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2 Grand Street Parade veterans stand in front of Needs.. they are looking forward to seeing Queen Annapolisa and the Apple Blossom Princesses in the Kentville Grand Street Parade that will soon be coming down Main Street .
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Following a 2 year absence due to Covi,, the 2022 Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival. (and Parade) will be held as per usual this year.. Unfortunately the Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess competition has had to be postponed until next year due to time constraints.
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Shocking news from ABF,
* There's been a stunning development at ABF. *
Apparently in a new younger generation there are those who harbor resentment towards our nations history, for English colonialism, and even for the Monarchy ? Other minority groups have voiced discontent over the diversity and inclusion issue ? And so it seems that the current ABF Board of Directors has listened to the concerns and complaints of a few small minority groups while apparently ignoring and excluding the overwhelming majority of Valley residents ? And it appears that this current Board of Directors chose to resolve such discontent by simply moving to implement and execute the nuclear option and the final solution ? And therefore after a highly successful lengthy run of 87 consecutive years in a row, the extremely anticipated, very popular, family oriented, inclusive and diverse, multi village Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess Pageant along with the prestigious Royal Coronation crowning ceremonies held in Wolfville have all been terminated forever by this current board of Directors ?
Will a drag Queen replace an apple blossom Queen in Kentville ? www.nsbuzz.ca/life/kentville-all-ages-drag-show-draws-pro...
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-----------------------It's The End of an Era-----------------------------
"We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep."
Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival 2023 - ABF Board of Directors has announced drastic new changes in format and even deeper cut-backs to the annual People's Festival ? Concerns over ceremony, symbolism, the monarchy and colonialism, along with some complaints over inclusion and diversity may have had an influence on the current ABF board of Directors and they have seen a need to update the long running Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess pageant in order to bring it up to a standard they view as being more relevant to the current times ? And so the Directors must have held an extremely private 'think tank' last Winter, and without notifying, caring, considering or consulting with any of the long time participating Valley communities, they had decided that rather than trouble themselves any further with this pesky issue, why not just take the easy way out and simply get rid of it ? And so it seems they made a final decision in private last Winter and moved to execute the final and fatal solution to their problem by ordering that the iconic 87 year old Pageant competition be immediately shut down and terminated forever ? And therefore, as a result of an uninclusive and uncontested decision made in private, one of the longest running, popular, identifiable, well known, highly anticipated, most inclusive and diverse, proud all family events that has ever benefited Valley residents of every age, has just been taken away ?
This unconditional act of finality will now end the long running 88 year reign of her royal Heinous Queen Annapolisa and will terminate all participation of the 7 to 10 Apple Blossom Princess contestants and their child attendants that represent 7 to 10 local Valley communities ? It will also mean the end of the many beautiful hand crafted award winning Princess floats that always highlight Grand Street Parade, and it will also signal the end of the ultra glamorous Queen and Ladies-in-waiting Crowning ceremonies held annually and televised each year from Acadia University in Wolfville ? This also puts an end to the many popular community Princess Tea events, and also ends all Royal Party visitations to local Schools, hospitals and old folks homes that are so welcome and appreciated by Students, Seniors and shut-ins ? This also signals the end of Royal Party appearances at Kentville Children's Parade, at the Memorial Park Friday night open air concert and fireworks, and all Royal attendances at many other events held annually throughout the Valley and the Province ?
It appears now that current ABF Officials led by President Logan Morse along with Kentville town rep Lindsey Young have not only interrupted the Pageant in 2022 when they temporarily postponed it, but have now in 2023 moved to terminate this prestigious event forever explaining that their radical decision has been made to improve, include, modernize and evolve the famed beauty pageant ? This final act of termination ends almost 90 years of royal pageantry and also leaves a huge gap in the Festival itself ? It will also negatively affect so many of the nearby Valley communities who always participate and enter contestants in the Pageant ? The ending of such an important multiple community event and the taking away of the better half and Star of the Apple Blossom Festival brings forth the question of what replacement is planned, and what are local towns and villages that always play major roles in both the Queen and Princess competition suppose to do now ? And what about Valley youth and the childhood dreams of one day becoming a child attendant or an Apple Blossom Princess or even a Queen ?
You have to marvel at the level of ego and disrespect shown by this latest Board of Directors who have dared appoint themselves as the ones that will end the Pageant and then to think that Valley residents are stupid enough to believe that by cancelling and taking away a cherished and long running event, that they have in some perverted way of thinking moved the Valley forward or improved and modernized anything ? It seems far more likely that they have taken the Valley on a giant step backwards and they have robbed the people of a much beloved, long running, multi community, all inclusive, local production that has always been a highly anticipated all Valley highlight for the past almost 90 consecutive years ?
Why current ABF Management who have applied themselves to be the stewards who are in charge and responsible for the promotion and presentation of this event, appear as unable to perform their duties and do the job they are compensated to do and do what their predecessors have always done so well before them each and every year for the past 87 years often in far more trying circumstances and in far less prosperous times, is hard to understand ? And you have to wonder, Whatever happened to the # 1 rule in business that says that if you can't do the job because of inexperience, immaturity, inability, incompetency, bias, or just plain stupidity, then,, You're all FIRED ! (and a Class action recovery suit may be forthcoming ?)
ABF news updates :
Logan Morse and a newcomer ABF Board of Directors break the hearts of Valley families especially the Children when they move to terminate the historic and long running Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess Pageant after 88 years ? ABF Directors show no remorse, while boasting that their bold action was needed to improve, evolve and bring the pageant up to their modern standards ? www.pressreader.com/canada/annapolis-valley-register/2023...
May 26, 2023 - We Are the Ones. An unusual degree of arrogance and disrespect is shown when the long running Valley Peoples Pageant is cancelled without either of consideration or consultation ? A modern generation of newcomer ABF Directors with bold new ideas have apparently proclaimed themselves to be the one generation to interrupt and permanently end 88 years of wonderful multi Valley village Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess enjoyment ?
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/apple-blossom-festival...
Annapolis Valley families are in shock and children cry upon learning their beloved Queen Annapolisa Pageant has been cancelled without notice, consultation, consideration or compassion ? Newcomer Directors say they are taking their bold action to improve, evolve and modernize the historic Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival ? www.saltwire.com/atlantic-
Valley residents lose a long time major yearly entertainment event when the ever popular ABF Greenwood Airshow is terminated and will be no more. Fast forward to Aug 24, 2024, and to corporation greed ? Air Show Atlantic Inc. now charges big bucks to see taxpayer owned aircraft at a taxpayer owned airport in their vastly inferior airshow ? Air Show Atlantic Inc. does not offer a discount Seniors ticket category for Senior citizens ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52345513615
How dare They ! Kentville IS the Cornwallis Inn and the Cornwallis Inn IS Kentville ! If you were to google the 2 words Cornwallis Inn you will get over 600,000 entries with almost all of them married to the word Kentville.. (what a great promotional tool) . The world famous Cornwallis Inn is the source of many fond memories for all local and Valley residents.. "It was the centre of everything’: The past and present of Kentville’s iconic Cornwallis Inn"
www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/lifestyles/it-was-the-centre...
Kentville identity crisis. Help, Is there a Superhero anywhere out there to save Kentville from the newcomer agenda ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/51811175986/in/album-7...
The controversial 2017 Grand Street Parade - Has Kentville once again been targeted for exploitation ? After Warden Brothers, (Greenwood ) and Liberal MP L Glavine (Kingston) had all but hijacked Waterville Airport before relocating it to their own home riding in the Kingston/Greenwood area, it seems that the town of Kentville must face yet another attack from the Kingston area when Alxys Chamberlain, the Kingston Apple Blossom Princess, and other ABF Directors attempt to take yet another major source of revenue and major attraction away from the town of Kentville ?
Et tu, Madama Chamberlain ? The unconscionable attempted hijacking and subsequent recovery of Kentvilles's most beloved yearly event ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/18506181065
2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade - Disregard for safety shown as unrestrained Senior citizens are precariously perched atop an unsheltered, open sided, stop and go, large unstable jerking motion moving platform ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/53900780519/in/album-7...
Exploiting Queen Annapolisa for a photo op ? Politicians at the official opening ceremony of the 2023 Apple Blossom Festival pretending there's still a Pageant in a photo while knowing full well that Queen Annapolisa and the Apple Blossom Princesses have been terminated forever and will no longer be a part of this year's Festival ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/53755100811/in/album-7...
2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade Newcomer ABF stewards defy our Liberal Government plea for diversity and inclusion ? Many nearby local Valley towns and villages that normally attend have now been excluded from the yearly parade ? Their absence means the loss of diversity that is always provided with the attendance of these local communities ? Where is Canning, Digby, Annapolis Royal, Hantsport Greenwood, Windsor ? Where's Queen Annapolisa ? Where's the Apple Blossom Princesses and all of the individual Town floats including Princess Kentville ? To view complete 2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade press here, www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie
Facebook, Friends of Kentville - The site Administrator, a new arrival from PEI, says she wants to see Kentville as the queerest town in all of Nova Scotia ? www.facebook.com/groups/2588266877982288
Will a drag Queen replace an apple blossom Queen in Kentville ? www.nsbuzz.ca/life/kentville-all-ages-drag-show-draws-pro...
Nov 16 2023 - Apple Blossom Princesses call for a return of Queen Annapolisa,
www.saltwire.com/atlantic-canada/communities/former-apple...
The Town of Kentville has moved to cut back and eliminate many hours of traditional public outdoor entertainment that have always been a standard part of the Apple Blossom Festival ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52094784785
A medley of the guest Tribute bands that have performed at Memorial Park Kentville - Always free of charge in the past when performing at the Apple Blossom Festival : Petty Larceny, Fleetwod Mix, Keep the Faith, Stones Tribute, Green River Revival, Viscious, Eddy's Basement, Matt Minglewood,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x5hqti9
Corporate greed shown by newcomer ABF directors in this year's Apple Blossom Festival ? Instead of providing a free guest Tribute band as per normal at the free Memorial Park Friday night concert, it will now cost 50.00 pp to see a 'Queen tribute band' performance. that's 50.00 per ticket in 2025 ? acadiau.universitytickets.com/
Town of Kentville rips off its own citizens right at Apple Blossom Festival time ? Cold heartless capitalism shown by Kentville and by the newcomer ABF management ? Citizens burdened with out of pocket expense of TWENTY DOLLARS each just to attend an outdoor street dance held downtown on taxpayer owned property during the Apple Blossom Festival ? Is there no shame ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54546051832/in/photost...
She's Ruined It ! Our great Festival is no longer even recognizable ? How could anyone take a world class event and turn it into something that can only be described as stupid ? President Erica Gillis has to be the worst ever ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54493011308/in/dateposted
2025 Kentville Grand Street Parade - is this a joke ? A brief 45-minute and bare minimum compacted Kentville Grand Street Parade this year ? Zero in large marching street bands and majorettes other than the one RCMP (mini version) marching unit, no Sottish pipers or pipe bands, zero in Apple Blossom Royalty and their famous royal floats, Most of the regular nearby Valley village participants not there, no horse and wagon entree, no armaments, soldiers, bands or displays from Aldershot or Greenwood, etc etc, ? And yet Guest parade announcer proclaims in quote @ 29:17, " this parade is the largest in Canada, incl Toronto - it's the longest with the largest route and the most entries. " Wha-a-a-t ? Where did she come from and what is she talking about ?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQuaIdrQi00
A different, come from away royal rider now sits on a makeshift throne that has been set aboard the historic Apple Blossom Princess float for its famous trip down Main Street on Apple Blossom festival Saturday. It seems our new Mayor will now grace the famous Town Princess float on its annual trip in Kentville's famous Grand Street Parade ?
' Somebody get that King a crown and sceptre '
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54557663677/in/dateposted
they've ruined it part 2 ? May 31st, 2025 Grand Street Parade - From 100,000 down to 10,000, Parade attendance shrinks to all time low, www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54568017261/in/photost.... Also see, They've ruined the Festival and the Parade too ?
ABF Directors may disapprove and terminated the beloved Queen Annapolisa pageant and the multiple village Apple Blossom Princess competition but Valley residents will always admire, support, respect and remain fond of the British Monarchy. The majority of Valley citizens are delighted to hear that his Majesty King Charles III and Queen Camilla are invited and will be coming for a royal visit to Canada on May 26 and 27, 2025. This year's incomplete and now Royalty-less ABF starts on the 28th, www.cbc.ca/news/politics/king-charles-canada-visit-1.7524946
The long and proud history of past Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess winners has been removed from sight and erased from the official Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival website ? A special honorary history page dedicated to previous Queen Annapolisa winners from 1933 thru 2019 has been taken down and apparently replaced with jumbo size portraits of the newcomer President and other ABF directors who have taken over and ruined the world famous Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival ? www.appleblossom.com/history/past-queens
Meet the directors,
May 30th, 2025 - 20 dollar burgers and bouncy castles ??? High level security enforcement hired for this year's Memorial Park Friday night rock concert ? ( must have taken up most of the budget ) ? Town of Kentville brings in outside police, closes roads, and sets up a defensive securiy perimeter around rhe event with manned traffic guard posts to provide heightened G7 level security for their Friday night Memorial Park Apple Blossom outdoor concert that in past years had always featured guest rock bands, interesting demonstrations and displays, and a Royal Queen Annapolisa visit following her prestigious coronation ceremony in Wolfville, but appears now to have deteriorated into some kind of an outdoor romper room type family show featuring food trucks, inflatable air bouncy castles and 2 live local groups as their featured invited guest star main stage star performer, with nothing much to do for anyone over elementary grade school level other than purchase some food at the upscale restaurant prices to dine on a paper plate using plastic utensils while standing up in a crowd of unruly kids and being lustfully observed by hungry saliva drooling pet dogs leashed to their owners ? And thanks to the upgraded crowd control, and heavy police presence and the strict traffic control hired for this event there was a report of a parking violator being successfully apprehended ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54558198569
May 30th, 2025 Memorial Park Kentville - Seniors and those with disabilities made to walk long distances in order to reach this year's disappointing ABF Friday night outdoor rock Concert that didn't bring in a rock band, (nor much of anything else) ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54558198569/in/photost...
Oct 4th, 2025 - the Harvest Festival in Centre Square
Kentville - A disappointing harvest festival effort this year that forgot about the kids horse-drawn hay wagon ride, the pumpkin people scarecrow making class and group demo, the Valley harvest, Valley livestock and the Valley farmer ? They have apparently been replaced with multiple kiosks with street vendors selling unrelated merchandise, bouncy castles and expensive food trucks ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54835089011/in/photost...
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54835089011/in/photost...
Upgrade 2025 ? photo taken from front of Phinneys dept store - A massive expenditure is budgeted for a major upgrade to the Mayor's business backyard - Downtown Kentville Webster Street gets a complete and total beautification makeover with new installations of street paving, paint, new double sidewalks both sides, driveway entrances, and new curb and gutter both sides ? All other streets that surround the Phinneys' downtown business block have also been upgraded including Aberdeen Street, Cornwallis Street, and Main Street ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54835340734/in/photost...
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An Identity Crisis ;
Can an identity crisis be looming in the town of Kentville ?
A proud, neighborly salt of the earth working class community with generous hard working friendly citizens and a rich historic Railroad, agriculture and farming background is losing many of its longtime local traditions, themes and trademarks while elected Town officials, many of them new arrivals, just stand still, watch, and even enable ? Having always been identified as a main Provincial railroad center ever since the old Dominion Rail days dating back to 1869, the town has since lost all of its passenger and freight train rail service in and out including a modern passenger Dayliner service that traveled back and forth to Halifax every day ? And after the railway had been shut down it seemed they couldn't clear out the now useless brand new station, dig up the tracks and demolish the old roundhouse fast enough ? And so now, in what seems to be cruel mockery, the only railroading in Kentville left over from past glory days and from what was once the largest and most important and active railroad center west of Halifax, is just an old and faded hand painted train mural etched onto the weather beaten side of one of the downtown business establishments ?
Unfortunately the loss of the railway wasn't the last humiliating major transportation loss forced on the people of a small rural town as Kentville was soon to become even more isolated from the outside World when for no apparent logical, rational or reasonable reason the aviation community at Waterville municipal Airport CCW3 were told to get out when they had done nothing wrong and had no where else to go ? This long time invaluable contributor to the local area economy was lost when an established municipal airport, a well known Canadian sky diving facility, and an internationally known pilot training and licensing academy, and many privately owned aircraft with local owners, and many other established aviation businesses were told to get out ? The cold hearted eviction also left our young Air Cadets over at Camp Aldershot without a base to train on and so now the next generation has to grow up without their nearby aviation training and education facility ?
And so, a group of out-of-towners that mostly don't even live in this community had transformed an active thriving local Aviation business center that had taken decades to build and establish, into a barren and useless place where unsupervised Michelin children now ride bikes and dodge weeds poking their heads thru a deteriorating asphalt runway that was once a platform for private and commercial aircraft to fly in and out of the local area on a daily basis ? To add salt to the wound, this unwarranted calculated forced closure and loss of a vital member of the local economy was to be hailed by the executioners at Kings Council, ( and also by the prestigious Ivany Report Committee ) as being a bold and brilliant business decision that will greatly improve and benefit the local area ?
After months of homelessness and uncertainty over the future, a few evicted tenants found new sites elsewhere and relocated at their own expense to start all over again, while others just quit, while others were finally redirected to a new location in Greenwood which just happened by chance to be the Kings Council County Warden's home riding ? And so, in the end this devastating loss for Kentville and local area became a windfall for the Kingston Greenwood area, and, Kentville was left to carry on without either a Railway or an Airport ?
When the original KCA town School closed down, existing high school students were separated from their home school and had to be bused to the nearby town of Canning ? This would leave only the Grade 1 to 8 age groups to now identify Kentville as their home school, an education reality that still exists in Kentville ? There is no longer a movie theater in Kentville as the downtown movie theater has been closed forever, and the popular Edge sports bar, eatery and pool hall also closed down and never replaced ? Harvey's Hamburgers drive thru closed down and it never was replaced ? The longtime bowling alley in New Minas was bought out by developers, torn down, and replaced with a business office complex ? We lost the local salvage, reclamation and disposal site in South Alton when ordered shut down by the Provincial Government, but these same people who shut it down never ever offered to replace it with another leaving the community without this vital facility ? One day a portion of roof blew off the long time town funeral home and it never re-opened leaving only one such establishment left in town ? And, just as the citizens of Kentville were learning that both the Apple Blossom Princess and the Queen Annapolisa pageants were to be cancelled after 87 consecutive years, at the same time there was an all age Drag Queen show getting ready to entertain at the Kings Arms Pub in a total flip flop from the popular Irish Rovers or Scottish pipers that most Kentville citizens identify with at this time of year ? Numerous local restaurants and small businesses have all come and gone - mostly gone - and the main town supermarket Jasons IGA had a fire and was forced to close down for over a year so there was no supermarket to provide groceries for the local citizens ? The ever popular multi venue Wandlyn Inn burned down with all venues now lost to the community ? It wasn't replaced after the fire and now there's just a fast food MacDonald's take out to replace all of Wandlyn's many facilities including hotel rooms, indoor swimming pool, whirlpool and sauna, nightclub, dual convention centers and dual restaurants ? Not a very good exchange for the community ?
