education, students take the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), which determines their placement at secondary school. At the end of the secondary stage, GCE "O"-Level exams are taken; at the end of the following pre-university stage, the GCE "A"-Level exams are taken. Of all non-student Singaporeans aged 15 and above, 18% have no education qualifications at all while 45% have the PSLE as their highest qualification; 15% have the GCE 'O' Level as their highest qualification and 14% have a degree.
Singaporean students consistently rank at or near the top of international education assessments:
- In 2015, Singapore topped the OECD's global school performance rankings, based on 15-year-old students' average scores in mathematics and science across 76 countries.
- Singaporean students were ranked first in the 2011 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study conducted by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, and have been ranked in the top three every year since 1995.
- Singapore fared best in the 2015 International Baccalaureate exams, taken in 107 countries, with more than half of the world's 81 perfect scorers and 98% passing rate.
The country's two main public universities - the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University - are ranked among the top 13 in the world.
HEALTH
Singapore has a generally efficient healthcare system, even though their health expenditures are relatively low for developed countries. The World Health Organisation ranks Singapore's healthcare system as 6th overall in the world in its World Health Report. In general, Singapore has had the lowest infant mortality rate in the world for the past two decades.
Life expectancy in Singapore is 80 for males and 85 for females, placing the country 4th in the world for life expectancy. Almost the whole population has access to improved water and sanitation facilities. There are fewer than 10 annual deaths from HIV per 100,000 people. There is a high level of immunisation. Adult obesity is below 10%
The government's healthcare system is based upon the "3M" framework. This has three components: Medifund, which provides a safety net for those not able to otherwise afford healthcare, Medisave, a compulsory health savings scheme covering about 85% of the population, and Medishield, a government-funded health insurance program. Public hospitals in Singapore have autonomy in their management decisions, and compete for patients. A subsidy scheme exists for those on low income. In 2008, 32% of healthcare was funded by the government. It accounts for approximately 3.5% of Singapore's GDP.
RELIGION
Buddhism is the most widely practised religion in Singapore, with 33% of the resident population declaring themselves adherents at the most recent census. The next-most practised religion is Christianity, followed by Islam, Taoism, and Hinduism. 17% of the population did not have a religious affiliation. The proportion of Christians, Taoists, and non-religious people increased between 2000 and 2010 by about 3% each, whilst the proportion of Buddhists decreased. Other faiths remained largely stable in their share of the population. An analysis by the Pew Research Center found Singapore to be the world's most religiously diverse nation.
There are monasteries and Dharma centres from all three major traditions of Buddhism in Singapore: Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana. Most Buddhists in Singapore are Chinese and are of the Mahayana tradition, with missionaries having come into the country from Taiwan and China for several decades. However, Thailand's Theravada Buddhism has seen growing popularity among the populace (not only the Chinese) during the past decade. Soka Gakkai International, a Japanese Buddhist organisation, is practised by many people in Singapore, but mostly by those of Chinese descent. Tibetan Buddhism has also made slow inroads into the country in recent years.
CULTURE
Singapore has one of the lowest rates of drug use in the world. Culturally, the use of illicit drugs is viewed as highly undesirable by Singaporeans, unlike many European societies. Singaporeans' disapproval towards drug use has resulted in laws that impose the mandatory death sentence for certain serious drug trafficking offences. Singapore also has a low rate of alcohol consumption per capita and low levels of violent crime, and one of the lowest intentional homicide rate globally. The average alcohol consumption rate is only 2 litres annually per adult, one of the lowest in the world.
Foreigners make up 42% of the population, and have a strong influence on Singaporean culture. The Economist Intelligence Unit, in its 2013 "Where-to-be-born Index", ranks Singapore as having the best quality of life in Asia and sixth overall in the world.
LANGUAGES; RELIGIONS AND CULTURES
Singapore is a very diverse and young country. It has many languages, religions, and cultures for a country its size.
When Singapore became independent from the United Kingdom in 1963, most of the newly minted Singaporean citizens were uneducated labourers from Malaysia, China and India. Many of them were transient labourers who were seeking to make some money in Singapore and they had no intention of staying permanently. A sizeable minority of middle-class, local-born people, known as the Peranakans, also existed. With the exception of the Peranakans (descendants of late 15th and 16th-century Chinese immigrants) who pledged their loyalties to Singapore, most of the labourers' loyalties lay with their respective homelands of Malaysia, China and India. After independence, the process of crafting a Singaporean identity and culture began.
Former Prime Ministers of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong, have stated that Singapore does not fit the traditional description of a nation, calling it a society-in-transition, pointing out the fact that Singaporeans do not all speak the same language, share the same religion, or have the same customs. Even though English is the first language of the nation, according to the government's 2010 census 20% of Singaporeans, or one in five, are illiterate in English. This is a marked improvement from 1990 where 40% of Singaporeans were illiterate in English.
Languages, religions and cultures among Singaporeans are not delineated according to skin colour or ancestry, unlike many other countries. Among Chinese Singaporeans, one in five is Christian, another one in five is atheist, and the rest are mostly Buddhists or Taoists. One-third speak English as their home language, while half speak Mandarin Chinese. The rest speak other Chinese varieties at home. Most Malays in Singapore speak Malay as their home language with some speaking English. Singaporean Indians are much more religious. Only 1% of them are atheists. Six in ten are Hindu, two in ten Muslim, and the rest mostly Christian. Four in ten speak English as their home language, three in ten Tamil, one in ten Malay, and the rest other Indian languages as their home language.