The traditional July 1st Canada Day town sponsored party event of fun, food,speeches and local entertainment held each year at the wading Pool was curtailed by the Town due to budget considerations ? And so now, if you want to enjoy July 1st entertainment or fireworks you have to go to New Minas, Hantsport or Berwick ? Access to clean drinking water is well known as one of the most identifiable entitlements provided by a town ? Billions are currently being spent by the Canadian taxpayer to provide First Nations people with free safe drinking water ? Yet the Kentville water commission charges the customer 10,000 dollars just to turn their town water on at roadside ? And then after this rather large up front financial layout paid for by the brand new customer, he will still have to pay for all of his yard trenching and household plumbing work ? And in return for this large initial forced surcharge, the valued new customer will be rewarded with a water bill courtesy of the town of Kentville each month hereafter ?
They even managed to take away Kentville's most famous of all and most instantly identifiable town landmark in the hotel name Cornwallis Inn ? Cornwallis Inn is a well known trademark hotel name that is synonymous World wide with the name of Kentville, and this name represents a multitude of fond memories for the local area residents and for other residents living all over the Valley ? It was hard to understand why the Town would ever allow this historic name to change,, and also hard to understand why a previous Town of Kentville planning dept would ever allow subsidized apartment units to be built onto the side of such a respected Town centerpiece and also block the access lane to the rear parking lot while doing it ? The Cornwallis Inn will always be an important Valley landmark and a future protected Canadian heritage site ?
They have even changed well known identifiable names of some Streets and even the local traffic bridge traversing the Cornwallis River ? And so now many local residents and delivery drivers don't know what they're talking about when these stupid new names are used ? This name change is especially hard on Kentville's Seniors who can become confused with such absurd name changes and has in some cases, created safety hazards ?
In 2017 ABF Directors tried to move Kentville's 87 year old yearly Grand Street Parade to different location in the Valley, and the town was forced to claw and battle its way just to get its own local yearly parade returned back home to them after hosting it for the last 90 years ? And in yet another major step backwards that same year, ABF and the Town decided to cease and desist all public ABF Wednesday, Thursday and weekends of fun, food, music, displays, amusements, local student performances, etc. etc. held at Memorial Park during the Apple Blossom festival week ? No explanation was given and no replacement or apology was ever offered by the Town for such a devastating loss to be absorbed by the citizens of Kentville ? Kentville has now lost its most identifiable of all citizens, that being their beloved Apple Blossom Princess Kentville, when newcomer ABF Directors had shown an uncommon degree of disrespect, as well as their disregard and insensitivity when presuming to appoint themselves as the ones entitled to end the long running iconic 88 year old iconic Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess competition ? This termination means all public Royal party appearances including the Princess Teas, Kentville Children's Parade, all Royal visitations to schools, shut-ins, Seniors, and hospital attendances that are normally made by Queen Annapolisa and the Royal Princesses are now cancelled and no longer take place ?
In 2022 the Kentville Grand Street Parade was quite understandably very limited and downsized following the 2 previous Covi year cancellations, but this year's 2023 effort wasn't much better ? The immense contribution and the wonderful diversity supplied by nearby Valley communities from Windsor to Digby was no longer included in the Parade ? Apple Blossom royalty and all Princess floats were no longer included in the Parade ? And many local residents expressed disappointment when Apple Blossom Princess Kentville and her child attendant were no longer seen or to be included in the Town Parade ? It seemed that Kentville had lost yet another identifiable citizen and wonderful Ambassador that always performed her official duties including advertising, promoting the town and representing Kentville with charm, grace, dignity, talent and beauty wherever she went ?
After the long running 3 consecutive Apple Blossom weekdays of afternoon and evening mid week entertainment at the Park were all cancelled and Apple Blossom Week entertainment was cut down to a bare bone single Friday night affair, ( which btw will no longer include the highlight of the evening Royal Party visitation and rock music by Eddy's Basement ), it seems Officials were still unsatisfied and found yet another way to take away even more ? And this year they want to charge inflation stressed locals a fee to see entertainers like Matt Minglewood and Kevin Davison at private shows when in the past these entertainers appeared on a public stage free of charge ? Cut backs were also apparent in fireworks, (which btw will no longer be started by Queen Annapolisa at her official Royal Party visitation to the Park following Coronation ceremonies in Wolfville) ?
And so, in summing up, the citizens of Kentville are frustrated with cutbacks, the many steps backwards, and the cancellations and closures that never seem to be replaced once gone ? Both the Provincial Railway and municipal Airport are now permanently closed down and even Acadia Van lines inter provincial bus transit no longer stops ? The Wandlyn Inn complex and all of its popular hotel and restaurant services were lost by fire and never replaced ? Extreme cut backs were made to the historic Apple Blossom Festival that saw a week long fun filled period of public entertainment at Memorial Park reduced to one minimal Friday night affair followed the next day by a shortened mundane parade of less than an hour ? Concerns also remain about the absence of an in-Town High School for Teens, the loss of a key funeral home, the loss of the Pool Hall, the absence of a movie theater, the loss of Harveys drive thru burgers, the loss of one of the 2 dt Tim Hortons, the loss of the dt pizza parlor, the loss of Chinese food take out, the loss of the local fruit and vegetable market, the absence of a 7/24 convenience store, the closure of the bakery, and also the loss of the local disposal site when no replacement was ever offered by the Government that shut it down ? There was also the shocking cancellation and heartbreaking termination of her royal heinous the Apple Blossom Princess Kentville and the end of the prestigious Acadia U Coronation ceremonies in Wolfville ? There was also the erasing of, and then the changing of the name of Kentville's biggest most identifiable internationally known Cornwallis Inn name logo that is instantly recognizable world wide and symbolically married for decades to the Town name of Kentville ? There remains the problem of a serious local shortage of rental rooms and local dining spots for tourists created when the Wandlyn hotel complex burned down and when not one of these many hospitality, business, tourist, restaurant, hotel, night club, and recreational venues were ever replaced ?
And now, in a more recent issue, we are seeing more and more small businesses located all over the Valley that have not only provided local employment but also served as popular meet and greet gathering spots for friends and neighbors for years and years now, changing hands after being bought out and turned over to total strangers that are not from Halifax or from N.S. nor even Canada but have come here from another Continent ? A strange new phenomenon of foreign take-overs has arrived in the Valley that includes replacing the management, assuming full control of the business and taking over the labor force of many traditional Valley fast food, gas, and coffee businesses ? Some of these now include : the Petrocan in New Minas, many Valley Tim Hortons, the Subway, KFC, DQ, Burger King, and the Mary Brown's in New Minas to name a few ? And in another concern, because many newcomer employees are unfamiliar with the currency it is advisable to count your change carefully if paying by cash ? There are also some indications that nepotism is now being shown in the hiring of employees once these establishments are taken over by new foreign management, and that our local students can't get Summer jobs any more ? Another major local employer, Eassons Trucking, also seems affected by the current influx of new foreign workers with some reports of untrained, unlicensed, unqualified, (and Government subsidized) drivers behind the wheel, and rumors of some units with multiple drivers on board having a hole drilled in the floor of the sleeper cabin to accommodate a long piece of ABS plumbing pipe used to transfer raw shidzen sewage directly from the interior of the truck down onto the open highway below to avoid pit stops at the Big Stop ?
And, from the looks of a recent Town municipal election, most candidates might be unfamiliar with the Town's long time traditions, customs, character, and past history ? Some candidates even naively describe the town as a kind of happy go lucky, blissful, Hallmark or Who-ville movie set type of place teaming with busy villagers and joyful munchkins frolicking up and down picturesque cobblestone streets lined by colorful quaint shops and internationally known boutiques and fancy eateries which does not accurately describe the Town ?
And apparently the new Mayor who is also a new local business owner, appears to have befriended the ex- Kings County Warden Brothers who represents and resides in the Kingston/Greenwood area and who had previously sold out Kentville when she led the charge to shut down and evict our local municipal Airport, the well known skydiving academy, the international flight training academy and many other prosperous Waterville airport aviation businesses ? And who could forget the Mayors' recent New Year's message of congratulating himself on enlarging the size of his downtown retail store and expressing personal happiness over a new (taxpayer funded) installation of a brand new sidewalk in front of it, but failing to mention serious town issues like terrible poverty and youth unemployment, racial profile hiring at Tim Hortons, the opioid drug crisis, high cost of living crisis, the homelessness crisis, the devastating cancellation of thr Princess Kentville competition, the vacationers and travelers concerns over there being no place to stay in Kentville, and the much needed indoor town recreation facility, (no one wants to get their daily exercise by hiking down crude outdoor trails while attacked by mosquitos or witness a homeless user shoot up in the privacy of the forest) ? There was also the decimation of the Apple Blossom Festival and sad deterioration of the world famous Grande Street Parade ? And there's also the current Town housing crisis, the sudden high increases in rent, the alarming rate of downtown business bankruptcies, and also the urgent need to honor Kentvilles glorious past railroading history with a museum and outdoor display of some sort ? Adding to this there appears to be a newly elected Town Council that has immediately started to cancel and cut back on important traditional town public events when, ( due to a drop of rain ) they had cancelled this year's Military march-on and (best in the area) outdoors Remembrance Day ceremonies traditionally held at the Memorial Cenotaph on Park Street ? There was also this years' poor presentation of a Grande Street Parade and one unsafe situation in the newcomer Parade where normal residents (incl Seniors) were seen perched precariously aboard a stop and go, unsheltered, jerking motion, no sided vehicle without restraining devices, water or protection from the sun ? There was also the ridiculous changing of many of the long time well known town names including the most famous of them all the Cornwallis Inn ? There's also local residents plea to 'bring our high school students back home again' , and some complaints about the Town's failure to provide public outdoor entertainment events exceeding the grade school level ? There was also the controversy over the hanging up of the biggest pride flag money can buy above the main entrance of the honored heritage site Cornwallis Inn, and of course, also the recent down town flooding crisis ? The mayor did not address the question of why a Provincial Government would force the local reclamation and disposal site to permanently close down its operation and then those who ordered this major loss to the welfare of the community would not offer to replace it but would just leave the area without such a facility ? And, there was no mention of the need for an inquiry into the exorbitant five figure fee charged to customers by the Kentville water commission just to turn water on at the road ? And there are also concerns over the recent rash of sudden unopposed takeovers of small businesses by newly arrived foreigners from Asia when our locals around here can't find work ? And what about growing concerns over the formation of an exclusive Ontarioville newcomer type town growing within an already established town ? There were also many concerns expressed over the Spring pothole epidemic that made some streets unfit to drive on, at a time when a brand new double lane sidewalk was being installed in front of Phinneys that was smooth as a baby's bum ? And then there was the refusal by the Town to help citizens with expensive auto repairs caused by their dangerous unattended potholes ? And there was also the inadequate street lighting and residential streets and sidewalks that are still in need of attention ? There was also the inconvenience felt by many local residents when ultra slow motion repairs on Canaan Ave moved at three legged turtle racing speed causing this vital access route to remain closed to traffic, incl emergency vehicles, for many many Months, (very much unlike the speedy workmanship and high priority given to the new downtown sidewalk installation in the front of Phinneys) ?
And so, can it be time to stop the come from away newcomer mentality, and make it mandatory for all candidates bidding on these important Town governing positions to be born and raised and reside in Kentville in an effort to preserve, protect and retain the Town's unique character, history, diversity, identity, and its many longtime local traditions ?
OUCH ? ( could someone please remove the daggers from our back ), Et tu, Warden Brothers and u tu Leo ? March 10th 2014 - A Date That Will Live on in Infamy - Warden Brothers, (Greenwood riding) and the Kings County Council use a calculated forced eviction to shut down the Waterville Airport aviation complex and then relocate some components to the Kingston/Greenwood area ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/28588465413/in/album-7...
Newcomer ABF directors trying to erase history ? The page showing all past Queens and Apple Blossom Princesses has been removed from the official Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival site ? The popular history page honoring all past Queen Annapolisa winners 1933-2018 with photos and bios has been taken down and apparently replaced with huge portraits of the newcomer directors ?
Meet the newcomer directors,
How dare They ! Kentville IS the Cornwallis Inn and the Cornwallis Inn IS Kentville ! If you were to google the 2 words Cornwallis Inn you will get over 600,000 entries with almost all of them married to the word Kentville.. (what a great promotional tool) . The world famous Cornwallis Inn is the source of many fond memories for local and Valley residents.. "It was the centre of everything’: The past and present of Kentville’s iconic Cornwallis Inn"
www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/lifestyles/it-was-the-centre...
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On the recent 2023 edition of the Grand Street Parade :
"it looked as if some spectators along the route just joined in and began to walk along and make themselves a part of the parade ? "
May 27th, 2023 - Dismay, disillusion and extreme disappointment prevail in Kentville over shocking changes and many missing regular entrees in this years 2023 Grand Street Parade ? Where is our famous Queen Annapolisa and where are the many Apple Blossom Princesses and their child attendants riding in their beautiful hand crafted decorated floats ? Where's the town criers ? And what about the dazzling majorette groups, the Scottish pipers and large multi instrumental marching bands that always come ? And where are the Hantsport and Windsor floats and their large delegations ? And where are Digby, Aylesford, Annapolis Royal, Canning, Middleton, Wolfville, and more ? Why are so many towns and villages that normally participate in the parade not included this year ? It was also a major disappointment when for the first time ever Kentville's own Apple Blossom Princess, (aka Miss Kentville) was no longer included in the parade as many toen residents young and old identify with their chosen Apple Blossom Princess at this time of year ? However the now royalty-free Princess float was still used to transport a grouping of normal everyday town residents sitting around together in a social scene meant to identity Kentville as being a diverse and inclusive place ? The New Minas float also did not include an Apple Blossom Princess for this year, however her float was transformed into an advertisement for the famous New Minas UFO incident which all New Minions identify with. The Berwick float didn't include a Princess Berwick this year either. but was altered to proudly identify with the town's upcoming Centennial celebrations. And the Kingston float was also missing an Apple Blossom Princess this year but was instead promoting their long running Kingston Steer Barbecue that all Kingstonians readily identify with. It was good to see an RCMP contingent again although they sent far less officers this year than usual ? And it was notable that only 1 other large marching band appeared in the parade when usually 4 or more big bands, many with many pipers usually attend after traveling up from places like Cape Breton, Bridgewater, Dartmouth etc ? And where have all of the pets and animals gone ? There's no horse teams, wooden wagons, riders or livestock this year ? Even the usual greyhound dogs weren't there ? Also noticed that some spectators must have just joined in and began walking along within the parade, and others must have come over from the Children's parade with their strollers to join in ? There was a variety of advertisers, most from out of town but some local ? There were various Political parties represented with the largest delegation coming from the Liberals ? All in all, this Year's parade seemed a bare minimum weak effort that was really missing the usual royal pageantry and 7 to 10 spectacular Princess floats, and the large marching bands and majorette groups that usually enter, and the usual agriculture horticulture and livestock component, and the very popular Scottish pipers bands that always attend, and the many large out of town contingents that always participate ? This was not the famous grand street parade that patrons are accustomed to and did not come near to the high standards and professionalism set by previous Grand Street Parades ? It became clearly obvious that what they were hailing as a newer, bolder, more inclusive and more diverse parade was instead the exact opposite ? This Grand Street Parades has lost the inclusion, diversity and major contribution given by the many Valley communities and their Princess contestants with Child attendants that come to participate in the Queen Annapolisa competition, the Friday evening coronation gala at Acadia University in Wolfville, the Princess Teas and Royal attendances at schools hospitals, senior citizen homes and shut-ins, as well as the Friday night Memorial Park outdoor concert, the Saturday morning Children's Parade and the Royal trip down Main street Kentville in the famous Grand Street parade ?
And so, to quickly sum up, can this strange, incomplete, hastily thrown together, shortened, newcomer mentality version of our world famous Kentville Grand Street Parade that is now missing all of the Queen Annapolisa Royalty and missing all 7 to 10 Apple Blossom Princesses and their 7 to 10 beautifully handcrafted individual Town Princess floats, and also missing the unique character and diversity brought forth by the many absent Valley villages and communities that are no longer included in the parade, and that had also failed to include many out of town large marching bands and pipers that usually attend, and that had also been lacking in the representation of local farming, agriculture and livestock displays, now signal the end of the once glorious Grand Street Parade era ?
Previous parades :
2011 Grand Street Parade Kentville 79th ABF
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVgh3Dh2xn8&t=208s
2012 Grand Street Parade Kentville www.youtube.com/watch?v=VB1VBx50b18
2014 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEo14IZKxp8&t=11s
2015 Kentville Grand Street Parade
www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBifeG2SdPY&t=47s
2016 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2wedvN5_Iw&t=8s
2017 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=JozwyGpvfSY&t=1978s
2018 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOK1GmiLmNk&t=986s
2019 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMdEx8Zf-q0&t=1492s
The exclusion of so many participants and denial of diversity have marred the 2023 edition of Kentville Grand Street Parade ? Many nearby Valley communities were missing when these longtime participants weren't included in this year's parade ? Where is Canning, Digby, Annapolis Royal, Hantsport Greenwood, Windsor ? Where's our Queen Annapolisa ? Where's the Apple Blossom Princesses and all the individual Town floats including Princess Kentville ? To view a complete (newcomer version) of the world famous Kentville Grand Street Parade press here www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie
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Public entertainment held at Memorial Park Kentville during the Apple Blossom Festival ;
A medley of some of the bands that have performed at Memorial Park Kentville, Apple Blossom Festival - Petty Larceny, Fleetwod Mix, Keep the Faith, Stones Tribute, Green River Revival, Viscious, Eddy's Basement, Matt Minglewood,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x76pn9b
www.dailymotion.com/video/x5hqti9
,
Fleetwood Mix;
in concert 2015,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbltesRRCNk&t=390s
Don't Stop www.dailymotion.com/video/x3o6auu
Gold Dust Woman
www.dailymotion.com/video/x3o5xbg
Edge of Seventeen
www.dailymotion.com/video/x3lpjb7
Everywhere
www.dailymotion.com/video/x3lo7rz
I don't wanna know
www.dailymotion.com/video/x2t85mg
Sisters of the Moon
www.dailymotion.com/video/x2gfold
Fleetwood Mix medley - 2015
www.dailymotion.com/video/x2sfjm1
Seven Wonders
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jxnas
The Chain
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jxnao
Rainbows End
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jxnaq
Just like a runaway girl
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jxnau
Tusk
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jxnfs
Viscious comes to Kentville ;
www.dailymotion.com/video/x8blaup
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Green River Revival at the 2012 A B F ;
studio.youtube.com/video/Q2rO8pG5Mkk/edit
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2rO8pG5Mkk
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Eddy's Basement in Kentville Thursday at the Park,,
Just another brick in the Wall
www.dailymotion.com/video/x7u402l
No Time, Comfortably Numb, Tied to the Whipping Post, Sin City, Twilight Zone, Roller, Smokin,, Money, Just Another Brick in the Wall..
www.dailymotion.com/video/x7u672h
Comfortably Numb,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x3lmbgf
Sin City,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x3ot59g
Roller,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x3lm5z5
Whippin Post
www.dailymotion.com/video/x3o5o5o
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Bluesmobile in Kentville ; ;
Forget About It,,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x4f58y3
25 or 6 to 4,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x4lfjyc
Knock on wood, Proud Mary,, etc = Memorial park Friday night show
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_f8WN0_OHz8&t=37s
Without Love
www.dailymotion.com/video/x4f1rgs
Caledonia_by Uncle D
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jv7ua
Superstitious
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jv7xy
All about the base
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jv7qs
No woman no cry
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jv7xw
Mustang Sally
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jv7y0
Bluesmobile on stage Gimme some luvin
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jv74i
Friday Bluesmobile on stage Memorial Park 1/2 hour
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jv6s0
2016 Bluesmobile on stage Friday Memorial Park Pt 1
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jxo5m
2016 Bluesmobile on stage Friday Memorial Park pt 2
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jxnhm
Bluesmobile in Kentville - 25 or 624
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9k6cma
An ABF Guest Tribute band,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x81qbxd
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Keep the Faith,
We got it going on,,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x2fs7xm
Its my Life,,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x2yxwbw
Keep the Faith in Kentville medley 3 songs
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9jvbli
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Petty Larceny
www.dailymotion.com/video/x2gq64d
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Matt Minglewood at Kentville Memorial Park ABF 2018, -
www.dailymotion.com/video/x6y6tww
2016 84th Apple Blossom Festival ;
The traditional Royal Party visitation to Memorial Park in Kentville following the Coronation Ceremonies at Acadia University in Wolfville,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x8zb7zg
Some bad news - Drastic cutbacks to public entertainment by the Town of Kentville will punish citizens and end the enjoyment of these guest Tribute band performances ? In an ongoing decline in content and quality of Kentville town entertainment, all normal mid-week public displays and entertainment that were always held at Memorial Park during the Apple Blossom Festival week have been curtailed by a new generation of administrators ? These Cost saving frugal decisions will conserve Town money by inflicting public entertainment cut-backs on citizens ?
More bad news, Drastic cutbacks by the Town of Kentville will end a long-time tradition of mid week Apple blossom open public entertainment normally held each year during the Apple Blossom Festival down at Memorial Park ? And so ever since these major entertainment cancellations backs in 2017, instead of an interesting and fun filled evening for the residents of Kentville, there's just a silent empty Park on Wednesdays and Thursdays at Kentville's Memorial Park during the Apple Blossom Festival ? No explanation, replacement, substitution or apology was ever offered ?
A Thursday at the Park,,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x81qbxd
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52087619256
Thursday at the Park - local students
www.dailymotion.com/video/x8blaur
Thursday at the Park - local music students performing at ABF
www.dailymotion.com/video/x8blaus
Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival Theme
www.dailymotion.com/video/x2gq8bx
Queen Annapolisa at the Park
www.dailymotion.com/partner/x15x1lv/media/video/details/x...
Thursday at the Park 20m Central Kings High drum core, www.dailymotion.com/partner/x15x1lv/media/video/details/x...
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52091143986/in/album-7...
Thursday at Memorial Park - Kentville Grade school kids perform,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x9k6c5c
Celebrate www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54544345629
Kentville is an incorporated town in Nova Scotia. It is the most populous town in the Annapolis Valley. As of 2021, the town's population was 6,630.
The Pershing County Courthouse in Lovelock, Nevada is a Classical Revival building built in 1920-21. The courthouse's plan is hexagonal with a circular dome over the central circular courtroom. The building was designed by Frederic Joseph DeLongchamps, who had previously designed six other Nevada courthouses. DeLongchamps was involved in the design of a new courthouse for Humboldt County, where the old courthouse had burned. As a result of resentment over assessments for the replacement in Winnemucca, the new Pershing County was created from part of Humboldt County and its seat established in Lovelock. DeLongchamps, as Supervising Architect for the State of Nevada, undertook the new Lovelock courthouse.
The courthouse features a shallow Ionic portico on a raised basement backed by a plain rectangular mass. Behind this is the hexagonal main body of the courthouse, built with curving walls. A shallow dome, reminiscent of Thomas Jefferson's University of Virginia Library, crowns the central courtroom. The primary building materials are brick with stone trim and terra cotta detailing. Construction cost amounted to $99,138.68.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pershing_County_Courthouse
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_Creative_Commons_...
I make no excuses for uploading six images of this amazing wood sculpture. Here's some information taken from a plaque beside the artwork:
The history of the Rebecca Riots is one of the most dramatic chapters in Welsh history. Against a background of agricultural crisis and grinding rural poverty, associations known as Turnpike Trusts established a network of tollhouses on country roads. Whether taking cattle to Market or collecting lime to fertilise their fields, hard pressed farmers had to pay tolls at every turn.
Resentment built up over many years until 1839 when there was a sudden explosion of violence directed at a new tollgate at Efailwen in north western Carmarthenshire. The attack was led by the stirring figure of 'Rebecca', a man disguised with a blackened face, wig and women's clothes, astride a white horse and waving a sword.
When the Main Trust placed a new tollgate near the Mermaid Tavern in St Clears on 18th November 1842, it marked the start of a four month battle between 'Rebecca' and the authorities. Positioned to make it impossible for traffic to pass through the area without paying a toll, it was pulled down by 'Rebecca' and her followers within hours. The Mermaid Gate was smashed a second time on 12th December that year when seventy to a hundred men, dressed in women's clothes and armed with scythes and guns, descended on the town at midnight. The rebuilt gate was torn down on 20th December and a fourth gate was destroyed in April 1843.
Every area seemed to have its own 'Rebecca' who became, and remains an almost mythical figure - a Welsh Robin Hood. Police and troops were called in to help protect the gates but 'Rebecca' and her daughters were usually one step ahead of the law. The protests came to an end in 1844 when a government Commission of Inquiry led to a reform of the Turnpike Trusts and answered many of the grievances of the rural population.
Wood sculpture by Simon Hedger (2008), commissioned by St Clears Council, standing close to the site of the original tollgate.
Piccadilly North Side (seen from the bus)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Johnson
One way to lose friends is to say something which is not fashionable about somebody like Boris Johnson: it is so much easier not to think for oneself and to regurgitate what the tabloids say. I noticed it the other day at a drinks party in south London (yes I do have friends south of the river!):
it struck me as plain lazy if not outright silly to repeat like a parrot headlines splashed on the news stand billboards... and caused me not to think much of the person whom I considered until then moderately intelligent before he gave 'his' opinion...
Why not see for myself, judge for myself, rather than recycle cliches?
Boris Johnson's kind of books , although inexpensively sold in paperback (some even in HW Smith at Victoria station - a bad omen) I would not normally read - it is not my thing! However, out of curiosity I decided to order several at my local bookshop (whose native salesmen do not even know how to spell such authors as Glendinning or Ondaatje...):when I put in the order I was looked at with a mixture of incredulity, amusement, suspicion and superiority by the young temp - thankfully I was not going to face him for much longer - these people do not stick for long in such places)...
Back to the story of my Saturday "drinks spotty" (sic) what my friend reproached Boris, among others, was that he appeared to be dressed casually at the Beijing Olympics ceremony, compared with the Chinese official who gave him the flag... I asked myself, where have I seen a British politician doing the same before? was it perhaps at the Cenotaph , the died-in-the wool "old Labour" Michael Foot?
Oh, but you see, Foot had plenty of excuses which would not apply to Boris in a society redolent with the resentment of class war typical of the best Stalinist practices, a society stuck in the mould of political correctness and global lukewarming.
Back to Johnson's books I finished his biography which i found amusing and informative giving a more rounded view of Boris and making him more humane than he otherwise appears, spontaneous, refreshing, cultivated, intelligent, predictable in his unpredictability....
"Cultivated" you say? but this is a cardinal sin which is looked at with greatest suspicion! Come on, who wants to be cultivated?
The other books I decided to read at intervals, a short story at a time and more of it later, For now all I can say from an incomplete trawl is that i would strongly recommend that you make up your own mind (unless it is too arduous or painful) and read for yourself.
NOTE: The paragraph in brackets are those of the artist:
THE SECOND ARCH 1952–1954 Ages 20–21–22
The three year span of the Second Arch witnessed dramatic
changes both in the personal life of the artist and in his view
not only of specific works of art but of the entire concept
of what constitutes art. Of greatest consequence, during this
three year period, were the actualities of events and the
realities of the intellectual and emotional experiences of his
twenty-second year. This was a time of profound questioning.
It was as if he knew with apodictic certainty that what he
saw, learned, did and created, actually, emotionally and
intellectually, would establish irrevocably the pattern his life
would follow thereafter. Leaving Alfred University in upstate
New York where his studies were based on the idea of
becoming a knowledgeable and skilled craftsman, he
transferred to Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield
Hills, Michigan, where he was, for the most part, given the
freedom to decide for himself when he would work in his
studio and what he would do therein. The throwing of pots,
bottles, bowls and plates was a specifically chosen and needed diversionary distraction from his investigation of and
experimentation with the human figure which took form
in plaster, clay, wood, marble, granite, bronze and in countless
drawings. Sixteen and seventeen hours of concentrated work
in his studio each and every day never seemed sufficient to
the young and joyful artist.
[After the recognition of the possibility for “whatness”
contained within the first arch—after that—the
transposition begins…what would occur, what did occur?
An acknowledgment of sexuality. A rebuttal of the past. An
embracing of presented ideas. A desire for “tools.” A search
for “style.” A sense of having been “chosen.” A more
objective grasp of my own “whoness.” A desire to destroy
the “female” presence within the “who.” Homoeroticism.
Symbiosis. A sense of deprivation in terms of personal
history. A feeling of there not being enough time. A pressing
awareness of death. Smoking. Drinking. “Living.” A
frustrating inability to communicate verbally. An intimidation
by the more culturally informed. A beginning response to music. Competitiveness. Embarrassed by family provinciality. A transfer of love from an older sister to a younger sister. A sense of being “flawed.” A sense of having lost something or of having had something internal and vital taken away. A desire to prove something. A necessity to prove myself “worthy.” A guilt for being alive. A resentment for being ignorant and naive. Ambition. A willfulness and perversity in terms of social “correctness.” A desire to be “the best.” Jealousy. Envy. A sense of being physically desirable to both sexes. A guilt for desiring both sexes. A discovery of love. A having love. A being loved. A departure of the beloved. A being left with love…alone. Guilt, pain, anger, resentment, sorrow—total Romantic Despair. An increasing response to music. A 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. studio day—seven days a week. “Whatness” becomes not a matter of choice but a matter of survival. The “who” cannot support nor retain its feelings, its passion, as being separate. The “what” accepts the first “giveaway” through the
transposition of recognition. It accepts the “who’s” desire to
be acceptable by something greater than itself. The question
“Where do we go from here?” must now be dealt with by
the “what.” The “who” becomes the Host and nourishing
source for the evolution of the “what”…a symbiosis of the self.]
His “production” and his experimentation with ideas
and materials was nothing short of astounding, at times to
the great annoyance of his fellow students. How many actual
pots he “threw” was legend at the time. Although he never
considered himself a ceramicist, his pots, bottles, bowls and
plates gained him that reputation. He was included in craft
exhibitions in such places as The Detroit Institute of Art, the
Brooklyn Museum and the Toledo Museum of Art and he
was represented in Toledo by the Downtown Gallery and in
New York City by the Bertha Shaeffer Gallery. The particular
determination and the desire of the young artist to achieve
perfection, then as now, was clearly evidenced at the time.
In order to master the throwing of pots, it is first necessary
to know how to center the clay on the wheel. To teach
himself, he practiced hour after hour, consecutively, until he
was able to center the clay perfectly each time. By then his
hands were actually bleeding from the effort. Once learned,
and in his desire then to create, he would take over as his
own as many as six wheels in the ceramic studio, a pot in
process on each. The first behavior was deemed by some as
neurotic and the second as selfish. The volume of production
increased and his reputation grew. But he knew ever more
strongly that although the throwing of pots was interesting
to him as a challenge, he was a figurative sculptor. And his
experimentation with materials and with the figure
outmatched his production of ceramics.
In the words of the artist:
[Age 22—The year in Italy—a break with the linear influences
which produced the year 1954–1955 mid-west America, and
a confrontation with that which is Italy…a culture whose
present is enclosed within the “Past.” A place where the world
goes to experience what it was, rather than what it
is—although it goes on living its day by day generation by
generation existence through linear time.…I began to analyze and experience works that were not within the reference of my own time…With the reopening of the “who” and a consideration of art not “of my time,” what I was or what I desired to be was
challenged and enlarged. Art was not only a personal
out-pouring from the “who’s” emotions and feelings but
was also intellectual and somehow seemed to be philo-
sophically ordered. It seemed to signify more than what it
evidenced itself as being in terms of structure, plasticity,
color, etc. . . . What I envisioned for myself and for my own
work was not just an accumulation of the mechanics of
“that’s why it works,” but something more…the works I
responded to seemed to “be about” something. Though my
culture denied the validity of content, the works that I
responded to proclaimed it. A juxtaposition of abstract
bodily weights and axes just didn’t carry as much
significance as those weights and axes with a body
surrounding them. What’s more, certain works which were
supposedly past, over, and done with—in effect dead—were
more alive and real than anything my time had yet produced.
I wanted to become part of that reality. The imposed
limitations of contemporaneity became intolerable. I faced
my own time as though it were an enemy—a murderer.
I returned “home” filled with the sense of my own
“whatness.” That what I thought, felt, and believed could and
would change not only my own work but that by its very
reality, the whole foundation of contemporary art, could and
would be destroyed. If I could respond to works within the linear “Past” and not to works within the linear “Present,” was not my response capable of provoking it?]
The events of the Second Arch were carried into the
Third Arch since the Fulbright Scholarship was for the
academic year 1954–1955. And there, in Rome, he was left to
work as he chose and did so with the same vigor and surety
he had evidenced at Cranbrook Academy of Art. Many pieces
were completed and shipped to America, works in plaster, in
bronze and in terra cotta. But, most importantly, he had
experienced a vital and profound and even cathartic change
in his view of art and of himself as an artist, actually and
metaphorically. Returned to Cranbrook, he again produced
ceramics but, much more importantly, he cast numerous
figurative pieces in bronze. All of his sculpture, no matter the
medium, then and for the rest of his life, was unique. There
were, however, limited editions of his lithographs and books.
Many of the student pieces were later destroyed by the
artist. Some were, however, included in one-man studio
exhibitions and in other venues and a few have been
memorialized in photograph. Exhibitions include: Designer-
Craftsmen at the Brooklyn Museum, New York, 1953; the
Thirty-Sixth Annual Exhibition of Toledo Area Artists at the
Toledo Museum of Art in 1954; Paula Shaeffer Gallery, New
York; one-man exhibition of sculpture and ceramics, the
Toledo Art Museum, 1955; one-man exhibition, Downtown
Art Gallery in Toledo, Ohio. All of those works that have
survived are now in private and institutional collections.
Rocinha slum - favela - , Río de Janeiro, Brazil. An agency arranges tours of the favelas and spends part of the gains is on charity in the favelas, mostly on building schools. This means that you're actually welcome - even though some of the young men, reasonably enough, showed signs of resentment.
The blue and white seem to feed off of each other. I love how blue everything is, including the reflections on the snow.
D90 HDR Info
- Three exposure HDR, bracketing set to 3F with 2.0 EV.
- Photomatix tonemapped generated HDR (using detail enhancer).
- Lightroom 2 adjustments.
- Ryan Eng has a great tutorial on HDR here.
Luis Martín-Cabrera and Anke Pinkert at the Resentment's Conflicts Symposium.
Audio recordings for this symposium are available at the IPRH Website: www.iprh.illinois.edu/multimedia/?searchString=Resentment...
Photo by Darrell Hoemann.
All rights transfer to IPRH.
After the great Pirate-Imperial war of 1789 was over, an era of peace between the two enemies began. Laughter, beer, and many great stories were shared between Pirates and Imperials.
But anger and resentment still lied deep inside both sides. And instead of taking out their anger on each other, they found a common enemy. Seagulls. Loud, annoying, and messy, seagulls were the one thing both sides hated. And so began the great sport of Seagull Blasting, where the Pirates and Imperials would compete to see who could shoot down more seagulls using a cannon. In the background the big wigs of both sides were making bets, because neither side wanted to stop looking for treasure...
Please let me know ASAP of any suggestions you may have. Thanks!
Messages from Osifu：Salvation Ceremony
December 28th,2011
The extraordinary effect of salvation ceremony is just unconceivable, which has been witnessed by those disciples and guests participated in the three ceremonies hold in north on December 24th and 25,2011.
There are indispensable causes of salvation ceremony, and it is only when requirements are met that ceremony would be held. Because it is different from the salvation rites performed in ordinary temples. If the conditions are not met, we won’t hold such salvation ceremony.
There are at least seven main points about preconditions if I will throw a salvation rite.
1. Appropriate time and space.
2. Higher dimensional enlighten souls agree to help in the process, who are forces of receiving, supporting and protection. Where does the salvation come from if departing them?
3.Those to be rescued supplicate for and accept the salvation, which conforms the cosmic stimulation-response rule and respect rule.
4. People supplicate for and accept the salvation for all the invisible sentient beings to be rescued. They need to put their hearts and souls into it. Cooperation and support from them is necessary, which is in cord with the cosmic stimulation-response rule and respect rule and balance rules of Yin against Yang.
5.There is at least one person who has enough energy and supernatural power and can communicate between Buddha-Budhi-
sattva and sentient beings, high dimension and low one, high energy and low one. He has received approval from higher beings and offer to preside over the salvation ceremony.
6. It’s a systematic project, which needs the collective coordination of different dimensions, different levels, different deva-kingdoms, different deities, world and underworld, heaven and earth. Complete perfection can only be accomplished in perfect devotion
7. The Great Salvation needs to do it.
All statements above are the brief points of requirements
If the conditions are met, we will perform salvation ceremony. But If the conditions are not met, we won’t.
It needs to point out that those to be saved are not confined to invisible beings, visible beings are included as well.
If the time is ripe, I will tell you the essence of salvation. In fact, anyone who has power of wisdom can catch on its intrinsic quality.
That’s all for today.
December 29th,2011
Someone who has power of wisdom has already understood the essence of salvation ceremony. So it doesn’t need to discourse it again.
However, I will explain it again in order to make it more clear to those slow-witted and bring the compassion of Buddha and Bodisattvas to them.
The essence is changing the invisibles and being seen visibly. Listen to me careful, and I will tell you ten points in detail.
1.Charging up with positive energy for the beings to be rescued.
2.Connecting information for the beings to be rescued.
3．Adjusting physical and spiritual state for the beings to be rescued.
4. Clearing and purifying low-frequency energy for the beings to be rescued.
5. Making restoration to the master soul for the beings to be rescued.
6. Persuading them to give up illusionary attachment.
7.Mediating their disputes and resentment.
8. Arranging their whither.
9. Releasing and liberating them from their painful habitations.
10. Receiving and guiding them to a better place.
It will become meaningless if the ten points of requirements for salvation aren’t met.
Holding salvation ceremony has become one of the most important tasks at the present. So I made a detailed explanation.
I truly hope that you all can understand the immeasurable merits and virtues of salvation.
I truly hope that you all can understand the urgency of salvation.
I truly hope that you all can understand beings craving for salvation.
I truly hope that you all can understand the vast and heavy responsibility of salvation.
Only those who understand it completely can do a good job in salvation.
I have made a clear statement that the target of salvation is all sentient beings, and invisible ones are the majority.
At present, we need to salvage as many invisible beings as possible . If we make all-out efforts, we can do it better and better.Next time, human beings will become our main target of salvation.And then, you need to know what are the targets of our salvation.
I will briefly categorize them as ten classes to help you to get a better comprehension.