Each Singaporean's behaviours and attitudes would therefore be influenced by, among many other things, his or her home language and his religion. Singaporeans who speak English as their native language tend to lean toward Western culture, while those who speak Chinese as their native language tend to lean toward Chinese culture and Confucianism. Malay speaking Singaporeans tend to lean toward the Malay culture, which itself is closely linked to the Islamic culture.
ATTITUDES AND BELIEFS
At the national level in Singapore, meritocracy, where one is judged based on one's ability, is heavily emphasised.
Racial and religious harmony is regarded by Singaporeans as a crucial part of Singapore's success, and played a part in building a Singaporean identity. Singapore has a reputation as a nanny state. The national flower of Singapore is the hybrid orchid, Vanda 'Miss Joaquim', named in memory of a Singapore-born Armenian woman, who crossbred the flower in her garden at Tanjong Pagar in 1893. Many national symbols such as the Coat of arms of Singapore and the Lion head symbol of Singapore make use of the lion, as Singapore is known as the Lion City. Other monikers by which Singapore is widely known is the Garden City and the Red Dot. Public holidays in Singapore cover major Chinese, Western, Malay and Indian festivals.
Singaporean employees work an average of around 45 hours weekly, relatively long compared to many other nations. Three in four Singaporean employees surveyed stated that they take pride in doing their work well, and that doing so helps their self-confidence.
CUISINE
Dining, along with shopping, is said to be the country's national pastime. The focus on food has led countries like Australia to attract Singaporean tourists with food-based itineraries. The diversity of food is touted as a reason to visit the country, and the variety of food representing different ethnicities is seen by the government as a symbol of its multiculturalism. The "national fruit" of Singapore is the durian.
In popular culture, food items belong to a particular ethnicity, with Chinese, Malay, and Indian food clearly defined. However, the diversity of cuisine has been increased further by the "hybridisation" of different styles (e.g., the Peranakan cuisine, a mix of Chinese and Malay cuisine).
WIKIPEDIA
The mallard (/ˈmælɑrd/ or /ˈmælərd/) or wild duck (Anas platyrhynchos) is a dabbling duck which breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, the Falkland Islands and South Africa.[2] This duck belongs to the subfamily Anatinae of the waterfowl family Anatidae.
The male birds (drakes) have a glossy green head and are grey on wings and belly, while the females have mainly brown-speckled plumage. Both genders have an area of white-bordered black speculum feathers which commonly also include irridescent blue feathers especially among males. Mallards live in wetlands, eat water plants and small animals, and are social animals preferring to congregate in groups or flocks of varying sizes. This species is the ancestor of most breeds of domestic ducks.[3]
Taxonomy and evolution
The mallard was one of the many bird species originally described by Carl Linnaeus in his 18th-century work, Systema Naturae, and still bears its original binomial name.[4]
The name mallard is derived from the Old French malart or mallart "wild drake", although its ultimate derivation is unclear. It may be related to (or at least influenced by) an Old High German masculine proper name Madelhart, clues lying in the alternate English forms "maudelard" or "mawdelard".[5] Masle (male) has also been proposed as an influence.[6] Mallards frequently interbreed with their closest relatives in the genus Anas, such as the American black duck, and also with species more distantly related, such as the northern pintail, leading to various hybrids that may be fully fertile.[7] This is quite unusual among such different species, and apparently is because the mallard evolved very rapidly and recently, during the Late Pleistocene. The distinct lineages of this radiation are usually kept separate due to non-overlapping ranges and behavioural cues, but are still not fully genetically incompatible.[8] Mallards and their domesticated conspecifics are also fully interfertile.
The genome of Anas platyrhynchos was sequenced in 2013.[9]
Mallards appear to be closer to their Indo-Pacific relatives than to their American ones judging from biogeography. Considering mitochondrial DNA D-loop sequence data, they may have evolved in the general area of Siberia; mallard bones rather abruptly appear in food remains of ancient humans and other deposits of fossil bones in Europe, without a good candidate for a local predecessor species.[10] The large ice age palaeosubspecies which made up at least the European and west Asian populations during the Pleistocene has been named Anas platyrhynchos palaeoboschas.[citation needed]
In their mitochondrial DNA, mallards are differentiated between North America and Eurasia,[11] however, in the nuclear genome there is a particular lack of genetic structure.[12] Haplotypes typical of American mallard relatives and spotbills can be found in mallards around the Bering Sea.[13] The Aleutian Islands hold a population of mallards that appear to be evolving towards a subspecies, as gene flow with other populations is very limited.[10]
The size of the mallard varies clinally, and birds from Greenland, although larger than birds further south, have smaller bills and are stockier. They are sometimes separated as subspecies, the Greenland mallard (A. p. conboschas).[citation needed]
Description
The mallard is a medium-sized waterfowl species although is often slightly heavier than most other dabbling ducks. It is 50–65 cm (20–26 in) long (of which the body makes up around two-thirds), has a wingspan of 81–98 cm (32–39 in),[14] and weighs 0.72–1.58 kg (1.6–3.5 lb).[15][16] Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 25.7 to 30.6 cm (10.1 to 12.0 in), the bill is 4.4 to 6.1 cm (1.7 to 2.4 in) and the tarsus is 4.1 to 4.8 cm (1.6 to 1.9 in).[17]
The breeding male mallard is unmistakable, with a glossy bottle-green head and white collar which demarcates the head from the purple-tinged brown breast, grey brown wings, and a pale grey belly. The rear of the male is black, with the dark tail having white borders.[18] The bill of the male is a yellowish orange tipped with black while that of the female is generally darker ranging from black to mottled orange. The female mallard is predominantly mottled with each individual feather showing sharp contrast from buff to very dark brown, a coloration shared by most female dabbling ducks, and has buff cheeks, eyebrow, throat and neck with a darker crown and eye-stripe.[18]
Owing to their highly 'malleable' genetic code, Mallards can display a large amount of variation, as seen here with this female, who displays faded or 'apricot' plumage.