1.Beings in the hell
2.Hungry ghosts
3.Animals
4.Human beings
5.Asura.
6.Heaven beings
7. Those who have achieved holy attainment above the stage of arhan, but cannot ascend to higher dimension with his own energy.
8. Other beings who have detained in this three dimension space and cannot enter into samsara and cannot leave neither.
9. Those beings who are waiting for salvation and have lost their energy because of star war or transformation of time-space since many aeons
10. Other beings who don’t need to be known for humankind according to the requirements of the cosmic mission.
This ten categories of targets I have just concisely said are what you are allowed to know and need to know.
Then, you need to know where we should send them to.
I will also briefly categorize them as ten classes and in this way it will be easier to memorize. Of course, there are many places in detail explanation.
1.Buddha-kingdoms in the universe wide.
Western paradise is the first choice for those practicing pure land sects. I will also recommend it seriously. Reborn into pure land can be guaranteed if you can accomplish refraining from all evil, doing all virtuous deeds, purifying mind and chanting the name of Buddha, true believe, sincere aspiration and real practice.
2. Different celestial kingdoms
3. Different stars and planets
4.Faerie islands, cave heavens and wonderful landscapes
5.Big Ocean, Dragon palaces and water home.
6.All deva ashram of different sects.
7. All undergroud ashram of different sects.
8. All human ashram of different sects.
9. The center of the universe.
10. Six samsara realms.
This kind of beings cannot get rid of samsara because of the shortage of merits and virtues. So they have to continue their transmigration and it is very rare to ascend to good ways of incarnation from evil ones.
All these destinations I have just listed are what you are supposed to know.
You will find that I have discoursed frequently in recent time, because the opportunity is rare and precious.
I wish you will cherish it, be aware of it and become enlighten.
Great Salvation needs your effort.
Buddha and Bodhisattva expect your endeavor.
Protective divinities are ready to help you.
All sentient beings are waiting for your help.
Master Osifu is expecting your commitment.
You are supposed to waken, realize and internally conceive your mission as soon as possible. It’s time to say something and to do something. Doesn’t it?
That’s all for today.
2011-12-28上午〇sifu开示：
举行救拔超度法会殊胜不可思议！
2011年12月24日、25日〇sifu在南方弘法期间所举行的三场救拔超度法会之殊胜不可思议已经被参加法会的弟子有缘人所见证。
举行救拔超度法会是有因缘的。因缘具足才会举行救拔超度法会，这不同于一般寺庙里举行的超度法会。因缘不具足是不会举行的。
〇sifu举行救拔超度法会的因缘至少有七点：
一、合适的时空点。
二、神佛仙圣真高维次生灵认可同意并全程参与奉献。这是接引力量、加持力量、护持力量，离此何来救拔超度。
三、被救拔超度生灵的祈请、求救、求助并同意接受救拔超度。这符合宇宙“有感有应”法则、尊重法则。
四、有形的人为被救拔超度生灵的祈请、求救、求助并同意接受救拔超度。法会需要有形的人的全心全力支持和配合。
这符合宇宙“有感有应”法则、尊重法则和阴阳平衡规律。
五、需要至少一个层次足够高、能量足够强、法力足够大、联系佛菩萨和众生、连接高维次和低维次、联通高能量和低能量，并得到神佛仙圣真认可的人，来发心并主持法会全过程。
六、超度救拔法会是一个系统工程，需要各维次、各层次、各层天、各道神祗、阴阳两界、天地人共同齐心协力、尽心尽力、各司其职、各负其责、广设方便，方能圆满实施达成。
七、大救度运行的需要。
简言以上七点〇sifu举行救拔超度法会的因缘。
符合因缘具足就会举行，因缘不到不会举行。
言明一点，被救拔超度者并非只有无形，包括有形。
机缘到了会给大家开示 救拔超度的本质是什么。
其实 有慧根者，从今天的开示已经可以悟到救拔超度的本质是什么。
今天就到这里。
2011-12-29上午〇sifu开示：
〇 2011/12/29 8:59:50
有慧根者，从昨天的开示已经可以悟到救拔超度的本质是什么了，本来无需再度宣说。
然，佛菩萨慈悲，要以更加直白了当的方式遍告大众，让根基下陋者亦能明觉了知，今日再做宣说。
救拔超度的本质本是无形之变、有形之现。今详言其十，大众谛听！
其一，给被救拔超度生灵加持能量。
其二，给被救拔超度生灵接通信息。
其三，给被救拔超度生灵调整密码。
其四，给被救拔超度生灵清除净化。
其五，给被救拔超度生灵修复元灵。
其六，给被救拔超度生灵化解妄执。
其七，给被救拔超度生灵调解恩怨。
其八，给被救拔超度生灵安排去处。
其九，给被救拔超度生灵开封放行。
其十，给被救拔超度生灵护持接引。
离此十，若谈救拔超度，皆是空话。
举行救拔超度法会已经成为当前时空点、时空段的重要任务之一。因此因缘，〇sifu才会详细开示。
万望尔等明觉救拔超度之功德无量！
万望尔等明觉救拔超度之迫在眉睫！
万望尔等明觉救拔超度之众生渴求！
万望尔等明觉救拔超度之任重体大！
对救拔超度认识到位，你才能做好救拔超度。
〇sifu明晰的讲过，大救度的对象不仅仅是人。
大救度的对象是所有生灵，无形是最多的，是主体。
当前这一个时空段，我们尽可能多的先解决好无形的救拔超度问题。尽心尽力，救拔超度走的越多越好。
因为，下一个时空段，我们救度的重点是人。
接下来，你们有必要知道我们的救度对象都有哪些。
〇sifu简列十类，助尔等明晰。
第一类，地狱道众生。
第二类，鬼道众生。
第三类，畜生道众生。
第四类，人道众生。
第五类，阿修罗道众生。
第六类，天道众生。
第七类，已证圣果，但无法凭借自身能量穿越能量屏障离开此时空维次的修心修行修炼者。
第八类，因为各种因缘，未进入六道轮回又无法出离解脱，滞留在此时空维次的生灵。
第九类，多劫来，由于能量消耗、时空转换、天际战斗等原因，一直以来等待救援接引而无法离开地球和娑婆世界的生灵。
第十类，根据宇宙运行需要，其他的（不需要人类知道）此次需要离开此时空维次的特殊生灵群体。
〇sifu简言大救度救拔超度对象以上十大类。这些是你们可以知道也应该知道的。
接下来，你们有必要知道我们要把众生救拔超度到哪里。
为了便于你们记忆，也归纳为十大类去处，当然详讲会很多。
第一类去处：十方佛刹。净宗行人当然首选西方极乐世界。〇sifu也郑重推介西方极乐世界。断恶、修善、净心、念佛、真信、切愿、实行，必能往生。
第二类去处：各层天。
第三类去处：各星球。
第四类去处：各仙岛、洞天、福地。
第五类去处：各大海、龙宫、水府。
第六大类去处：各教天界修心修行修炼场。
第七大类去处：各教地界修心修行修炼场。
第八大类去处：各教人界修心修行修炼场。
第九大类去处：佛心、性海、天心、道心、神心、宙心、宇心。
第十大类去处：六道。此类众生因为善根、福德、因缘无法直接出离解脱。只能继续在六道中轮回。但由恶道升入善道已是殊胜难得。
〇sifu简言大救度救拔超度对象的十大类去处。这些是你们应该知道的。 你们会发现近几日开示非常多，这是时节因缘所致。
希望你们珍惜、明觉、开悟。
大救度等着你们!
佛菩萨等着你们！
护法神等着你们！
众生灵等着你们！
〇sifu等着你们！
〇sifu等着你们！
你们应该尽快觉醒、觉知、觉悟！
你们是时候该说些什么、做些什么了。
不是吗？
今天就到这里吧。
msn：chicheng1980@hotmail.com, osifu@hotmail.com
This Flashback takes us to mid May 1975 .We see Hazzard Range County sheriff’s office Deputy Dan Brice and Sergeant Jim Hollysen recovering a stolen vehicle found abandoned along Pantano rd ,
The vehicle belongs to the US Army so might have been a joy ride by local teenagers' or maybe link anti-war movement or even resentment feelings towards the US government over the centuries county has seen with disagreements and deeds US government has done ,Suspects were never found and only thing done to the car was it ran out of fuel . It was left idling outside of Drop Laundry in Sparta a good 30 miles north of here .
Fast forward to 2024
Drop Laundry is now called Water laundry Deputy Brice worked for the sheriff's office from Dec 1968 -to June 1975 . Left for another job in AZ . He passed away in 2011 . Sergeant Jim Hollysen worked for the sheriff's office from Nov 1966 to April 1986 when he ran for Sheriff and lost . He went on to work for neighboring county of Sweetwater for 10 years now retired and lives in northern NM .
I have spent the last few months a ball of frustration and resentment... I
took the time and ended things that were
keeping me from the things I miss and love... This morning I woke up and
looked out the window to SNOW!
Instead of thinking and grumbling about the things I had to do other than
have fun I was able to grab the boy and his
new sled and smile :D YEAH!
This was one of the photos that I took from the other side of the foot bridge by the Anglesey pub, that Ma Zhengfang guided me to, so without her help I'd have never found this shot.
This majestic castle was built over 700 years ago, and was inspired by Roman, Constantinople, and Arthurian architecture. It sits on the intersection of the River Seiont, and the Menai Strait, and was a symbol of British rule over the Welsh; to the Welsh it was also a source of resentment towards the British.
Coptic Christians in Cairo Egypt living in El Zabaleen, or garbage city. For generations families would work together to collect all the rubbish from the streets of Cairo and take it back to their homes. They then sift and sort through all the items which are then sold on to merchants. 85% of all solid waste is thus recycled from the city.
Families used to own pigs that used to eat the organic waste but everyone of them was slaughtered during 2009 during the outbreak of the H1N1 'swine' flu, even though there were no cases reported in Egypt. It was the only country that carried out a mass cull, and was also reported that it was done in an inhumane manner. This increased tension and resentment with the Government.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
History
France
NameRichelieu
NamesakeCardinal de Richelieu
BuilderArsenal de Brest
Laid down22 October 1935
Launched17 January 1939
Commissioned1 April 1940
Decommissioned1967
Stricken1968
FateBroken up, 1968
General characteristics Original configuration
Class and typeRichelieu-class battleship
Displacement
Standard: 37,250 long tons (37,850 t)
Full load: 43,992 long tons (44,698 t)
Length247.85 m (813 ft 2 in)
Beam33.08 m (108 ft 6 in)
DraftFull load: 9.9 m (32 ft 6 in)
Installed power
6 × Indret Sural boilers
155,000 shp (116,000 kW)
Propulsion
4 × Parsons geared turbines
4 × screws
Speed32 knots (59 km/h; 37 mph)
Range9,500 nautical miles (17,600 km; 10,900 mi) at 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement1,569
Armament
8 × 380 mm (15-inch)/45 Modèle 1935 guns
9 × 152 mm (6 in)/50 guns
12 × 100 mm (3.9-inch) anti-aircraft guns
8 × 37 mm (1.5 in) AA guns
20 × 13.2 mm (0.52 in) Hotchkiss machine guns
Armor
Belt: 330 mm (13 in)
Main deck: 170 mm (6.7 in)
Turrets: 430 mm (17 in)
Conning tower: 340 mm (13 in)
Aircraft carried4 × Loire 130 seaplanes
Aviation facilities2 × catapults
General characteristics 1943 refit
Displacement
Standard: 43,957 t (43,263 long tons)
Full load: 47,728 t (46,974 long tons)
DraftFull load: 10.68 m (35 ft)
Complement1,930
Sensors and
processing systems
SF surface search radar
SA-2 air search radar
Armament
8 × 380 mm/45 guns
9 × 152 mm/50 guns
12 × 100 mm anti-aircraft guns
56 × 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors AA guns
48 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon AA cannons
Richelieu was a French fast battleship, the lead ship of the Richelieu class. Built as a response to the Italian Littorio class, the Richelieus were based on their immediate predecessors of the Dunkerque class with the same unconventional arrangement that grouped their main battery forward in two quadruple gun turrets. They were scaled up to accommodate a much more powerful main battery of eight 380 mm (15 in) guns (compared to the 330 mm (13 in) guns of the Dunkerques), with increased armor to protect them from guns of the same caliber. Richelieu was laid down in 1935 and was launched in 1939, just before the outbreak of World War II in Europe. As war with Germany became increasingly likely, work on the ship was rushed to prepare her for commissioning in April 1940.
Completed just days before the Germans won the Battle of France in June, Richelieu fled to Dakar in French West Africa to keep her under French control. There, she came under repeated British attacks that had been intended to either compel the battleship to join the Free French Naval Forces or sink her; these included during Operation Catapult in July 1940 and the Battle of Dakar in September. Damaged in both attacks, the ship was slowly repaired before eventually being turned over to Free French control after the Allied invasion of North Africa in November 1942. After being sent to the United States for repairs and an extensive modernization, the ship served with the British Home Fleet in early 1944 before being deployed to the Eastern Fleet for operations against the Japanese in the Indian Ocean. These included several bombardment operations and in May 1945 she was present during the Battle of the Malacca Strait, though she was too far away to engage the Japanese force.
Richelieu was part of the force that liberated Singapore after the Japanese surrender in September, and she later operated in French Indochina as part of the initial effort to restore French colonial rule. Recalled to France in December 1945, she was repaired and modernized slightly in 1946. The ship saw relatively limited training in the immediate postwar years and, in 1952, she was removed from active service for use as a gunnery training ship. In 1956, she was placed in reserve and was thereafter used as a stationary training vessel and barracks ship until 1967, when the French Navy decided to discard her. She was sold for scrap in 1968, and broken up in Italy from 1968 to 1969.