Both male and female mallards have distinct iridescent purple blue speculum feathers edged with white, prominent in flight or at rest, though temporarily shed during the annual summer moult. Upon hatching, the plumage colouring of the duckling is yellow on the underside and face (with streaks by the eyes) and black on the backside (with some yellow spots) all the way to the top and back of the head. Its legs and bill are also black. As it nears a month in age, the duckling's plumage will start becoming drab, looking more like the female (though its plumage is more streaked) and its legs will lose their dark grey colouring.[18] Two months after hatching, the fledgling period has ended and the duckling is now a juvenile. Between three to four months of age, the juvenile can finally begin flying as its wings are fully developed for flight (which can be confirmed by the sight of purple speculum feathers). Its bill will soon lose its dark grey colouring and its sex can finally be distinguished visually by three factors. The bill colouring is yellow in males, black and orange for females. The breast feathers are reddish-brown for males, brown for females. The centre tail feather is curled for males (called a drake feather), straight for females.[citation needed]
During the final period of maturity leading up to adulthood (6–10 months of age), the plumage of female juveniles remains the same while the plumage of male juveniles slowly changes to its characteristic colours.[citation needed] This plumage change also applies to adult mallard males when they transition in and out of their non-breeding eclipse plumage at the beginning and the end of the summer moulting period. The adulthood age for mallards is 14 months and the average life expectancy is 3 years, but they can live to twenty.[19]
Several species of duck have brown-plumaged females which can be confused with the female mallard. The female gadwall (A. strepera) has an orange-lined bill, white belly, black and white speculum which is seen as a white square on the wings in flight, and is a smaller bird.[18] More similar to the female mallard in North America are the American black duck (A. rubripes), which is notably darker hued in both sexes than the mallard, and the mottled duck (A. fulvigula), which is somewhat darker than the female mallard, with no white edge on the speculum and slightly different bare-part colouration.
In captivity, domestic ducks come in wild-type plumages, white, and other colours. Most of these colour variants are also known in domestic mallards not bred as livestock, but kept as pets, aviary birds, etc., where they are rare but increasing in availability.
A noisy species, the male has a nasal call, and a high-pitched whistle, while the female has a deeper quack stereotypically associated with ducks.[20][21]
The mallard is a rare example of both Allen's Rule and Bergmann's Rule in birds. Bergmann's Rule, which states that polar forms tend to be larger than related ones from warmer climates, has numerous examples in birds. Allen's Rule says that appendages like ears tend to be smaller in polar forms to minimize heat loss, and larger in tropical and desert equivalents to facilitate heat diffusion, and that the polar taxa are stockier overall. Examples of this rule in birds are rare, as they lack external ears. However, the bill of ducks is very well supplied with blood vessels and is vulnerable to cold.[citation needed]
Due to the malleability of the mallard's genetic code, which gives it its vast interbreeding capability, mutations in the genes that decide plumage colour are very common and have resulted in a wide variety of hybrids such as Brewer's duck (mallard × gadwall, Anas strepera).[22]
Distribution and habitat
The mallard is widely distributed across the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, North America from southern and central Alaska to Mexico, the Hawaiian Islands, and across Eurasia, from Iceland and southern Greenland and parts of Morocco (North Africa) in the west, Scandinavia to the north, and to Siberia, Japan,and South Korea, in the east, Australia and New Zealand in the Southern hemisphere.[14] It is strongly migratory in the northern parts of its breeding range, and winters farther south. For example, in North America, it winters south to Mexico, but also regularly strays into Central America and the Caribbean between September and May.[23]
The mallard inhabits a wide range of habitat and climates, from Arctic tundra to subtropical regions. It is found in both fresh- and salt-water wetlands, including parks, small ponds, rivers, lakes and estuaries, as well as shallow inlets and open sea within sight of the coastline. Water depths of less than 1 metre (3.3 ft) are preferred, birds avoiding areas more than a few metres deep. They are attracted to bodies of water with aquatic vegetation
Behaviour
Feeding
The mallard is omnivorous and very flexible in its foods choice. Its diet may vary based on several factors, including the stage of the breeding cycle, short-term variations in available food, nutrient availability, and inter and intraspecific competition.[24] The majority of the mallard's diet seems to be made up of gastropods, invertebrates (including beetles, flies, lepidopterans, dragonflies, and caddisflies), crustaceans, worms, many varieties of seeds and plant matter, and roots and tubers. During the breeding season, male birds were recorded to have eaten 37.6% animal matter and 62.4% plant matter, most notably Echinochloa crus-galli, and nonlaying females ate 37.0% animal matter and 63.0% plant matter, while laying females ate 71.9% animal matter and only 28.1% plant matter.[25] Plants generally make up a larger part of the bird's diet, especially during autumn migration and in the winter.[26][27]
It usually feeds by dabbling for plant food or grazing; there are reports of it eating frogs. It usually nests on a river bank, but not always near water. It is highly gregarious outside of the breeding season and forms large flocks, which are known as sords.[28]
Breeding
Mallards usually form pairs (in October and November in the Northern hemisphere) only until the female lays eggs at the start of nesting season which is around the beginning of spring, at which time she is left by the male who joins up with other males to await the moulting period which begins in June (in the Northern hemisphere). During the brief time before this, however, the males are still sexually potent and some of them either remain on standby to sire replacement clutches (for female Mallards that have lost or abandoned their previous clutch) or forcibly mate with females that appear to be isolated or unattached regardless of their species and whether or not they have a brood of ducklings.
The nesting period can be very stressful for the female since she lays more than half her body weight in eggs. She requires a lot of rest and a feeding/loafing area that is safe from predators. When seeking out a suitable nesting site, the female's preferences are areas that are well concealed, inaccessible to ground predators, or have few predators nearby. This can include nesting sites in urban areas such as roof gardens, enclosed courtyards, and flower boxes on window ledges and balconies more than one story up, which the ducklings cannot leave safely without human intervention. The clutch is 8–13 eggs, which are incubated for 27–28 days to hatching with 50–60 days to fledgling. The ducklings are precocial and fully capable of swimming as soon as they hatch. However, filial imprinting compels them to instinctively stay near the mother not only for warmth and protection but also to learn about and remember their habitat as well as how and where to forage for food. When ducklings mature into flight-capable juveniles, they learn about and remember their traditional migratory routes (unless they are born and raised in captivity). After this, the juveniles and the mother may either part or remain together until the breeding season arrives.[citation needed]
When they pair off with mating partners, often one or several drakes end up left out. This group sometimes targets an isolated female duck, even one of a different species, and proceeds to chase and peck at her until she weakens, at which point the males take turns copulating with the female. Lebret (1961) calls this behaviour "Attempted Rape Flight" and Cramp & Simmons (1977) speak of "rape-intent flights". Male mallards also occasionally chase other male ducks of a different species, and even each other, in the same way. In one documented case of "homosexual necrophilia", a male mallard copulated with another male he was chasing after the chased male died upon flying into a glass window.[29] This paper was awarded with an Ig Nobel Prize in 2003.[30]
Mallards are opportunistically targeted by brood parasites, occasionally having eggs laid in their nests by Redheads, ruddy ducks, lesser scaup, gadwalls, northern shovelers, northern pintails, cinnamon teal, common goldeneyes, and other mallards. These eggs are generally accepted when they resemble the eggs of the host mallard, although the hen may attempt to eject them or even abandon the nest if parasitism occurs during egg laying.[31] Mallards of all ages (but especially young ones) and in all locations must contend with a wide diversity of predators including raptors, mustelids, corvids, snakes, raccoons, opossums, skunks, turtles, large fish and felids and canids, including domesticated ones.[32] The most prolific natural predators of adult mallards are red foxes (which most often pick off brooding females) and the faster or larger birds of prey, i.e. peregrine falcons or Haliaeetus eagles.[33][34] In North America, adult mallards face no fewer than 15 species of birds of prey, from hen harriers and short-eared owls (both smaller than a mallard) to huge bald and golden eagles, and about a dozen species of mammalian predator, not counting several more avian and mammalian predators who threaten eggs and nestlings.[31]
Mallards are also preyed upon occasionally by 'unorthodox' species, such as the Grey heron (Ardea cinerea), European herring gull (Larus argentatus) and the Northern pike (Esox lucius).
Conservation
Unlike many waterfowl, mallards have benefited from human alterations to the world. They are very adaptable, being able to live and even thrive in urban areas which may have supported more localized, sensitive species of waterfowl before development. The release of feral mallards in areas where they are not native sometimes creates problems through interbreeding with indigenous waterfowl. These non-migratory mallards interbreed with indigenous wild ducks from local populations of closely related species through genetic pollution by producing fertile offspring. Complete hybridization of various species of wild ducks gene pools could result in the extinction of many indigenous waterfowl. The wild mallard itself is the ancestor of most domestic ducks and its naturally evolved wild gene pool gets genetically polluted in turn by the domesticated and feral populations.[35][36][37]
The mallard is considered an invasive species in New Zealand.[14] There, and elsewhere, mallards are spreading with increasing urbanization and hybridizing with local relatives.[38] Over time, a continuum of hybrids ranging between almost typical examples of either species will develop; the speciation process beginning to reverse itself.[39] This has created conservation concerns for relatives of the mallard, such as the Hawaiian duck,[38][40] the A. s. superciliosa subspecies of the Pacific black duck,[38][41][42][43] the American black duck,[38][44][45][46] the mottled duck,[38][47][48] Meller's duck,[49] the yellow-billed duck,[39] and the Mexican duck,[38][48] in the latter case even leading to a dispute whether these birds should be considered a species[50] (and thus entitled to more conservation research and funding) or included in the mallard.