Design
Main article: Richelieu-class battleship
Recognition drawing of Richelieu in her original configuration
When in 1934 Italy announced that it would begin building two Littorio-class battleships armed with 381 mm (15 in) guns, the French Navy immediately began preparations to counter them. The small Dunkerque-class battleships that had been ordered provided the template for the next French battleship design, but it needed to be scaled up to match the new Italian vessels, both in terms of offensive and defensive characteristics. The design staff considered 380 and 406 mm (16 in) guns, but the latter could not be incorporated in a design that remained within the 35,000 long tons (35,560 t) limit imposed by the Washington Naval Treaty and was quickly discarded. The Dunkerques carried their armament in two quadruple gun turrets arrayed in a superfiring pair forward of the superstructure, and the designers experimented with other arrangements, including combinations of triple and twin turrets, but the need to minimize the length of the armor belt (and thus its weight) necessitated the Dunkerque layout.[1]
Richelieu displaced 37,250 long tons (37,850 t) standard and 43,992 long tons (44,698 t) fully loaded, with an overall length of 247.85 m (813 ft 2 in), a beam of 33.08 m (108 ft 6 in) and a maximum draft of 9.9 m (32 ft 6 in). She was powered by four Parsons geared steam turbines and six oil-fired Sural water-tube boilers, which developed a total of 155,000 shaft horsepower (116,000 kW) and yielded a maximum speed of 32 knots (59 km/h; 37 mph). At a cruising speed of 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph), the ship could steam for 9,500 nautical miles (17,600 km; 10,900 mi). Her crew numbered 1,569 officers and men. The ship carried four Loire 130 seaplanes on the quarterdeck, and the aircraft facilities consisted of a steam catapult and a crane to handle the floatplanes.[2][3]
She was armed with eight 380 mm/45 Modèle (Mle) 1935 guns arranged in two quadruple gun turrets,[a] both of which were placed in a superfiring pair forward of the superstructure. Her secondary armament consisted of nine 152 mm (6 in) /55 Mle 1930 guns mounted in three triple turrets, arranged on the rear superstructure. Heavy anti-aircraft (AA) defense consisted of twelve 100 mm (3.9 in) /45 Mle 1930 anti-aircraft guns in twin turrets. Close range anti-aircraft defense was provided by a battery of eight 37 mm (1.5 in) guns in twin mounts and twenty 13.2 mm (0.52 in) machine guns in four quadruple and two twin mounts. The ship's belt armor was 330 mm (13 in) thick amidships, and the main battery turrets were protected by 430 mm (17 in) of armor plate on the faces. The main armored deck was 170 mm (6.7 in) thick, and the conning tower had 340 mm (13 in) thick sides.[2][4]
Service
Construction
The contract for Richelieu was awarded to the Arsenal de Brest on 31 August 1935, and the keel for the new ship was laid down on 22 October in the No. 4 dock that had recently built Dunkerque. The slipway was not long enough to accommodate the entire length of the new battleship, and so the hull had to be built in pieces. The main section of the hull, which amounted to 197 m (646 ft), was built on the slipway, while a 43 m (141 ft) length of the bow and an 8 m (26 ft) length of her stern were built elsewhere and attached after the rest of the ship was launched on 17 January 1939. The French decision to lay down Richelieu in 1935 put the country in violation of the Washington Treaty, which was to expire on 31 December 1936, as the combined tonnage of the two Dunkerques and Richelieu exceeded the 70,000 long tons (71,000 t) that had been allotted to France during the moratorium on new battleship construction. France used the Anglo-German Naval Agreement, which Britain had unilaterally signed with Germany in June 1935 to dismiss British objections to the new ship, though they nevertheless slowed construction of Richelieu to ease British concerns. Work was also slowed by strikes in the shipyards for better pay and working conditions.[2][5]
By the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, the hull had been assembled; the start of the war led the naval command to decide to slow work on other, less complete vessels to focus efforts on Richelieu and her sister ship Jean Bart. The ship began initial testing on 15 October while still fitting-out in an effort to rush the ship into service; the same day, the ship's first commander, Capitaine de vaisseau (CV—Ship-of-the-line captain) Marzin came aboard. Engine testing began on 14 January 1940, and a week later her main battery was completed when the last barrel was installed. Further engine testing was carried out between 31 March and 7 April; during this period, she was commissioned on 1 April. Formal acceptance trials began on 14 April. Repair work was conducted in Brest from 19 to 27 May, and fire control equipment for the main and secondary batteries were installed. Richelieu conducted full-power trials on 13 June, reaching 32.63 knots (60.43 km/h; 37.55 mph) from 179,000 shp (133,000 kW), exceeding her design performance. Test firings of the guns were conducted on 13 and 14 June. Work on the ship was completed on 15 June 1940, days before France surrendered to Germany after the Battle of France.[6]
World War II
Under Vichy control: 1940–1942
With German troops advancing across France by mid-June, the Navy decided to evacuate Richelieu to Dakar in French West Africa; while earlier plans had been to send the fleet to British ports to continue the war, when the possibility of a negotiated armistice arose, the government decided that the fleet would be a useful bargaining chip. As a result, vessels should be preserved under French control, away from German occupation. At 06:45, the ship took on a load of ammunition and fuel, though she received only 198 quarter charges of propellant for her main battery, which amounted to powder sufficient for 49 shots. Material that had not yet been installed was also hastily loaded onto the ship, to be fitted once Richelieu reached the safety of Dakar. She also took aboard gold reserves from the Bank of France and 250 cadets from the École Navale (Naval Academy). There was insufficient time to allow the full complement to assemble and board the ship, and at 04:00 the next morning, Richelieu got underway while German troops approached Brest. Richelieu steamed in company with the destroyers Fougueux and Frondeur while German aircraft made several ineffective attacks against the ships. The battleship's anti-aircraft guns returned fire without success. Initially cruising at a speed of 22 kn (41 km/h; 25 mph), boiler trouble forced the ships to decrease speed to 18 kn (33 km/h; 21 mph). The motors for her rudder also repeatedly broke down on the voyage, though the crew was able to repair them. While cruising off Casablanca, French Morocco at 17:00 on 20 June, the torpedo boats were detached to refuel, their place being taken by the new destroyer Fleuret. The two vessels then proceeded on to Dakar, where they arrived at 17:44 on 23 June.[7][8]
Richelieu in Dakar in 1940
On arriving in Dakar, an uneasy situation confronted Richelieu while armistice negotiations were still underway. The commander of French naval forces in the region, Contre-amiral (CA—Rear Admiral) Plançon and the governor-general of French West Africa, Léon Cayla, were inclined to remain in the war against Germany. Also, significant British naval units were in the area, including the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes moored in Dakar and the British South Atlantic Squadron, which was nearby. At the same time, Richelieu had used half of her fuel to escape Brest, and she could perform little sustained firing of her main or secondary guns. Admiral François Darlan, the Chief of Staff of the French Navy, sent a telegraph on the night of 23–24 June to warn Marzin that the British might attack the vessel to neutralize it in the event of a French surrender, and ordered him to begin preparations to scuttle the ship if the need arose. Meanwhile, on 23 June, the British heavy cruiser Dorsetshire departed Freetown to observe Richelieu's activities in Dakar.[8][9]
On 25 June, Marzin received word that the French government had signed the Armistice with Germany. Darlan instructed him that the ship was to remain under French control, and if that proved to be impossible, he was to scuttle the ship or attempt to escape to the then-neutral United States. Marzin decided that, given the threat of British warships in the area, the best course of action was to try to escape to Casablanca and join the French fleet there, and so at 14:30 Richelieu got underway in company with Fleuret. Hermes raised anchor as well and began to follow Richelieu with her Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers on her flight deck, but the coastal artillery trained their guns on the ship, convincing Hermes' commander to return to port. Dorsetshire nevertheless shadowed Richelieu while she was at sea. The next morning, Darlan, who feared that Marzin was trying to defect to the Free French forces, ordered him to return to Dakar. Marzin complied and turned the ships back to port, but while on the way, he received amended orders instructing him to wait some 120 nmi (220 km; 140 mi) north of Cape Verde to escort the 1st Division of Armed Merchant Cruisers to Dakar, as they were carrying another load of gold reserves from the Bank of France. Richelieu failed to make contact at the prescribed rendezvous point, and since she had not embarked any of her floatplanes before fleeing Brest, she could not conduct an aerial search. Marzin instead returned to Dakar on 28 June; the convoy arrived, having been significantly delayed, on 4 July.[8][10]
After returning to port, work began to prepare the ship for action as quickly as possible. Marzin ordered that a stockpile of 330 mm propellant charges that had been stocked for the battleship Strasbourg before France's surrender to be converted into charges that were usable by Richelieu. The secondary guns were readied for action ten days later, but they lacked a director capable of tracking aerial targets, so they could be used against surface ships only. Under the terms of the armistice, Richelieu was to be returned to Toulon, where she would be demobilized, though the Germans later decided against permitting the move, as they feared the British would try to seize the ship during the passage through the Strait of Gibraltar; the British, meanwhile, were under the mistaken impression that the Germans sought to seize the French fleet for their own use. This led to Operation Catapult, a series of attacks on French warships to neutralize vessels that would not defect to the Free French.[11]
British attack on 8 July 1940 and repairs
HMS Hermes (center) and Dorsetshire (background) off Dakar during the operation against Richelieu
The component of Catapult that targeted Richelieu consisted of the carrier Hermes, which joined the cruisers HMAS Australia and Dorsetshire off Dakar. On 4 July, the day after the British had attacked Mers-el-Kébir, Plançon ordered the submarines Le Glorieux and Le Héros to attack Dorsetshire while it cruised off the port. He also instructed the coastal batteries to open fire if she closed to within 15 km (9.3 mi), though Dorsetshire remained at a distance. Marzin moved Richelieu to a position near the island of Gorée, pointed south so that the ship's main battery could aim at any vessels that approached Dakar. The British had intended to send Force H to Dakar after the attack on Mers-el-Kébir, but the need to return to destroy Dunkerque forced the British to resort to Hermes; on 7 July, the sloop HMS Milford was sent to contact Plançon and issue the ultimatum to either surrender his ship to British control or be sunk.[12][13]
Marzin prepared his ship to sortie the next morning; he intended to use the eight rounds loaded in his main guns to attack Hermes. Other forces in Dakar were put on alert and Le Héros again sortied to assist in the attack. While the French preparations were ongoing, the British sent a motorboat from Milford to drop four depth charges under Richelieu's stern to disable her screws, though this attempt failed. At 04:15, a group of Swordfish launched from Hermes as Richelieu was about to get underway. One of their torpedoes struck the ship aft on the starboard side and tore a hole that was 9.3 by 8.5 m (31 by 28 ft) between the propeller shafts. The resulting shock disabled many of the ship's systems. Two of her fire control directors were knocked off their tracks, the starboard propeller shafts were bent, and the blast caused significant flooding. Damage control teams pumped fuel out of the bunkers to counteract the loss of buoyancy aft and the ship was towed into port for repairs. Anti-torpedo nets were set up around the vessel, which had taken on some 2,400 t (2,400 long tons) of water and at low tide rested on the harbor bottom.[13][14][15]
Later that afternoon, tankers came alongside and began pumping oil out of the ship's bunkers to reduce her draft, but water continued to leak into the hull through the cable tunnels. Pumps attached to the ship helped to control the flooding, but the hoses repeatedly pulled loose as Richelieu rose and fell with the waves. To further complicate the effort to repair the ship, Dakar lacked a dry dock sufficient to accommodate Richelieu; the battleship could not simply be drained and plated over. Instead, damaged bulkheads had to be patched and pumped out individually; by 28 August, some 1,300 t (1,300 long tons) of water remained aboard the ship. Heavy use of the pumps caused frequent breakdowns, which further slowed work. In his report on the attack and subsequent repairs, Marzin criticized faulty design and construction practices that hindered damage control efforts, including insufficient pumping equipment, poor quality control for the welding of bulkheads, and a failure to ensure that critical components like the turret trunks were watertight.[16]
While work to control and reverse the flooding was ongoing, other repairs were necessary to return the ship to operational status. The fire-control directors needed to be re-seated in their tracks, wiring that had been damaged by flooding or leaking fuel oil had to be replaced, and several of the electrical generators, which had been badly shaken by the blast, needed to be rebuilt. Given the limited ability to repair the damage to the ship, Marzin focused efforts on ensuring that the main and secondary batteries could be effectively used, even if the ship could only be employed as a static floating battery against an expected second attack from British forces. Amiral (Admiral) Jean de Laborde flew to Dakar to conduct an inspection and help to organize the defenses. As part of these preparations, both Plançon and Cayla, who were suspected of being pro-British, were removed from their posts, with Plançon's place taken by CA Platon and then CA Landriau.[17]
Workers in the local shipyard scavenged metal from other ships in the harbor to fabricate an 11.5 m (38 ft) square patch to cover the torpedo hole, which was planned to be installed by 10 September. This would allow the rear magazines for the 152 mm and 37 mm guns to be drained. At the same time, the shipyard began building a steel cofferdam around the ship that was to have been completed by late October, which would allow the rest of the hull to be pumped dry. With the hull pumped out, permanent repairs were to have been completed by January 1941. While this work was being carried out, the crew cleaned and painted the ship and continued to work on readying the armament. A total of 150 complete charges for the main battery were created by remanufacturing the stockpile intended for Strasbourg. Parts of the crew were dispersed for other tasks: 106 were sent to man the armed merchant cruisers in the harbor, whose reservist crews had to be demobilized, and the 64-man crew of the forward gun turret were sent to man the coastal battery at Cap Manuel. After another 132 reservists from Richelieu were demobilized, a total of 1,039 officers and men were left aboard the ship. The 100-, 37-, and 13.2 mm guns were kept manned continuously given the threat of further British air attacks.[18]
Battle of Dakar
HMS Barham, Richelieu's primary opponent during the battle
Main article: Battle of Dakar
While repairs were being carried out in August, the British began preparations for another attack, code-named Operation Menace. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill sought to use a contingent of Free French forces led by Charles de Gaulle to invade the colony and seize the ship for use against Germany. By late August, a convoy had been assembled with five ships carrying weapons and supplies got underway, later rendezvousing with a second convoy of six troop ships carrying some 2,400 Free French soldiers and 4,270 British soldiers. The naval support force consisted of the aircraft carrier Ark Royal and the battleships Barham and Resolution, along with four cruisers and numerous other warships. The plan called for de Gaulle to use his French forces to attempt to secure the colony, only calling on British support if the Vichy forces resisted him. At the same time, several French colonies in Africa defected to Free France, prompting the Vichy government to secure authorization from the German Armistice Commission to send several light cruisers and destroyers to reinforce their holdings in Africa, designated Force Y. Owing to the risk of encountering British vessels on the passage, the destroyers were temporarily left in Casablanca while the three cruisers, carrying supplies and additional men to crew the coastal batteries, raced south at high speed. They reached Dakar on 14 September, and after disembarking the men and supplies, continued on south to French Equatorial Africa (in what is now present-day Gabon).[19][20]
The British believed that the arrival of Force Y indicated that the French were aware of Operation Menace, but de Gaulle decided to proceed with the attack regardless. While Force Y steamed south, two of the three cruisers were intercepted by British cruisers and forced to fall back to Dakar, arriving there again on 20 September, by which time the destroyers had arrived. On 22 September, the liner SS Banfora was due to arrive with a load of 380 mm shells, and as a result, French search aircraft were arrayed to the north to cover the liner's approach; they were completely surprised by the arrival of the Anglo-Free French force on the morning of 23 September. A small party of Free French troops sent to rally the port to de Gaulle was repulsed with machine-gun fire and Richelieu's 100 mm guns fired warning shots toward the Free French aviso Savorgnan de Brazza shortly after 07:00. On the approach of the sloops Commandant Dominé and Commandant Duboc at 08:10, Richelieu again fired warning shots from her 100 mm guns. The British warships approached the port and came under fire from the coastal batteries, leading the Anglo-Free French commanders, de Gaulle and Vice Admiral John Cunningham to conclude that they would have to directly attack the port if the operation was to succeed.[20][21][22]
Barham and Resolution opened fire on Richelieu at 11:05, but poor visibility hampered the British shooting and they checked fire after twenty minutes, having inflicted only splinter damage to the cruiser Montcalm and the destroyer Le Malin. The French coastal batteries hit several of the cruisers and destroyers, but Richelieu was moored facing north, which prevented her from taking part in the initial duel. After the British withdrew, Marzin used tugboats to turn the ship far enough to enable her to bring her main battery to bear. The defenses of Dakar were now alerted. The Free French then attempted to land further east at Rufisque, but were repulsed. The British and Free French withdrew to regroup for another attack the next day. Between 06:25 and 08:00 on 24 September, the British launched three strikes with Swordfish and Blackburn Skua bombers. They scored no hits on Richelieu because of poor visibility, and near-misses caused no damage. In return, Richelieu's gunners claimed three of the six aircraft that were shot down, and damaged another. Ninety minutes later, the British battleships and two heavy cruisers approached and fired their 380 mm main batteries at Richelieu.[20][23][24]
Richelieu returned fire at 09:40, but her No. 7 gun was destroyed by a shell that detonated in the barrel and the No. 8 gun was also badly damaged. This was first traced to the use of the remanufactured propellant from Strasbourg, but a later inquiry in 1941 found the explosions were caused by a flaw in the design of the shell base.[25][26] Guns 5 and 6 remained in action but failed to score any hits. At 09:57, one of Richelieu's secondary guns hit Barham. In return, the British ships inflicted only minor splinter damage before breaking off at 10:07. The French had counted some 160 shells landing near the ship. The French laid smoke screens to obscure Richelieu before the British returned to the action at 12:53, initially targeting a destroyer before bombarding the port for the next 30 minutes. Richelieu was not hit and, from 12:56, she fired guns 5 and 6 at the British cruisers, quickly straddling one of them and convincing them to disengage. She fired four 380 mm shells at Barham at 13:11–13:12 but failed to score a hit, though both British battleships were hit several times by coastal batteries. After disengaging for the day, de Gaulle decided to abandon the operation, but Cunningham convinced him to allow a final attempt the next morning. In the meantime, Marzin decided to transfer the crews from turret 2 to turret 1, which also required moving the shells and propellant between magazines.[27][28]
As the British approached on the morning of 25 September, Marzin decided to engage Barham with his main battery and Resolution with his 152 mm guns. While the British were approaching their bombardment positions, Richelieu shot down a reconnaissance plane shortly before 07:00. She opened fire at 09:04 with her main battery, firing two shots that fell short, and the coastal guns and Force Y cruisers followed suit shortly thereafter. While the British battleships were turning to unmask their rear guns, the submarine Bévéziers torpedoed and badly damaged Resolution. Barham avoided the torpedoes and opened fire, quickly straddling Richelieu and at 09:15, she scored a hit amidships that penetrated above the side armor, causing no casualties. In return, Richelieu hit Barham in the bow, causing minor damage. At 09:25, the British disengaged to cover Resolution's withdrawal. After the British left, the gun crew attempted to clear the shells that had been loaded in guns 5 and 6 and the shell in No. 5 also exploded, leaving No. 6 the only operable gun in the turret. In total, French warships in the harbor lost 100 dead and 182 wounded, with another 84 killed and 197 wounded among the civilian population.[20][29][30]
From 29 September, the battlecruiser HMS Renown and escorting destroyers were detached from Force H to patrol off Dakar, as the British believed Richelieu would be transferred to metropolitan France for repairs. The British ships remained in the area until 1 October when it became clear the ship would not be moved.[31]
Repairs and defection to Free France
Richelieu at Dakar in 1941
Repair work resumed immediately. The hit from Barham did little serious damage to the ship, but it nevertheless caused extensive deformation of interior bulkheads, the armor deck was forced down where the shell hit it, and the uptakes from the boilers were damaged. Wiring in the area was also cut by fragments and needed to be replaced. On 10 October, the workers attempted to attach the patch that had been manufactured, but it did not work; it did not create a watertight seal, which meant the compartments could not be pumped out. The patch was abandoned in the hopes that the cofferdam, then nearing completion, would work. The cofferdam was modeled to conform to the hull and was built with an interior void that could be used as a ballast tank so it could be floated in position and sunk in place. The cofferdam was ready by late December, which allowed the hull to be pumped dry and then sealed with welded plates and cement; the hull was finally sealed by 28 February 1941. Further repairs were hampered by the German Armistice Commission, which attempted to slow progress to prevent the ship from returning to full operational status. They blocked the shipment of new guns or a new propeller shaft, and severely constrained the transfer of other equipment. During this period, on 27 February, CV Deramond replaced Marzin as the ship's commander.[32]
As repairs were carried out, the ship saw little activity through late 1942 apart from engaging unidentified aircraft on 28 July and 29 September 1941 and 26 February and 12 May 1942.[33] During this period, in April 1941, the ship received the first radar set installed on a French battleship. And in July, her Loire seaplanes finally arrived; tests with the catapults were conducted in October.[34] On 10 April 1942, the ship conducted a test firing with gun No. 6 to demonstrate that the shell design problem had been corrected; all six shells were fired without incident. On 8 November, American and British forces landed in French North Africa (code-named Operation Torch), which prompted the Germans to invade the rest of Vichy France, which in turn led Darlan to defect to the Allies with the rest of the fleet.[33]
The United States Navy sent a group to evaluate the ships under Darlan's control to determine which should be modernized in the United States. The only French battleship still in service, Richelieu was an obvious candidate. The US Navy had not initially been interested in repairing Richelieu; while the Germans and Italians retained a number of powerful battleships, the United States had recently commissioned or would soon complete eight fast battleships, more than sufficient to cover US requirements for the Pacific War and to send to Europe to reinforce the Royal Navy. In addition, repairing and modernizing a ship the size of Richelieu would require significant resources that could be used for other purposes. But pressure from Britain and the Free French convinced the Navy to agree to the project. For France, she was the only surviving modern battleship and thus a major symbol of national prestige, while the British had long sought to acquire the vessel to stiffen the Mediterranean Fleet, which at that time had just two new battleships to oppose their three Italian counterparts.[35]
Richelieu in the United States for repairs
She ran sea trials from 25 to 29 January 1943 to evaluate the state of her engines, which had not been used since July 1940. Her aircraft facilities and anti-aircraft armament were removed during the evaluation period, as they would be replaced by US equipment. On 30 January, she departed Dakar with Montcalm, bound for New York City, where both vessels would be modernized. Richelieu steamed at a speed of 14 kn (26 km/h; 16 mph) and her rudder had to be held to seven degrees to account for the hull deformation. The ships arrived on 11 February and on the 18th, Richelieu was taken into Dock No. 5 at the Brooklyn Navy Yard to begin the modernization.[33][36]
Free-French career: 1943–1945
Refit in New York City
Political tensions between the United States and France played a major role in determining how much Richelieu would be modernized. The US Navy refused to transfer the latest radar equipment on the basis that it was too sensitive to be released. As a result, much of the improvement was limited to the installation of a new anti-aircraft battery of the latest US weapons and auxiliary equipment in addition to a thorough overhaul and permanent repairs to the torpedo damage. Three shifts of workers, totaling some 2,000 men, worked on the ship twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, for five months to rush the ship back into service. The modifications to the ship increased her displacement by about 3,000 t (3,000 long tons). While the ship was being modernized, CV Lambert replaced Deramont as the ship's commander on 29 April.[37]
Richelieu arrives in New York with her damaged turret. The uppermost fire control director on the fore tower had to be dismantled for her to pass under the Brooklyn Bridge to the New York Navy Yard
The ship's armament required extensive repairs and modifications to bring Richelieu up to modern standards. First, three of the eight main battery guns had to be replaced, which required removing the turret roof. Since the gun cradles were undamaged, the guns were simply replaced by barrels taken from Jean Bart, which had been recovered at Casablanca during Operation Torch. The shell handling equipment of both the primary and secondary guns was thoroughly overhauled, with wiring being replaced and the shell and propellant lifts being rebuilt—the latter had never been made to function correctly while the ship was in Dakar. Ammunition for the primary and secondary guns was now a problem, as the source, factories in France, was occupied by German forces. Drawings of the plans for the 380 mm shells were prepared in Dakar and forwarded to the United States, where a contract to produce 930 shells was ordered from Crucible Steel. American 6-inch/47 Mk 16 shells were used as a starting point to supply the 152 mm guns, as they were the same caliber and required relatively minor modifications for use in the French weapons.[38]
Her 100 mm guns were retained, but her light anti-aircraft battery now consisted of fifty-six 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors guns in quadruple mounts, all placed with their own Mk 51 gun director. These were arranged with two abreast the superfiring turret, two on either side of the forward tower, another two per side of the aft tower, and the remaining four on the quarterdeck, where the aircraft catapults had been. These guns were supplemented with fifty 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon cannons, all in individual or twin mounts. Nine were placed on the forecastle aft of the breakwater, four were mounted on the superfiring turret, nine were placed on the former aircraft hangar, with the rest dispersed around the superstructure, including on the towers and the shelter deck.[39]
Richelieu's tower foremast was heavily reconfigured; the upper main battery director, which had never been operational and had been removed to allow the ship to clear the Brooklyn Bridge, was left off. In its place, the radome for the SF surface search radar was installed, along with the mattress antenna for the SA-2 air search radar; these were short-range sets that had been designed for small craft, the SA-2 intended for PT boats. Most of the command spaces in the tower were converted for other uses. The fire control systems for the main battery had to be replaced and those for the secondary guns were repaired with new wiring and telephones. The ship's original Anschütz gyrocompasses were replaced with Sperry models. The ship's propulsion system was thoroughly overhauled: the turbines were thoroughly repaired and the boilers were re-tubed. Much of the wiring throughout the ship was replaced, and a degaussing cable was installed.[40]
To repair the hull, the concrete was broken up and removed, the sections that had been most badly damaged by the torpedo were stripped of all fittings, and deformed bulkheads and plating were cut out. After more than two and a half years without being dry-docked in a tropical port, the hull needed maintenance beyond simply repairing the torpedo damage, though given the conditions to which it had been subjected, it was in fairly good condition. It was sandblasted and those sections of plating that exhibited pitting had new plates welded over the top. The starboard propeller shafts also required repairs: the mounting brackets were straightened, but the inboard shaft was too badly damaged and had to be replaced. Bethlehem Steel fabricated a replacement that was installed in June. The bottom row of portholes were closed off, as the increase in displacement pushed them closer to the waterline.[41]
Richelieu (left distance) encounters the American battleship USS New Jersey at anchor in Hampton Roads on 7 September 1943 during New Jersey's training ahead of Pacific deployment.