The availability of mallards, mallard ducklings, and fertilized mallard eggs for public sale and private ownership, either as livestock or as pets, is currently legal in the United States except for the state of Florida which has currently banned domestic ownership of mallards. This is to prevent hybridisation with the native mottled duck.[51]
Mallards are also causing severe "genetic pollution" of South Africa's biodiversity by breeding with endemic ducks, although the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds applies to the mallard. The hybrids of mallards and the yellow-billed duck are fertile and can produce more hybrid offspring. If this continues, only hybrids will occur and in the long term this will result in the extinction of various indigenous waterfowl. The mallard duck can cross breed with 63 other species and is posing a severe threat to the genetic integrity of indigenous waterfowl. Mallards and their hybrids compete with indigenous birds for resources such as food, nest sites and roosting sites.[37]
The Eastern or Chinese spot-billed duck is currently introgressing into the mallard populations of the Primorsky Krai, possibly due to habitat changes from global warming.[13] The Mariana mallard was a resident allopatric population—in most respects a good species—apparently initially derived from mallard-Pacific black duck hybrids;[52] unfortunately, it became extinct in the late twentieth century.[53]
The Laysan duck is an insular relative of the mallard with a very small and fluctuating population. Mallards sometimes arrive on its island home during migration, and can be expected to occasionally have remained and hybridized with Laysan ducks as long as these species have existed. But these hybrids are less well adapted to the peculiar ecological conditions of Laysan Island than the local ducks, and thus have lower fitness, and furthermore, there were—apart from a brief time in the early 20th century when the Laysan duck was almost extinct—always many more Laysan ducks than stray mallards. Thus, in this case, the hybrid lineages would rapidly fail.[citation needed]
In the cases mentioned above, however, ecological changes and hunting have led to a decline of local species; for example, the New Zealand grey duck population declined drastically due to overhunting in the mid-20th century.[43] Hybrid offspring of Hawaiian ducks seem to be less well-adapted to native habitat, and utilizing them in reintroduction projects apparently reduces success.[38][54] In summary, the problems of mallards "hybridizing away" relatives is more a consequence of local ducks declining than of mallards spreading; allopatric speciation and isolating behaviour have produced today's diversity of mallard-like ducks despite the fact that in most if not all of these populations, hybridization must have occurred to some extent.[citation needed]
Relationship with humans
The mallard is depicted in a marginal decoration of the 15th century English illuminated manuscript the Sherborne Missal.[55]
Since 1933, the Peabody Hotel in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee has maintained a long tradition of keeping one mallard drake and four mallard hens, called The Peabody Ducks, as a popular hotel attraction and as guests of honour. The mallards are provided by a local farmer and friend of the Peabody Hotel and are rotated out and returned to the farm for a new team of mallards every three months. This tradition has also been maintained and observed at the other Peabody Hotels in Little Rock, Arkansas and Orlando, Florida.[56]
Although mallard do not have as fine a flavour as teal, they have the advantage of being one of the larger ducks, so are selected for breeding for shooting and the table.[57] Shot sizes four and five are recommended for a clean and efficient kill in shooting mallard.[58]
The children's picture book Make Way for Ducklings, published in 1941 and winner of the 1942 Caldecott Medal for its illustrations, is the story of a pair of mallards who decide to raise their family on an island in the lagoon in Boston Public Garden in Massachusetts.[59]
Duck Head, a U.S. clothing brand, uses the image of a mallard's head as its logo.
auflöung gibts erst nächste woche - bin übers woende weg - oder ihr seid suuuperschnell weil eh leicht :-)
Taken with my 35 mm, f1.8 lens. Taken right before the golden hour. SOOC
I have 3 lenses that i use quite often. and I have named them. =)
Poppa Bear- 55-200mm
Momma Bear- 18-55 mm
Baby Bear- 35 mm
Next on my list (probably right after xmas) is Nikkor Macro AF-S VR 105 f/2.8G IF-ED.
Or....
Since I don't know if I want such a big lens when I already have the 55-200, I think it might make more sense to go for the Nikkor 85mm f/3.5G ED AF-S VR DX. Both are superb lenses. What do you think??
Sometimes people are just not who they seem to be
You portray yourself to be
so perfect, to have this
oh-so-wonderful life,
yet... here you sit-----
..... tainted
...........dirty
...............lying to the world
about who you really are.
Bottled up, deep within your soul,
yearning to break free,
the dirtiness weighing heavily
on your conscience,
begging for the unspoken secret
to be heard upon foolish ears.
Your loves ones bet on
your innocence and wear blinders
about this dark topic.
Oh, how the their worlds would be
destroyed if this dirty little secret
were to be made known and
they knew the true absence of your morals.
Your identity has been vilifed
and no one has done
a better job at that than...
you!
Fordwich claims to be the smallest town in England, and depending on what criteria you use, it might be. Or not.
Fordwich lies alongside a narrow lane that winds down the Stour valley side and jumps over the river via a pack bridge. THe road is very narrow in places, wide enough for just one car and turns in 90 degrees in two places too, meaning that it is totally unsuitable for the 20th century, let alone the 21st.
Fordwich was the main prt for Canterbury and is the limit of navigation now on the Stour. It was also once presided over by Sandwich and so is one of the Cinque Ports despite being a few miles from the sea now. This is because of the silting of the Wantsum Channel I talked about at Stourmouth.
Fordwich has two fine pubs, as well as a well known town hall, on stilts, shots of which I have posted before.
St Mary is now under the care of the CCT, and is home to what may be the lid of St Thomas of Canterbury's tomb and a very fine William of Orange coat of arms on the Chancel Arch.
St Mary is also available for Champing; camping in historical buildings, and several of the box pews have camp beds set up.
On this day the writer found the church to be as cold a fridge, and more than a sleeping bag needed to be kept warm at night.
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Familiar as one of the locations in the cult film `A Canterbury Tale` it stands in the heart of the smallest town in England. A Norman church with later additions it contains much of interest. Most notable is the carved stone which reputedly formed part of St Augustine's tomb in nearby Canterbury. Probably of tenth century date it was brought here by the Victorians. There is a fine assemblage of glass - much of it medieval, although the east window is a fine example of the work of Martin Travers. At the west end is a series of shelves for doling out bread to the poor. The box pews are eighteenth century and the floor pleasantly uneven. Keyholder nearby.
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Fordwich
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THE TOWN AND PARISH OF FORDWICH lIES at no great distance from St. Stephen's, a small part of the parish of Sturry only intervening, and about two miles north-eastward from Canterbury. It takes its name from the ford or pass, at the crooked winding of the river Stour, close to which it is situated. The liberty of the cinque ports claims over the whole of this parish, the town of which is a subordinate member to the principal cinque port of Sandwich, and in the survey of Domesday is said to lie within a hundred of its own name, (fn. 1) being called in the records of that time, Burgum de Fordwyc.
King Edward the Confessor, in the year 1055, gave all his lands in Fordwych to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine, who were possessed of some property here before; but soon after the conquest, Egelsin, then abbot, to gain the favour of the powerful Normans, granted away several of the estates of his monastery to them, and among others this of Fordwych to Hamo de Crevequer, surnamed Vicecomes. But the king afterwards, at the instance of abbot Scotland, put him again in possession of this borough, which Hamo the sheriff then held, as well as the other estates which had been given away. And at the same time Odo, bishop of Baieux, the king's half-brother, gave to the abbot all the houses he had here. Soon after this, anno 1080, the survey of Domesday was taken, in which, under the general title of the lands of that abbey, it is thus entered:
In Forewic hundred, the abbot himself holds one small borough, which is called Forewic. Two parts of this borough king Edward the Confessor gave to St. Augustine, but the third part, which was earl Goduin's the bishop of Baieux granted to the same saint, with the consent of king William. It was taxed at one yoke. There were one hundred plats of land, all but four, paying thirteen shillings, now there are seventy-three plats, paying as much. In the time of king Edward the Confessor, and afterwards, it was worth one hundred shillings, now eleven pounds and two shillings. There are twenty four acres of land, which St. Augustine had separate where there were, and there are six burgesses, paying twentytwo shillings.
In this borough archbishop Lanfranc has seven plats of land, which in the time of king Edward the Confessor performed their service to St. Augustine, now the archbishop takes away the service to himself.
Night to the city of Canterbury, St. Augustine has half a suling, which was separately acquitted; and there is one carucate in demesne, with fifteen borderers, and seven acres of meadow; and there are four acres of arable land, which four nuns hold in alms of the abbot, and pay two shillings, and one seam of meal flour. The whole of this, in the time of king Edward the Confessor, and afterwards, and now, was and is worth four pounds.
This manor was confirmed to the abbot and convent by inspeximus, by king Edward III. in his 36th year, at which time it appears that the abbot had a prison here, and held land then called a park in his demesne in this parish. After which it remained part of the possessions of the monastery till its dissolution, anno 30 Henry VIII. when it was surrendered into the king's hands, where the manor of Fordwich remained till king Edward VI. in his 7th year, granted it, with the advowson of the church, to Sir Thomas Cheney, to hold in capite, who in the Ist year of queen Mary alienated both manor and advowson to Mr. John Johnson, gent. of St. Laurence, whose grandson Timothy Johnson, gent. of Fordwich, about the latter end of that reign alienated them to Thomas Paramour, gent. descended from those of Paramourstreet, in Ash, who resided here, (fn. 2) and in James I.'s reign sold them to the lady Elizabeth Finch, widow of Sir Moile Finch, of Eastwell, afterwards created viscountess Maidstone and countess of Winchelsea, whose surviving son and heir Sir Thomas Finch, earl of Winchelsea, in the beginning of king Charles I.'s reign, passed them away to his relation Sir J. Finch, afterwards a justice of the common pleas, keeper of the great seal, and in 1630 created lord Finch, baron of Fordwich, who at his death in 1660 devised this manor and advowson by his will to his kinsman Heneage, earl of Winchelsea, whose grandson Charles, earl of Winchelsea, alienated them to William, lord Cowper, afterwards created earl Cowper and viscount Fordwich, whose great-grandson the right hon. Peter-Lewis-Francis, earl Cowper, is the present owner of the manor and advowson of the church of Fordwich. (fn. 3) A court baron is held for this manor.
THERE is an estate in this parish, called TANCREY ISLAND, which, in king Edward I.'s reign, was the property of the family of Marins, called in old deeds de Marinis, one of whom, John de Maryns, had a grant of free-warren for his lands here in the 1st year of king Edward III. but in the next reign of king Richard II. it was the property of a family who took their name from it, when Bertram de Tancrey stiled himself lord of it, in whose descendants it continued down to king Henry IV.'s reign, when it passed to the Beverleys, of Beverley, in Harbledowne, who afterwards quitted that seat and resided here, in whom it continued till William Beverley leaving an only daughter and heir Beatrix, she carried it in marriage, about king Henry VIII.'s reign, to William Norton, of Faversham, second son of Reginald Norton, esq. of Sheldwich; and it appears by the arms on a gravestone in this church, that this branch of the family of Norton bore for their arms, Three swords, jointed at the pomels in triangle, on a chief, three maunches; and that the Beverleys bore, Barry, on a chief, two pales, over all, an escutcheon, a crescent for difference; by which correct the arms of Beverley, in Harbledowne. He afterwards removed hither, and in his descendants it continued till at length it became the property of Mr. George Upton, gent. of Canterbury. After which it passed by his will to his relations, the Jennings's, with whom it continued down to Anthony Jennings, who resided here, and died possessed of it in 1771, leaving his widow Mrs. Martha Jennings surviving, who is now possessed of it, and resides here.