Beginning in late August and continuing into mid-September, Richelieu began firing trials in the Chesapeake Bay; firing the main battery forward on 29 August revealed the need for a blast screen to protect the forecastle 20 mm guns, as the test accidentally destroyed two of the guns and their ammunition lockers. With her normal displacement now at 43,600 t (42,900 long tons) and her hull slightly bowed (possibly caused by the torpedo hit), Richelieu began machinery trials in late September. On 25 September, the ship reached her new top speed of 31.5 kn (58.3 km/h; 36.2 mph), cruising at that speed for thirty minutes, despite the deformation of her hull and the significant increase in displacement. The following day, she steamed for six hours at 26.5 kn (49.1 km/h; 30.5 mph), for two hours at 28.9 kn (53.5 km/h; 33.3 mph), and finally for fifty minutes at 30.2 kn (55.9 km/h; 34.8 mph).[42]
As completed, the ship's displacement had grown to 43,957 t (43,263 long tons) normally and 47,728 t (46,974 long tons) fully loaded; draft correspondingly increased to 9.22 m (30.2 ft) and 10.68 m (35 ft), respectively. Compared to her original wartime crew of 1,569 officers and men, Richelieu was now to be manned by a total of 1,930, amounting to 86 officers, 287 petty officers, and 1,557 men. The major increase in complement was largely the result of the additional anti-aircraft guns and radar systems. The ship conducted further trials into October, and on the 14th the ship was finally ready to get underway for European waters.[43]
In European waters
Anti-aircraft gunners aboard Richelieu during target practice with the British fleet
Escorted by the destroyers USS Tarbell and Ellet, Richelieu departed the US on 14 October, nominally bound for Gibraltar. The destroyers departed while underway, allowing Richelieu to keep up a speed of 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph) in heavy seas. The ship stopped in the Azores, Portugal, where she met the French destroyers Le Fantasque and Le Terrible and the British destroyer Active, which was limited to a speed of 20 kn (37 km/h; 23 mph); Active quickly left the group, which proceeded not to Gibraltar, but to Mers El Kébir. There, she replenished supplies; it had been intended to deploy the ship with the Mediterranean Fleet, but Italy had surrendered in September, removing the threat posed by the Italian Littorio-class battleships. Richelieu was instead sent north to join the Home Fleet, which included the four surviving King George V-class battleships. When Richelieu departed the Mediterranean, Cunningham, now the commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, recommended to the Admiralty that she be fitted with gunnery radars. The ship was escorted by the destroyers HMS Musketeer and HMS Scourge, and on arrival in Scapa Flow, Admiral Bruce Fraser, the Home Fleet commander, inspected the battleship on 24 November. Work began immediately on installing a Type 284 gunnery radar while the ship began an intensive period of training to acclimate the ship's crew to operating with British units.[44]
The ship saw little activity over the winter of 1943–1944 until February 1944, when she took part in Operation Posthorn. Richelieu, the battleship Anson, and the carrier Furious departed Scapa Flow on 10 February for a raid on German shipping off occupied Norway. The objective was to lure the German heavy cruisers in the area so that the two battleships could destroy them. The carrier aircraft achieved little, sinking a single freighter of 3,000 tons and damaging a repair ship while trading one of the Supermarine Seafire fighters for a German Bf 109 fighter. The fleet returned to port on the 12th, and Richelieu thereafter went to Rosyth for ten days to rest the crew. A repeat sweep was to have taken place at the end of the month, but two of the escorting destroyers collided while leaving Scapa Flow, leading to a postponement that became permanent as a result of bad weather. In March, the Allies determined that five battleships to counter the battleship Tirpitz (which had been damaged in September 1943) was excessive. As a result, Richelieu was detached for other operations. The Allied command initially considered employing her to support the invasion of Normandy, but as she was only supplied with armor-piercing shells, she was instead sent to reinforce the British Eastern Fleet, along with a group of escort aircraft carriers.[45][46]
The ship accordingly steamed to Greenock to take on fuel and ammunition, before cruising south to the Mediterranean with an escort of three British destroyers. She stopped in Algiers on 26 March to take on additional supplies; there, she was visited by General Henri Giraud and Admiral André Lemonnier. Richelieu thereafter departed for the Suez Canal, steaming at a speed of 25 kn (46 km/h; 29 mph); while underway, she began to experience significant boiler problems. The boiler blowers were not providing sufficient oxygen, so the boilers were not fully burning the fuel. As a result, the boiler tubes quickly became fouled and caused overheating. Richelieu stopped in Aden for repairs to the boiler tubes, but the problem was not corrected.[47]
First deployment with the British Eastern Fleet
Richelieu (top left) with the battlecruiser Renown (center) and the battleship Valiant (top right) during Operation Transom on 12 May 1944
On entering the Indian Ocean, Richelieu picked up an escort consisting of the destroyers Rotherham, Racehorse, and Quadrant. The four ships arrived in Trincomalee, Ceylon on 10 April, where they joined an Allied fleet that included the carriers Illustrious and USS Saratoga, the battleships Valiant and Queen Elizabeth, and numerous cruisers and destroyers, commanded by Admiral James Somerville. On 16 April, the Eastern Fleet got underway for Operation Cockpit, a diversionary raid to distract the Japanese while American forces landed at Hollandia in New Guinea. Somerville divided his fleet into two squadrons; Richelieu served in Force 69, the main element, with Queen Elizabeth and Valiant, while Renown operated with the two carriers. The plan for Operation Cockpit called for carrier strikes on the port of Sabang, Netherlands East Indies. The fleet arrived in position early on 19 April, and after the carrier aircraft struck the port, Japanese bombers counter-attacked and Richelieu engaged the aircraft with her 100 mm and 40 mm batteries.[48][49]
The next major operation conducted by the Eastern Fleet, Operation Transom, was timed to coincide with American operations in the Central Pacific to keep the attention of the Japanese fleet based in Singapore focused away from the American fleet. For this operation, the target was the major base at Surabaya, which also had significant oil refinery facilities. The Eastern Fleet got underway on 7 May and stopped to refuel on 15 May before arriving two days later. The strike proceeded uneventfully for Richelieu and on 18 May the American contingent detached to rejoin the main American fleet in the Pacific while the Eastern Fleet returned to Trincomalee, arriving on 27 May. Two days later, Richelieu, Queen Elizabeth, and six destroyers steamed to Colombo to rest their crews. While there, Richelieu was visited by Admiral Louis Mountbatten, Supreme Allied Commander of the South-East Asia Theatre. On 31 May, CV Merveilleux du Vignaux replaced Marzin as the ship's commander.[50][51][52]
Somerville planned another raid for mid-June: Operation Pedal, a carrier attack on the harbor of Port Blair in the Andaman Islands. The purpose of the attack was to again distract the Japanese fleet units in Singapore while American forces embarked on Operation Forager, the invasion of the Marianas Islands. For the Anglo-French operation, Somerville took only the fast ships, including Richelieu, Renown, and Illustrious with their accompanying cruiser and destroyer screens. These ships, designated Force 60, sortied on 19 June and two days later, Illustrious' aircraft struck Japanese targets in the port. The ships arrived back in Trincomalee on 23 June. Operation Crimson followed in July, and given the lack of a response from the Japanese fleet to the earlier raids, Somerville decided to use his battleships and battlecruiser to bombard Sabang and Sumatra. Richelieu and the other ships conducted shooting practice on 7, 14–15, and 17 July in preparation for the raid. The plan called for Richelieu, Valiant, Queen Elizabeth, and Renown, supported by cruisers, to shell the port at longer range while the Dutch cruiser Tromp led a group of destroyers in a close-range attack. Illustrious, joined by the carrier Victorious, which had recently arrived, provided air cover to the fleet.[53][54][55]
Richelieu on 18 May 1944 after the conclusion of Operation Transom, taken from USS Saratoga
The Eastern Fleet departed on 22 July and reached the target on the morning of 25 July; the carriers launched their combat air patrols and the surface combatants steamed to approach their targets. Richelieu was the last vessel in the line, astern of Renown. Queen Elizabeth, the leading battleship, opened fire at 06:54 at a range of 6,000 m (20,000 ft). The other ships quickly followed suit and F4U Corsair fighters circled overhead to spot for the ships' guns. Richelieu fired four-gun salvos, with two guns per turret, and she scored hits with the second salvo, demolishing several buildings and damaging the power station. Her secondary turrets neutralized a Japanese coastal artillery battery that had been engaging Tromp. At 07:15, the ships ceased firing, and in the brief bombardment, Richelieu had fired 81 main battery APC shells—this amounted to a rate of fire of a salvo every 50 seconds, nearly twice as fast as the British ships. Japanese aircraft attacked the fleet as it withdrew, but they were kept at bay by the carriers' fighters and heavy anti-aircraft fire from the ships. The fleet arrived back in Trincomalee on 27 July.[56]
By this time, Richelieu was beginning to suffer from reduced speed, the result of continued boiler trouble and biofouling of her hull. Admiral Laurence E. Power, who had replaced Somerville as the fleet commander, detached Richelieu for a refit. The British had initially offered the floating dry-dock AFD-23, but Merveilleux du Vignaux believed that the dry-dock would not be able to accommodate a vessel the size of his ship (he proved to be correct when on 8 August, AFD-23 capsized with Valiant aboard). Richelieu left on 6 September, bound for Algiers with three escorting destroyers. Le Terrible and Le Fantasque took over escort duties after Richelieu passed through the Suez Canal, and on 23 September the three ships arrived in Algiers. Richelieu then steamed north to Toulon on 1 October where she was visited again by Lemonnier, but the shipyard there was in ruins, so she moved to Casablanca on 10 October to be refitted. In addition to the hull cleaning and boiler repairs, she had new fire control and search radars installed, including a US SG-1 search radar, British Type-281B air search radar, and Type-285P fire control radars, in addition to other equipment, including an FV1 jammer and high-frequency direction finding gear.[57][58]
Second deployment with the British Eastern Fleet
Seen from the deck of HMS Queen Elizabeth are Valiant (center-right) and Richelieu (right background)
On 23 January 1945, Richelieu left Casablanca for Gibraltar, arriving there two days later to have her hull cleaned and repainted. The French sought to deploy an independent task force consisting of Richelieu, the four light cruisers still in service, and four destroyers, with a view toward reestablishing French control in Indochina. But the United States opposed the move and refused to allocate the aircraft carriers and support ships that would have been necessary for another independent fleet, and so Richelieu could only be sent, alone, back to the Eastern Fleet. The ship conducted trials in February that revealed the problem with her boilers had finally been corrected and she thereafter got underway for Trincomalee, arriving on 20 March. By this time, the modern elements of the Eastern Fleet had been detached to form the British Pacific Fleet, with the Eastern Fleet being renamed the East Indies Fleet. This unit, still under Power's command, consisted of Queen Elizabeth and Renown, nine cruisers, ten escort carriers, and twenty destroyers. Japanese naval strength at Singapore had also significantly decreased to just four heavy cruisers and several destroyers.[59][60]
For the next few weeks, Richelieu was occupied with shooting drills with her primary and secondary batteries and tests for the anti-aircraft radars and command systems. Now assigned to Force 63 of the East Indies Fleet, Richelieu sortied on 8 April to take part in Operation Sunfish, another bombardment of Sabang while aircraft scouted possible landing beaches near the city of Padang on the coast of Sumatra. The ships allocated for the operation consisted of Richelieu, Queen Elizabeth, two heavy cruisers, two escort carriers, and five destroyers. Early on 11 April, the two battleships, one of the cruisers, and three destroyers bombarded the island while the other vessels conducted the reconnaissance operation. Richelieu fired seven salvos with her main battery and used her secondary guns to once again silence the coastal battery on the island. Japanese aircraft launched a poorly-coordinated attack on the battleships but they failed to score any hits. After further carrier operations around Padang, the fleet returned to port on 20 April.[61][62]
The next major operation followed a week later. Operation Bishop, a strike against Japanese airfields in the Nicobar and Andaman Islands, was to cover British Army landings at Rangoon in Burma. The plan called for the East Indies Fleet to be divided into multiple groups, each with escorting cruisers and destroyers: four of the escort carriers were to directly support the landings, Richelieu and Queen Elizabeth each formed independent surface action groups, and another pair of escort carriers provided air protection for the surface groups. The fleet got underway on 27 April and reached Car Nicobar two days later. Richelieu bombarded the airfields at a range of 23,600 m (77,400 ft), firing a total of 80 main and 45 secondary shells. She incurred minor damage to her bow 20 mm guns from the blast effects of firing the main battery nearly directly forward. The fleet then proceeded to the Andamans, and at 17:30, Richelieu opened fire at Port Blair; poor visibility hampered her shooting, and she ceased fire at 18:07, by now having expended the main battery ammunition that had been allotted for the bombardment. She nevertheless returned on 2 May to shell the harbor with her secondary guns, firing 120 rounds and inflicting significant damage to the harbor facilities. The fleet steamed north to Rangoon to support the landings, but it was discovered that the Japanese had already withdrawn, allowing the fleet to return to Trincomalee on 8 May.[63][64]
Richelieu astern of Valiant during Operation Bishop
A decrypted Japanese radio signal revealed that the cruiser Haguro and the destroyer Kamikaze were to steam from Singapore to Port Blair to evacuate the garrison there on the night of 12–13 May while another transport vessel would pick up the troops at Car Nicobar. On 9 May, a pair of British submarines spotted Haguro as it passed through the Malacca Strait, so the East Indies Fleet launched Operation Dukedom to intercept the Japanese ships. Richelieu steamed with the heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland as Group 3 of Force 61. Aware that Allied ships were at sea, Haguro and Kamikaze turned back, though they were spotted by aircraft from the escort carriers and then sunk by destroyers of the 26th Destroyer Flotilla before Richelieu and Cumberland could arrive. Japanese aircraft attacked the fleet as it withdrew back to Trincomalee but were, once again, poorly coordinated and they failed to damage the ships. Richelieu arrived in port on 18 May.[65][66]
On arrival, the ship took on additional ammunition and fuel, and over the coming weeks, she underwent repairs to her boilers and took part in shooting practice. The bombardments carried out earlier in the year had revealed excessive dispersion of the main battery shells, particularly if both guns on one side of the turret were fired at the same time. The crew at that time was unable to determine the cause of the problem, though tests with the remanufactured Strasbourg charges reduced the problem. On 3 June, the destroyer Le Triomphant arrived with spare equipment for Richelieu, which was sent to Durban for another refit. Her hull again needed to be scraped and her boilers required a re-tubing. The ship had to stop in Diego Suarez on the way to disembark non-white crewmen at the request of the racist government of South Africa; though this caused resentment among the crew, the French nevertheless complied. Richelieu arrived on 18 July and work lasted from 31 July to 10 August. Thirteen of the ship's 20 mm guns were replaced with four 40 mm guns, as the lighter weapons had proved to be ineffective against kamikazes. The ship conducted training and trials of South Africa before departing for Diego Suarez, ultimately arriving back in Trincomalee on 18 August, by which time Japan had surrendered.[67][68]
Postwar era
Immediately after the surrender of Japan, French and British forces began their attempts to reassert control in their Japanese-occupied colonies. On 7 September, Richelieu got underway in company with the British battleship Nelson to take part in Operation Zipper, the amphibious landing on Sumatra. Two days later, Richelieu detonated a magnetic mine, though she suffered only minor damage; the force of the blast pushed in some hull plates by 10 to 12 cm (3.9 to 4.7 in) and inflicted minor shock damage to the lighting system, but the vessel remained with the fleet. After landing the troops with no opposition, Richelieu moved to Singapore on 11 September to participate in Operation Tiderace, the liberation of the city, the following day. She returned to Trincomalee on 16 September before getting underway again on 27 September, bound for Indochina. She steamed with Le Triomphant as escorts for the transport ships Queen Emma and Princess Beatrix, which carried French soldiers to restore colonial rule in Indochina. French rule was opposed by the Viet Minh, and on arrival Richelieu was used to support the forces ashore in a variety of capacities: she served as a staging area, hospital, artillery support, and troop transport. She also contributed a landing party to the forces fighting to reassert French control.[69][70][71]
Richelieu, Le Triomphant, and Le Fantasque took part in Operation Mapor at Nha Trang from 20 to 26 November, providing heavy fire support to soldiers fighting in the area. By this time, a French squadron consisting of the aircraft carrier Béarn and the cruisers Gloire, Suffren, and Émile Bertin had arrived in mid-October, allowing Richelieu to be returned to France. Before leaving, Richelieu sent her four single 40 mm guns and most of her 20 mm guns ashore, along with a considerable stockpile of ammunition for the guns and 152 mm shells. She departed on 29 December and arrived in Toulon on 11 February 1946, thereafter taking part in the transport effort to send French soldiers back from France to North Africa. With that completed, she steamed north to Cherbourg, arriving to be dry-docked on 16 March. Repairs lasted until 20 July, and consisted of replacing the starboard propeller, correcting the hull damage from the mine in September 1945, and thoroughly overhauling her boilers.[69][72]
With the repairs completed, Richelieu sailed to Britain to carry the crew for the aircraft carrier HMS Colossus, which was to be loaned to the French for five years, serving as Arromanches. Richelieu thereafter began a training cruise that included stops in Casablanca, Mers-el-Kébir, and Dakar. Later that year, she visited Portugal in company with Arromanches. She returned to Brest for modifications to the secondary battery from February to March 1947. The ship thereafter formed the core of a battle group that included three ex-German destroyers, based in Cherbourg. The group, along with a carrier group centered on Arromanches and cruiser group, both based in Toulon, were combined to form the Force d'Intervention, with Richelieu as the flagship of Vice Amiral (Vice Admiral) Robert Jaujard. The unit embarked on a training cruise to Africa in May and June, beginning with the three groups assembling in Casablanca on 8 May. Richelieu arrived back in Cherbourg on 13 June and began a period of maintenance and training of new crew members. Another training cruise to North Africa followed late in 1947, and while there she conducted shooting practice to try to determine the cause of the excessive shell dispersion. The subsequent installation of 60-millisecond delays to the firing circuits of the outer guns in the turrets created enough space between the shells that they did not disrupt each other in flight, significantly improving the issue.[73][74][75]
The Force d'Intervention was reactivated for another cruise in early 1948; the three constituent groups rendezvoused at Toulon and then conducted training exercises off North Africa. While in Mers-el-Kébir, the ship was slightly damaged while being moored in the port. Following the conclusion of the maneuvers, the force was disbanded and Richelieu steamed north to Brest, arriving on 29 May. The ship was in need of a thorough refit, and she was dry-docked in Cherbourg from August to September to survey the work that would be needed to be done. Jaujard left the ship and her crew was reduced to 750 men. Since the French naval budget was in a very limited state owing to the wrecked French economy in the immediate postwar years, Richelieu's refit was postponed to allow the funds to be used to complete Jean Bart instead. Richelieu was accordingly placed in reserve on 1 April 1949. The refit eventually began on 1 January 1950 and lasted until 24 October 1951, and it included a thorough overhaul of her propulsion machinery, replacement of her worn main and secondary battery guns, and repairs to her anti-aircraft battery, along with other modifications.[76]
One of the two remaining 380 mm guns of Richelieu, by the Penfeld river in Brest
During the refit, it was decided that the ship's anti-aircraft battery was too dated to allow the ship to operate in the era of jet aircraft; coupled with the need to update the ship's radar and electronics and install more capable command spaces, the costs would have been prohibitively high for the French Navy. Instead of fully modernizing the vessel, the navy decided to employ Richelieu as a training ship in the gunnery school in February 1951. After completing the refit, the ship underwent trials in November that involved firing nine rounds per gun from the main battery; this would be the last time Richelieu fired the 380 mm guns. Beginning in May 1952, the ship was based in Toulon as the flagship of CA Champion, and she spent the next few years conducting shooting practice with the secondary and smaller weapons to train the fleet's gunners. Another refit followed from October 1953 to February 1954. This involved replacing the British gunnery radar with a French-built set.[77]
For the first and last time of either of their careers, Richelieu and Jean Bart cruised together on 30 January 1956. The ship's career as a sea-going gunnery ship ended in February, when she was laid up in Brest. To prepare Richelieu for reserve, dehumidifiers were installed in the secondary turrets to inhibit rust and the 100 mm and 40 mm quad mounts were covered. The single 40 mm guns and all of the 20 mm guns still aboard the vessel were removed. She was thereafter used as a stationary school ship for reserve officers and as a floating barracks until 30 September 1967, when she was struck from the naval register. Renamed Q432, she was condemned on 16 January 1968 and sold to the Genoa-based ship breaker Cantieri Navali Santa Maria in September. Before she departed Brest, the four 380 mm guns of Turret I were removed and two were later preserved, one in Brest and the other in Ruelle. Richelieu was then towed to La Spezia, where she was broken up for scrap over the course of the following year.[78][79]
The spectacular turn of the Tour events!