THE TOWN of Fordwich was in antient time of much greater account than it has been for a long time past, for Leland, who lived in Henry the VIIIth.'s reign, mentions it as then having in it a poor mayor. During the time that Reculver continued one of the mouths of the Portus Rhutupinus, and the sea flowed up from thence as far as Fordwich, it continued the great resort for the shipping, which then frequented in abundance the river Stour, the navigation of which extended as high as the key of this town, where the ships were moored, and where all goods were laded and unladed; and in the time of the Saxons there was here a public collector of the customs and droits arising from thence, appointed by the king; which duties, after the gift of the manor of Fordwich by king Edward the Confessor, belonged to the abbot of St. Augustine, and continued so till the dissolution of that monastery in king Henry VIII.'s reign. But the prior and convent of the Holy Trinity, afterwards Christ-church, in Canterbury, claimed the privilege of a key here likewise, for the use of which they built a house in a meadow close to the town, which the abbot of St. Augustine's repeatedly threw down; but this produced continual controversies between them, which at last, in 1285, was settled by a composition made between them, by the justices itinerant, appointed by the king for that purpose. (fn. 4)
The town of Fordwich lies very low and unhealthy, close to the marshes, on the southern bank of the river Stour, a lonely place, of little or no thoroughfare. It is but small and mean, consisting of about thirty houses and cottages. The only remains of antiquity, of its having belonged to the abbey of St. Augustine for a great length of time past, was a losty arched gateway, built of brick, at the entrance to their wharf here, lately pulled down, and a small length of flint wall close to the river. Near which is a large handsome house, belonging to the Blaxlands, and now made use of as a soap manufactory. This house is known by the name of Hemphall, and was formerly part of the possessions of St. Augustine's monastery, parcel of their manor here, probably their manorhouse, and the same in which the Johnsons and Paramours, who afterwards had the grant of the manor, resided. Not long after which it seems to have been separated from the manor, and come into the possession of the Crispes, in which it continued, till at length Mrs. Eleanor-Anne, daughter of Henry Crispe, esq. of Quekes, carried it in marriage to Robert Darell, esq. who resided here, whose first wife she was; and afterwards, in like manner, to the Shorts, several of whom, as well as the Darells, lie buried in the chancel of this church, the last of whom, Samuel Short, esq. of this town, died in 1716. After which it was alienated to the Turners, and thence to the Blaxlands. Close to the above-mentioned house is the court-hall, or sessions-house, and the prison underneath it. In the southern part of it is an antient brick house, formerly of some note, and much larger, seemingly of the time of queen Elizabeth, and no doubt once a gentleman's habitation, now belonging to the Graydons; a little above which is a seat, called Hermesland, once belonging to the family of Harlestone, descended out of Suffolk, and bore for their arms, Paly, or, and sable, (fn. 5) one of whom, Simon Harlestone, resided here in queen Elizabeth's reign. After which it was purchased by the Osbornes, and was afterwards alienated by William Osbornes, A. M. rector of Fordwich, to John Graydon, esq. afterwards vice-admiral of the royal navy, who rebuilt it, and resided here at his death in 1727. He married Mary, grand daughter of Sir Edward Gregory, commissioner of Chatham dock, and dying in his eighth mayoralty of this town, was buried in Westbere church. John, his eldest son, succeeded him in this seat, and died s.p. Benjamin, his second son, was of Rochester, and left a son Benjamin, now of Fordwich, and owner of this seat; and Gregory, his third son, was of Canterbury, gent. and married a daughter of William Hougham, esq. of that city. They bore for their arms, Azure, three otters, each holding in its mouth a fish, argent. Mr. Ben jamin Graydon, of Fordwich, a descendant of him before-mentioned, is owner of this seat, which is at present untenanted. The church stands close to the east end of the town, and the parsonage-house at some distance southward of it, in the road leading to Stodmarsh, The river Stour, and the small spot of Tancrey island, over which the high road leads from Sturry to Fordwich, bound the north part of this parish, which extends about a mile southward up the hill, as far as the road next to the wall of the Moat park.
THE CORPORATION of the town of Fordwich and its liberties, extend over the town and the whole of this parish, and over part of the parishes of Westbere, Sturry, Northgate, and St. Martin's, in Canterbury, and likewise down the river Stour to Grove ferry, and thence as far as Plucks gutter, just below the Wingham water, opposite to the Isle of Thanet. It is a corporation by prescription, the members of which were at first stiled barons; but it is now governed by a mayor, jurats, and commonalty, of freemen, to which is added a high steward, treasurer, and town-clerk. The mayor, who is coroner by virtue of his office, is chosen yearly on the first Monday after the feast of St. Andrew, and with the jurats, who are justices within these liberties exclusive of all others, hold a general sessions of the peace and gaol delivery, (fn. 6) together with a court of record, the same as at Sandwich, and it has other privileges, mostly the same as the other corporations within the liberties of the cinque ports; and there was a gallows erected just below the key, for the execution of criminals, which has been down but a few years. It has a mace belonging to it, which is very handsome, of silver gilt, and given to the corporation by admiral Graydon; and the mayor, the same as at Sandwich, bears in his hand, when exercising his office, a black wand. The river Stour is still navigable for lighters and barges as far as the bridge just above the town, for the passage of carriages, over which the corporation exact a toll. The droits and duties arising from the coals and other ladings brought up the river and landed at the town-key, belong to the corporation, who likewise receive twenty shillings yearly from the dean and chapter of Canterbury, for the use of the crane and wharf here. There is a particular species of trout, which frequents the river Stour, and being for the most part caught within these liberties, is from thence known by the name of Fordwich trout; being esteemed of a superior flavour to most others, and there being but few of them taken in a year, they bear a high price, and are much sought after as a delicacy throughout the neighbourhood. They are of a silver colour, speckled with black spots, and the flesh of them is of a yellowish colour; they weigh from four to ten or twelve pounds. They are a very shy fish, insomuch that they are not often taken with a drag net, and seldom or never with a hook. It is supposed they never breed in the river, no small ones being ever found in it, nor large ones with any spawn in them, but that they come from the sea, many of them being taken without the mouth of the river, particularly in the set-nets in Pegwell bay, at the entrance of Sandwich harbour. There are not more than thirty caught here yearly on an average, though they were more caught formerly than for several years past.