1947 Tour Quick Facts:
4,640 km ridden at an average speed of 31.412 km/hr. Unlike the immediate pre-war Tours, the 1947 Tour had no half-stages.
100 starters aligned on national and regional teams with 53 classified finishers.
It looked like perpetual great hope René Vietto would finally win the Tour de France, but in stage 15, Jean Robic took off and gained, including time time bonuses, fifteen minutes. After a good time trial in stage 19, Robic was set for his famous coup. In the final stage, he attacked while the yellow jersey Brambilla was blocked in the peloton. Robic's break was successful (perhaps partly because of post-war French resentment against the Brambilla's being Italian) and made Robic the first rider to win the Yellow Jersey without ever having worn it in the Tour.
Time Bonuses: 1 minute and 30 seconds at the stage finishes. Same for 1st category mountains; 30 and 15 seconds for 2nd category climbs.
(excerpts from "The Story of the Tour de France" Bill McGann's BikeRaceInfo)
(picture "Le Tour a 75 Ans", numéro spécial l'Equipe, 1978)
see also
The Story of "Smile:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2H0Orfkaqf4
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbsbvOoyutM
www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTifX3mpnV4
www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpM2lE1EJ4g
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiykTknz51U
www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cVvLEdK1s4
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXTqsNzevuk
www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Tl76KA_DOw
Van Dyke Parks: “I knew [The Beach Boys] didn’t surf.…I felt some resentment about [them], and I had been a fan of Four Freshmen and 5 Trombones.…Instinctively, I was not a Beach Boy fan. ‘Something really dumb about it.’” He added that, “I loved Pet Sounds, you see. I came back to love them, and thought they had done a great job. It seemed to me that they would be fine in fighting spirit to take on this challenge of wresting that trophy out of the hands of those interlopers [The Beatles].”
Parks has gone on to call Brian Wilson “the biggest event of that era,” and adds, “He was the force. Real convincing. He made music that could be enjoyed beyond its time. Phil Spector meant nothing to me—I thought his sound was just smoke and mirrors. People who said Pet Sounds was bastardizing classical music led very sheltered childhoods. That’s a bunch of bullshit. Brian Wilson was not imitative, he was inventive; for people who don’t write songs, it’s hard to understand how inventive he really was.”
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Rocinha slum - favela - , Río de Janeiro, Brazil. An agency arranges tours of the favelas and spends part of the gains is on charity in the favelas, mostly on building schools. This means that you're actually welcome - even though some of the young men, reasonably enough, showed signs of resentment.
A 'dangdut' band leads the revolution. Everybody dances to 'dangdut', the closest thing Indonesia has produced to the salsa. Dangdut's audience comes mostly from Indonesia's fervent Muslim youth, in particular the lower and lower-middle classes. And dangdut gives these people a voice, expresses their resentment at the inequalities of life in Indonesia today. Protest songs range from moral issues like losing your virginity to housing issues or getting rich quick.
This horse galloped into the paddock after a long ride at the end of a hot day.
First, it tried to cool off by rolling in the sand, then headed to the farm shed - but the farm dog chased it out again.
The horse got agitated and started a set of exercises to show its discontent and resentment.
Stamping on the ground fiercely it raised a cloud of dust, capturing the afternoon sun sneaking in through the trees and creating the perfect setting for this series of photos.
Noder y Toll dy / Note the Toll House.
Lleoliad Rhodfa'r Brenin ac Eglwys St. Tudwal 'rwan. / Location today of Kings Crecent and St. Tudwal's Church.
Bu i " Ddeddf y Priffyrdd 1862 " roi diwedd a'r dalu tollau am ddefnyddio'r mwyafrif o ffyrdd .
The " Highways Act of 1862 " put an end to the practice of paying tolls on the majority of roads.
Caewyd y toll-dy yn 1888 / Toll house was closed in 1888.
Dywed Leslie Darbyshire states :-
" The picture shows the Toll house the gate with Handlith Terrace. Kings Crescent had as yet not being built its location being where the Roman Catholic Church St Tudwal is sited. Also on the back of the frame we have another name for the Toll house namely Turnpike House.
The history of Toll houses or Turnpikes houses or "Tyrpec" in Welsh is fascinating, nearly all towns and villages had their Toll house which were erected to collect tolls for the repair and maintenance of road in that particular place.
The term Turnpike refers to the military practice of placing a pikestaff across the road to block and control passage, this would be "turned" to one side to allow travellers through. The first turnpike road, whereby travellers paid toll for its upkeep was authorised in 1663 for a section of road in Hertfordshire and the first Turnpike Trust was established by parliament through a Trust Act in 1706 placing a section of the London-Coventry-Chester road in the hands of a group of trustees.
The trustees could erect gates as they saw fit, demand statute labour or cash equivalent, and appoint surveyors and collectors. In return they repaired the road and put up mile posts. Trusts were established for a limited period of office, often for twenty one years. Before the 18th century each parish looked after its own roads but the traffic increased as part of the Agricultural Revolution and the parishes could no longer afford the upkeep without help. The law was changed; companies could be set up to look after the roads. They made money to look after the roads by charging people a toll to use them. The money was collected at toll houses (Turnpike House) and a gate to the turnpike opened to allow further passage. The collected money went to the investors and maintenance of the road and bridges .The companies who set up and maintained these roads were called Turnpike Trust. The Parliament of England had placed the upkeep of bridges to local settlements or the containing county under the Bridges Act of 1555 and similarly the care of roads were devolved to the parishes as statute labour under the Highways Act 1555. Every adult inhabitant of the parish was obliged to work four consecutive days a year on the roads, providing their own tools, carts and horses, the work being overseen by an unpaid local appointee, the surveyor of Highways
It was not until 1654 that road rates were introduced; the improvements by paid labour were offset by the rise in the use of wheeled vehicles greatly increasing wear and the Government put a curb on wheeled vehicles and regulated their construction, by having wider rims which would be less damaging and for a period led to carts having sixteen inch wheels which did not cause ruts, but neither did they roll or flatten the road as was hoped. Many of the trust were fraudulently administered, the Turnpike Act of 1822 required trusts to keep accounts. In 1744 an act had made milestones compulsory on most turnpike roads.
At first there were no permanent toll houses, gates were closed at night, but when it was realised that turnpikes were not temporary, toll houses were built at road junctions with a clear view of the gates and roads. There were complaints that gates were found locked because the keepers were missing or that they were drunk or asleep. The wages of 9 shillings per week did not induce the right sort of staff.
However this changed in the 1770’s when the operation of turnpikes was “farmed” out to the highest bidder at a public auction. This meant that the successful bidder paid annual rent to the trust but kept the tolls collected. He would either run the tollgate himself or pay a gatekeeper. It is interesting to note that the North End Tollhouse at Barmouth, according to the census of 1851 was kept by a farmer but in the subsequent census we have a toll keeper.
At the beginning of the 18th century Daniel Defoe comments “Turn Pikes have been set up on several great roads of England, at which all carriages, droves or cattle and travellers on horseback are obliged to pay an easy toll: that is to say – a horse one penny, a coach three pence and a cart four pence at some or six to eight pence, a wagon six pence,in some a shilling. Cattle pay by the score or by the herd and in some places more. But in no place is it thought a burthen that ever I met with, the benefit of a good road abundantly making amends for the little charge the travellers are put to at the turn pikes …..” However they weren’t universally popular, people rioted against toll tax in 1726 and “gate crashing” was common practice.
The county of Merioneth did not escape the toll pike era, remains of toll houses are seen throughout the county and Barmouth itself can boast of three. The toll house depicted in the photo was on the North End of town.
Dr Lewis Lloyd, in his book of Harlech, gives valuable information about the condition and history of the local Trust. Turnpike Trust had been established in Ffestiniog and Maentwrog in 1833 and similarly the Barmouth Talybont Turnpike Trust was formed to develop a new road between Barmouth and Talybont and to improve the existing road from Talybont to Harlech. The condition of the road was so improved that a coach company started an express service between Barmouth and Caernarfon and was called the Mountaineer Coach; it took ten hours to do the journey and it operated on alternate days. It connected with the Mail Coach for Bangor or the Morning Coach at Seven for the Steam Boats at Menai Bridge and according to the advert in the Caernarfon Herald as soon as the road between Dolgellau and Aberystwyth was improved this public accommodation would be extended to the latter place; the advert was dated July 26th 1833.
The trust instituted three tollgates on the Harlech Barmouth route, one at Barmouth at the North end of the town and two at Harlech, Clogwyn-Twtil and Llechwedd. The toll road did not follow the route as we know it, at the Clogwyn tollgate the road proceeded through Pentre’r Efail and down Tryfarto Ty’n y Groes where it turned sharply up Twtil, past the castle and out of the town along Llechwedd. It is a mystery how four horse mail coaches negotiated the sharp bend and steep slope in either direction. The Ffestiniog- Maentwrog and Harlech-Barmouth merged in 1851 and was eventually wound up in 1851.
Dr David Craik made an interesting observation in a recent e-mail to the writer, “The Turnpikes were a source of great resentment throughout Wales, because of the charges made to farmers coming to marts (Helyntio Becca). This may well explain the diversity of roads approaching Harlech over the eastern top which were used by the drovers to catch up with the road to and from Bala.”
Barmouth had three tollgates, one up on the old road by Gorllwyn, which still retains the lookout. This presumably dealt with the drovers before the bottom road was made. The other was sited where Birmingham Garage stands today, the owner said recently when, years ago, they were excavating down for a petrol tank, they came across foundations of a building. This Toll House was called the East Toll House, not far from the present garage is an old quarry which, according to Dr David Craik, the poor of Barmouth were “offered” work in this parish quarry, the stone of which would be used for road ballast by the local turnpikes.
The income from the gates was quite high. Hugh J Owens’ book “The Treasures of the Mawddach” in which a notice of Public Auction to be held at the Angel Inn Dolgellau on Tuesday 11th February 1862 that the tolls arising at the under-mentioned Turnpikes will be let by auction…….. to the highest bidder. Amongst the thirteen gates included were Barmouth and Llanelltyd, which stated these two tolls produced the current year exclusive of collecting the sum annexed to each viz:- Barmouth gate £120. Llanelltyd Gate & Side Bar £163.
In 1800 the road between Dolgellau and Harlech was not more than a cart track, from Bontddu it took to the uplands past the mansion of Gorsygedol to lower ground at Talybont where Llanddwywe Inn was sited. It then followed the present road to Llanfair except for the length between Llanbedr and Pensarn whence it took to the high ground past Pant Mawr into Harlech.
Gate crashing of tolls has been mentioned and in his booklet “The Old Order” by B.Bowen Thomas based on the diary of Elizabeth Baker, it has an entry about the toll gate near Bryn Adda Dolgellau for the night of August 7th 1780. “The conversation was ended by the entrance of one of the maid servants, who with offrighted countenance spoke to her Mistress in Welsh. The Mistress caught the horror and cried out “the man’s shot – on asking who? was told my Charioteer – the Master and Mistress descended quick – I followed and found the man’s wounds not mortal. It was given by the person who keeps the Turnpike. The waggoner with his fellow servt returning home cry’d …..Gate ….. Gate usual enough the keeper coming out and finding no one there on horseback he ask’d ….. who had call’d? being told teo or three had pass’d fetch’d his gun and pursued them two or three hundred yards at least, then fir’d yhe wound was on the crown of his head, his companion receiv’d some shot in his legs, the poor fellow were fortunately more affrighted than hurt, yet the Gate-Keeper merits punishment of some kind to deter him from such a prank in future.”
In this period the wealthy had their private coaches for long journeys. They could take their time and so mitigate their discomforts. Ordinary folk had no alternative but to complete the task even at some peril to health and limb and life.
Elizabeth Baker records the plight of one “Richard Jones” who had travelled on the coach. “Poor Richard Jones returned last Saturday from London … poor man! The journey has emanciated him… left Salop together designing to be conveyed together upon the top of the Stage coach but poor RJ, when he had gone about six miles found it impossible to keep his seat and changed it for the basket – unluckily the rain was incessant till they reached Oxford: at that place a female, who went passenger within, terminated her journey and Richard Jones filled her room on paying three shillings out of his Exchequer ….. he, by rolling in the basket was dreadfully bruised ….. Lewis Jones continued on the top of the coach all the way.
The only coach service ran from Dolgellau to Bala and thence to Oswestry. The road to Barmouth as already mentioned had not been opened and traffic used the tidal river. The road to the old county town of Harlech went over Llawllech and passing Corsygedol, reached the coast at Dyffryn. This road and others which went through the mountains to Dinas Mawddwy and Welshpool to the south east and to Towyn to the west were only fit for cattle drovers and horse traffic.
However the days of the Turnpike Trust were numbered, various parliamentary acts were made and in 1885 the last turnpike trust ended in 1889. Newly formed county councils took over responsibility for local roads. The last toll gates to close were on the London to Holyhead road in Anglesey which closed in 1895. In 1909 central government began to give grants to local authorities for road maintenance. The Ministry of Transport was set up in 1930, County Councils accepted responsibility for all roads. Trunk roads became the financial responsibility of the Ministry of Transport. The Motorway system began in 1960. The evolution from cart /mud roads to modern high speed highways in a little over a century, but in certain areas, motorway tolls have been re-introduced ".
June 8th, 2017 - Apple Blossom Princess Kentville shown here proudly riding down Main Street in the Kentville Grande Street Parade after uncaring ABF directors tried to hi jack a towns beloved yearly local Parade away from the rightful owners and then hold it in a different town forcing many loyal Kentville townsfolk to rise up and battle Apple Blossom Festival Management to recover its own annual parade ?
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A quick review of the notorious hostile takeover bid and attempt to extract the 2017 Kentville Grand Street Parade away from its natural home in the town of Kentville ?
February, 2017 - With only 3 months to go and parade planning and preparations well underway as per usual for the upcoming 2017 edition of Kentville Grand Street Parade, parade officials were suddenly caught totally off-guard and absolutely blindsided by the shocking news coming from out of nowhere that current ABF Management who are in charge of the festival has made a final decision in private that will take Grand Street Parade away from its historic 85-year old home in Kentville ? They would then relocate it to a new and different location of their choosing ? Apparently this year they had taken it away from Kentville and moved it to New Minas ? And so it seemed that a group of rather thoughtless, secretive and inconsiderate Officials with radical new ideas had ignored Kentville's interests and snubbed 87 years of history and tradition and had (incredibly) taken the 2017 annual Grand Street Parade ( and even future Parades ) away from Kentville without consultation or giving notice ? Location changes and elimination of other longtime events and attractions that are always held in Kentville such as the Friday night outdoor show and fireworks, the Memorial Park Wednesday and Thursday displays, student entertainment and attractions, the bringing in of popular outside bands and entertainment from halifax and elsewhere, and even the Kentville Children's Parade were all targeted by ABF for cut-back ? Radical changes in the Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess competition including gender, Princess contestant rules, location of the crowning ceremony, and changes in overall competition format were also discussed ? The ABF Officials defended secretive, inconsiderate and authoritarian actions claiming that as the stewards of the festival they are entitled and obliged to uphold the integrity of the festival ? (integrity ? ) They later changed the story saying they are left with no choice other than to use harsh seizure methods because of Kentville's inability to prove they can successfully host such a large Parade event, ( Kentville has hosted this parade for the last 85 years ), and also because the people in charge of Grand Street Parade were unprofessional, indifferent and uncooperative ?
And so it came to be that a newly elected Mayor and Council in its infancy were suddenly confronted with perhaps the most serious challenge ever to be faced by the town of Kentville ever since the tragic loss of their major transportation sources, that being the loss of the railway in 1989, and then the shocking loss of aviation in 2014 when the Town CAO and the Warden and Council conspired to close out Waterville municipal Airport and evict all businesses and tenants ? This serious challenge came in the form of a surprise and pernicious attack and hijacking of Kentville's most beloved local commercial attraction, that being the Grand Street Parade ? The unexpected assault came from an unfamiliar and unfriendly source that seemed inconsiderate, disrespectful, and even a tad opportunistic when considering that Kentville had just finished installing a brand new rookie Mayor and Council ? When newly elected Mayor Snow, was suddenly swarmed by the news of so many extreme actions already taken against her town's best interests, the shocked and disbelieving Mayor said she was overwhelmed, heartbroken and called these actions unprecedented, disrespectful and unacceptable when speaking with local media ? All agreed that any attack on Kentville's most popular and well known outdoor world class event without the courtesy of an invitation, negotiation, inclusion or consultation is unacceptable ? Needless to say, the biggest losers of all were the good citizens of Kentville who have contributed so much over the lase 90 years years going back to the thirties and forties when the CNR train would bring guests to stay at the Cornwallis Inn ? The Town has invested enormous amounts of time, energy and resources into the creation of this world-famous event that draws tens of thousands of visitors.