SIR JOHN FINCH, (son and heir of Sir Henry Finch, younger brother of Sir Moile Finch, of Eastwell, ancestor of the earls of Winchelsea and Nottingham) who was speaker of the house of commons, and afterwards made chief justice of the common pleas, was in 1639, anno 15 Charles I. made lord keeper of the great seal, and created lord Finch, baron of Ford wich. He died in 1661, without male issue, and the title became extinct. (fn. 7)
WILLIAM COWPER, ESQ. son of Sir Wm. Cowper, bart. of Ratling-court, in Nonington, having been made lord keeper of the great seal in 1705, was on December 14, 1706, anno 5 queen Anne, created lord Cowper, baron Cowper, of Wingham, in Kent, and in 1707 made lord chancellor; and on March 18, 1718, anno 4 George I. he was further advanced to the dignity of earl Cowper, and viscount Fordwich. He died in 1723, and was buried at Hertingfordbury, being succeeded by his eldest son William, second earl Cowper, and viscount Fordwich, who died in 1764, having some time before prefixed the surname and arms of Clavering to his own, according to the will of his mother's brother. He was succeeded by his only son George Clavering, the third earl Cowper, and viscount Fordwich, who residing at Florence, was created a count of the sacred Roman empire, which title was confirmed by king George III. He died in 1789, having married Anne, daughter of Francis Gore, esq. of Southampton, and was succeeded by his eldest son George-Augustus, earl Cowper, and viscount Fordwich, who dying unmarried in February, 1799, was succeeded by the right hon. Peter-LewisFrancis, the fifth and present earl Cowper, and viscount Fordwich, who is at present unmarried. He bears for his arms, quarterly, Clavering, or, and gules, surmounted with a bend, sable; and Cowper, argent, three martlets, a chief engrailed, gules, on the latter as many annulets, or; supporters, Two bay horses, with tails docked, proper. Crest, On a wreath, a lion's gamb, erected and erased, or, holding a branch vert, sructed, gules.
Charities.
WALTER BIGG, jurat, by his will in 1631, gave three pieces of land, containing nine acres, for the relief of poor aged people, to be distributed by the mayor and jurats yearly on Good-Friday, and on the Friday before Christmas-day.
STEPHEN BIGG, of Fordwich, by will in 1646, gave the rent of 20 acres of land in Romney Marsh, to be distributed yearly to six poor housekeepers, and the like number of Sturry, 20s. to each; the remainder to put out poor boys and girls of each parish apprentices, and to remain in stock in for that use for ever.
THOMAS BIGG, by will in 1669, gave 50s. per annum, to be paid weekly to the overseers, to be distributed to the poor at their discretion. Which money is given away weekly in bread.
THERE ARE nine acres of meadow in this parish, late in the possession of Anthony Jennings, into which the resident freemen of this corporation have the liberty of turning any kind of cattle, except hogs, between the months of September and May.
FORDWICH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of the same.
¶The church, which is dedicated to St. Mary, consists of two isles and a chancel, having a tall spire steeple at the west end, in which are four bells. It is situated so close to the river, and so much on a level with it, that it is sometimes overflowed, and always exceedingly wet and damp. There seems to have been some good painted glass in the windows, of which there are but few remains. In the south isle is a stone, with the figure of a woman, and inscription in brass, for Afra, wife of Henry Hawkins, gent. daughter of Thomas Norton, esq. obt. 1655; arms, Hawkins, of Nash, impaling Norton; with the quarterings of Martyn, Beverley, and Hide. Several memorials for the Jennings's, of Tancrey island, and the Nortons. In the chancel are several memorials and hatchments of the Darells and Shortes, of this parish; the latter bore, Azure, a griffin passant, between three stars of six points, or. In the church-yard is a memorial for John Graydon, esq. obt. 1774. In the west part of the body of this church, was placed a very antient stone shrine against the wall, which having been removed some years since, was cast out in the church-yard, where being soon likely to perish, by being exposed to the weather, it was purchased by the editor of this history, and brought to the precincts of the cathedral of Canterbury, where it now lies. It is one solid stone, Sculptured only on one side; the back part having two hollows, as if made to fasten it to the wall. There is no conjecture to be formed on whose account it was made and placed there. (fn. 8)
The church of Fordwich is a rectory, and was always an appendage to the manor, and as such is now of the patronage of the right hon. earl Cowper, the present lord of the manor of Fordwich. It is valued in the king's books at 5l. 15s. 2d. and is now of the clear yearly certified value of forty-two pounds. In 1588. it was valued at thirty pounds, communicants one hundred and forty. In 1640 it was valued at forty pounds, communicants one hundred. It is now of about the yearly value of one hundred and twenty pounds. There are three acres of glebe land.
The rector for some length of time received of the corporation, in lieu of tithes of the merchandize of the key here, by composition, five pounds, by the name of crane duties, which has not been paid since the year 1733.