All the Valley towns take great pride and look forward to their individual town festivals and especially their yearly parade. The citizens of Kentville are no different. Towns like Kingston, Hantsport, Wolfville, Windsor, Berwick, Canning, Greenwood etc. will never have to worry about someone hijacking their yearly parade or otherwise taking it away from them ? However, sadly, the citizens of Kentville are now forced to live with the troubling prospect of a possible loss of their beloved town parade at any time without notice and the loss of so many years of time and energy put forth by residents, of years of local monetary donations made, of the use of town resource and manpower, and of all the other general services and contributions made for the past 88 years to create this world class parade ?
The current 2017 ABF board of Directors is led by Angela Pelton and Alxys Chamberlain (Queen Annapolisa 2015), with Barb Madic, Heidi Scotney-Kinsman, John Patterson, Katie Gordon, Krista Morine, Linda Keddy, Logan Morse, Sarah Griffiths, and Steffany Cox-Lingard ?
news clippings :
Frustration growing in Kentville, N.S. over Apple Blossom parade change CTV Atlantic atlantic.ctvnews.ca/frustration-growing-in-kentville-n-s-...
Kings County Councilor Emma Van Rooyen calls for the de-funding of the Apple Blossom Festival
atlantic.ctvnews.ca/apple-blossom-festival-competition-di...
JULY 14, 2023 - Valley Pride workshops, drag performances, and more events planned for Kentville and Wolfville over the weekend.
globalnews.ca/video/9832465/first-official-pride-festival...
CTV Jan. 23, 2017 " A long-standing N.S. festival opens competition to all gender identities"
www.ctvnews.ca/canada/long-standing-n-s-festival-opens-co...
ABF 2022 - Princess competition and Queen Annapolisa pageant to be postponed this year ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52076239848/in/datepos...
Local Parade grants are available from the Federal Government,,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yk9x0NMYXE
New Minas agrees to host the parade after being approached by festival organizers Protest Petition is started
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/apple-blossom-festival...
Kentville will host the Apple Blossom parade after all
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/kentville-gets-apple-b...
No Smoking in KVille, but we encourage you to drink, gamble and smoke pot all you want ? Maders tobacconist in downtown Kentville,,
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/9344935900
may 2023 = Kids welcome at the all-age Drag show to be held at the Kings Arms in Kentville,,
www.nsbuzz.ca/life/kentville-all-ages-drag-show-draws-pro...
A protest against an all-age drag show held at the Kings Arms ends peacefully in Kentville,
www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/communities/a-celebration-of...
Lunenburg - Now even Queen is a bad name ? Lunenburg recently changed the name of Cornwallis Street to Queen Street. Queen was first choice of all those in a survey taken to select a new street name. But the town received another complaint from the local anti-racism committee saying they are upset by a democratic decision that would replace one colonial street name (Cornwallis) with another, (Queen ) ?
www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/ns-town-that-changed-cornwa...
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Following a 2 year absence due to Covi,, the 2022 Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival. (and Parade) will be held as per usual this year.. Unfortunately the Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess competition has had to be postponed until next year due to time constraints.
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Shocking news from ABF,
* There's been a stunning development at ABF. *
Apparently in a new younger generation there are those who harbor resentment towards our nations history, for English colonialism, and even for the Monarchy ? Other minority groups have voiced discontent over the diversity and inclusion issue ? And so it seems that the current ABF Board of Directors has listened to the concerns and complaints of a few small minority groups while apparently ignoring and excluding the overwhelming majority of Valley residents ? And it appears that this current Board of Directors chose to resolve such discontent by simply moving to implement and execute the nuclear option and the final solution ? And therefore after a highly successful lengthy run of 87 consecutive years in a row, the extremely anticipated, very popular, family oriented, inclusive and diverse, multi village Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess Pageant along with the prestigious Royal Coronation crowning ceremonies held in Wolfville have all been terminated forever by this current board of Directors ?
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-----------------------It's The End of an Era-----------------------------
"We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep."
Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival 2023 - ABF Board of Directors has announced drastic new changes in format and even deeper cut-backs to the annual People's Festival ? Concerns over ceremony, symbolism, the monarchy and colonialism, along with some complaints over inclusion and diversity may have had an influence on the current ABF board of Directors and they have seen a need to update the long running Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess pageant in order to bring it up to a standard they view as being more relevant to the current times ? And so the Directors must have held an extremely private 'think tank' last Winter, and without notifying, caring, considering or consulting with any of the long time participating Valley communities, they had decided that rather than trouble themselves any further with this pesky issue, why not just take the easy way out and simply get rid of it ? And so it seems they made a final decision in private last Winter and moved to execute the final and fatal solution to their problem by ordering that the iconic 87 year old Pageant competition be immediately shut down and terminated forever ? And therefore, as a result of an uninclusive and uncontested decision made in private, one of the longest running, popular, identifiable, well known, highly anticipated, most inclusive and diverse, proud all family events that has ever benefited Valley residents of every age, has just been taken away ?
This unconditional act of finality will now end the long running 88 year reign of her royal Heinous Queen Annapolisa and will terminate all participation of the 7 to 10 Apple Blossom Princess contestants and their child attendants that represent 7 to 10 local Valley communities ? It will also mean the end of the many beautiful hand crafted award winning Princess floats that always highlight Grand Street Parade, and it will also signal the end of the ultra glamorous Queen and Ladies-in-waiting Crowning ceremonies held annually and televised each year from Acadia University in Wolfville ? This also puts an end to the many popular community Princess Tea events, and also ends all Royal Party visitations to local Schools, hospitals and old folks homes that are so welcome and appreciated by Students, Seniors and shut-ins ? This also signals the end of Royal Party appearances at Kentville Children's Parade, at the Memorial Park Friday night open air concert and fireworks, and all Royal attendances at many other events held annually throughout the Valley and the Province ?
It appears now that current ABF Officials led by President Logan Morse along with Kentville town rep Lindsey Young have not only interrupted the Pageant in 2022 when they temporarily postponed it, but have now in 2023 moved to terminate this prestigious event forever explaining that their radical decision has been made to improve, include, modernize and evolve the famed beauty pageant ? This final act of termination ends almost 90 years of royal pageantry and also leaves a huge gap in the Festival itself ? It will also negatively affect so many of the nearby Valley communities who always participate and enter contestants in the Pageant ? The ending of such an important multiple community event and the taking away of the better half and Star of the Apple Blossom Festival brings forth the question of what replacement is planned, and what are local towns and villages that always play major roles in both the Queen and Princess competition suppose to do now ? And what about Valley youth and the childhood dreams of one day becoming a child attendant or an Apple Blossom Princess or even a Queen ?
You have to marvel at the level of ego and disrespect shown by this latest Board of Directors who have dared appoint themselves as the ones that will end the Pageant and then to think that Valley residents are stupid enough to believe that by cancelling and taking away a cherished and long running event, that they have in some perverted way of thinking moved the Valley forward or improved and modernized anything ? It seems far more likely that they have taken the Valley on a giant leap backwards and robbed the people of a much beloved, long running, multi community, all inclusive and live local production that has always been the most anticipated all Valley highlight of the year for the past almost 90 consecutive years ?
Why the current ABF Management, who claim to be stewards in charge and responsible for the promotion and presentation of this event, appear unable to perform their duties or to perform the job they're paid to do and now do what their predecessors have always done so well each and every year for the past 87 years, often in far more trying circumstances and in far less prosperous times, is difficult to comprehend ? And you have to wonder, Whatever happened to the # 1 rule in business that says that if you can't do your job because of your inexperience, immaturity, inability, personal bias, laziness, or just plain stupidity, then,, YOU'RE ALL FIRED ! (and a Class action recovery suit may be forthcoming ?)
.ABF news updates :
Logan Morse and a newcomer ABF Board of Directors break the hearts of Valley families especially the Children when they move to terminate the historic and long running Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess Pageant after 88 years ? ABF Directors show no remorse, while boasting that their bold action was needed to improve, evolve and bring the pageant up to their modern standards ? www.pressreader.com/canada/annapolis-valley-register/2023...
May 26, 2023 - We Are the Ones. An unusual degree of arrogance and disrespect is shown when the long running Valley Peoples Pageant is cancelled without either of consideration or consultation ? A modern generation of newcomer ABF Directors with bold new ideas have apparently proclaimed themselves to be the one generation to interrupt and permanently end 88 years of wonderful multi Valley village Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess enjoyment ?
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/apple-blossom-festival...
Annapolis Valley families are in shock and children cry upon learning their beloved Queen Annapolisa Pageant has been cancelled without notice, consultation, consideration or compassion ? Newcomer Directors say they are taking their bold action to improve, evolve and modernize the historic Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival ? www.saltwire.com/atlantic-
Valley residents lose long time major yearly entertainment event when the ever popular ABF Greenwood Airshow is terminated and will be no more. Fast forward to Aug 24, 2024, and to corporation greed ? Air Show Atlantic Inc. now charges big bucks to see taxpayer owned aircraft at a taxpayer owned airport in their vastly inferior airshow ? Air Show Atlantic Inc. does not offer a discount Seniors ticket category for Senior citizens ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52345513615
How dare They ! Kentville IS the Cornwallis Inn and the Cornwallis Inn IS Kentville ! If you were to google the 2 words Cornwallis Inn you will get over 600,000 entries with almost all of them married to the word Kentville.. (what a great promotional tool) . The world famous Cornwallis Inn is the source of many fond memories for all local and Valley residents.. "It was the centre of everything’: The past and present of Kentville’s iconic Cornwallis Inn"
www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/lifestyles/it-was-the-centre...
Kentville identity crisis. Help, Is there a Superhero anywhere out there to save Kentville from the newcomer agenda ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54418705157/in/album-7...
The controversial 2017 Grand Street Parade - Has Kentville once again been targeted for exploitation ? After Warden Brothers, (Greenwood ) and Liberal MP L Glavine (Kingston) had all but hijacked Waterville Airport before relocating it to their own home riding in the Kingston/Greenwood area, it seems that the town of Kentville must face yet another attack from the Kingston area when Alxys Chamberlain, the Kingston Apple Blossom Princess, and other ABF Directors attempt to take yet another major source of revenue and major attraction away from the town of Kentville ?
Et tu, Madama Chamberlain ? The unconscionable attempted hijacking and subsequent recovery of Kentvilles's most beloved yearly event ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/18506181065
2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade - Disregard for safety shown as unrestrained Senior citizens are precariously perched atop an unsheltered, open sided, stop and go, large unstable jerking motion moving platform ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/53900780519/in/album-7...
Exploiting Queen Annapolisa for a photo op ? Politicians at the official opening ceremony of the 2023 Apple Blossom Festival pretending there's still a Pageant in a photo while knowing full well that Queen Annapolisa and the Apple Blossom Princesses have been terminated forever and will no longer be a part of this year's Festival ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/53755100811/in/album-7...
2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade - Newcomer ABF stewards seem to defy and ignore our Liberal Government special plea for diversity and inclusion ? Many nearby local Valley towns and villages that normally attend are excluded from this year's parade ? This exclusion means the loss of the enormous diversity that is always provided by the attendance of these many nearby local communities ? Where is Canning, Digby, Annapolis Royal, Hantsport Greenwood, Windsor ? Where's our Queen Annapolisa ? Where's the Apple Blossom Princesses and wdrtr's all of the individual Town floats including Princess Kentville ? To view complete 2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade press here, www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie
Facebook, Friends of Kentville - The site Administrator, a new arrival from PEI, says she wants to see Kentville as the queerest town in all of Nova Scotia ? www.facebook.com/groups/2588266877982288
Will a drag Queen replace an apple blossom Queen in Kentville ? www.nsbuzz.ca/life/kentville-all-ages-drag-show-draws-pro...
Nov 16 2023 - Apple Blossom Princesses call for a return of Queen Annapolisa,
www.saltwire.com/atlantic-canada/communities/former-apple...
The Town of Kentville has moved to cut back and eliminate many hours of traditional public outdoor entertainment that have always been a standard part of the Apple Blossom Festival ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52094784785
A medley of the guest Tribute bands that have performed at Memorial Park Kentville - Always free of charge in the past when performing at the Apple Blossom Festival : Petty Larceny, Fleetwod Mix, Keep the Faith, Stones Tribute, Green River Revival, Viscious, Eddy's Basement, Matt Minglewood,
www.dailymotion.com/video/x5hqti9
Corporate greed shown by newcomer ABF directors in this year's Apple Blossom Festival ? Instead of providing a free guest Tribute band as per normal at the free Memorial Park Friday night concert, it will now cost 50.00 pp to see a 'Queen tribute band' performance. that's 50.00 per ticket in 2025 ? acadiau.universitytickets.com/
Town of Kentville rips off its own citizens right at Apple Blossom Festival time ? Cold heartless capitalism shown by Kentville and by the newcomer ABF management ? Citizens burdened with out of pocket expense of TWENTY DOLLARS each just to attend an outdoor street dance held downtown on taxpayer owned property during the Apple Blossom Festival ? Is there no shame ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54546051832/in/photost...
They've Ruined It ! Our great Festival is no longer even recognizable ? How could anyone take a world class event and turn it into something that can only be described as stupid ? President Erica Gillis has to be the worst ever ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54418705157/in/album-7...
Directors Erica Gillis, www.appleblossom.com/about/
Mayor Andrew Zebian www.facebook.com/andrewzebian
2025 Kentville Grand Street Parade - is this a joke ? A brief 45-minute bare minimum compact Kentville Grand Street Parade this year ? Zero in large marching street bands and majorettes other than the one RCMP (mini version) marching unit, no Sottish pipers or pipe bands, zero in Apple Blossom Royalty and their famous royal floats, Most of the regular nearby Valley village participants not there, no horse and wagon entree, no armaments, soldiers, bands or displays from Aldershot or Greenwood, etc etc, ? And yet Guest parade announcer proclaims in quote @ 29:17, " this parade is the largest in Canada, incl Toronto - it's the longest with the largest route and the most entries. " Wha-a-a-t ? Where did she come from and what is she talking about ?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQuaIdrQi00
A different rider is now sitting in a makeshift Royal throne that has been set aboard the historic Apple Blossom Princess float for its famous trip down Kentville's Main Street on Apple Blossom festival Saturday. It seems our new Mayor will now grace the famous Town Princess float on its annual trip in the famous Grand Street Parade ?
' Somebody get that King a crown and sceptre '
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54557663677/in/dateposted
They've ruined it part 2 ! May 31st, 2025 Grand Street Parade - From 100,000 down to 10,000, Parade attendance shrinks to all time low - They've ruined the Festival and the Parade too ! www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54568017261/in/photost....
ABF Directors may disapprove of and have now terminated our beloved Queen Annapolisa pageant and multiple village Apple Blossom Princess competition but nevertheless Valley residents will always conyinue to admire, support, respect and remain fond of the British Monarchy. And, most Valley citizens are delighted to hear that his Majesty King Charles III and Queen Camilla are invited and will be coming for a royal visit to Canada on May 26 and 27, 2025. This year's incomplete and now Royalty-less ABF starts on the 28th, www.cbc.ca/news/politics/king-charles-canada-visit-1.7524946
A long and proud history of past Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess winners has been removed from sight and erased from the official Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival website ? A special honorary history page dedicated to previous Queen Annapolisa winners from 1933 thru 2019 has been taken down and apparently replaced with jumbo size portraits of the newcomer President and other ABF directors who have taken over and ruined the world famous Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival ? www.appleblossom.com/history/past-queens
Meet the directors,
May 30th, 2025 - 20 dollar burgers and bouncy castles ??? High level of security brought in for this year's Memorial Park Friday night rock concert ? ( must have taken up most of the budget ) ? Town of Kentville brings in outside police, closes roads, and sets up a defensive security perimeter around the event with manned traffic guard posts to provide heightened G7 level security for their Friday night Memorial Park Apple Blossom outdoor concert that in past years had always featured guest rock bands, interesting demonstrations and displays, and a Royal Queen Annapolisa visit following her prestigious coronation ceremony in Wolfville, but appears now to have deteriorated into some kind of an outdoor romper room type family show featuring food trucks, inflatable air bouncy castles and the usual local band that always plays around here as the featured invited guest main stage star performer ? Unfortunately , there isn't much to do for anyone over the elementary grade school level other than purchase some food at the upscale restaurant prices to dine on a paper plate using plastic utensils while standing up in a crowd of unruly kids and being lustfully observed by hungry saliva drooling pet dogs leashed to their owners ? However, thanks to upgraded crowd control, a heavy police presence, and the enforcement of strict traffic control surrounding the site, there was a report of a parking violator being successfully apprehended and a runaway pet was captured and returned to its owner ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54558198569
May 30th, 2025 Memorial Park Kentville - Seniors and those with disabilities made to walk long distances in order to reach this year's disappointing ABF Friday night outdoor rock Concert that didn't bring in a rock band, (nor much of anything else) ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54558198569/in/photost...
Oct 4th, 2025 - the annual Harvest Festival held in Centre Square :
Kentville - A disappointing harvest festival effort this year that did not include old standards like the family horse-drawn hay wagon ride and the pumpkin people scarecrow making class and group demo, and not much on the Valley harvest, Valley livestock or the Valley farmer ? Many of the Harvest Festival standards seem to have been replaced by multiple kiosks that sell merchandise unrelated to the harvest, childrens bouncy castles, and expensive food trucks ?
Upgrade 2025 ? photo taken from front of Phinneys dept store - A massive expenditure budgeted for a major upgrade to the Mayor's business backyard - Downtown Kentville Webster Street gets a complete and total beautification makeover with new installations of street paving, paint, new double sidewalks both sides, driveway entrances, and new curb and gutter both sides ? All other streets that surround this downtown business block have also been upgraded including Aberdeen Street, Cornwallis Street, and Main Street ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54835340734/in/photost...
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An Identity Crisis ;
Can an identity crisis be looming in the town of Kentville ?
A proud, neighborly salt of the earth working class community with generous hard working friendly citizens and a rich historic Railroad, agriculture and farming background is losing many of its longtime local traditions, themes and trademarks while elected Town officials, many of them new arrivals, just stand still, watch, and even enable ? Having always been identified as a main Provincial railroad center ever since the old Dominion Rail days dating back to 1869, the town has since lost all of its passenger and freight train rail service in and out including a modern passenger Dayliner service that traveled back and forth to Halifax every day ? And after the railway had been shut down it seemed they couldn't clear out the now useless brand new station, dig up the tracks and demolish the old roundhouse fast enough ? And so now, in what seems to be cruel mockery, the only railroading in Kentville left over from past glory days and from what was once the largest and most important and active railroad center west of Halifax, is just an old and faded hand painted train mural etched onto the weather beaten side of one of the downtown business establishments ?
Unfortunately the loss of the railway wasn't the last humiliating major transportation loss forced on the people of a small rural town as Kentville was soon to become even more isolated from the outside World when for no apparent logical, rational or reasonable reason the aviation community at Waterville municipal Airport CCW3 were told to get out when they had done nothing wrong and had no where else to go ? This long time invaluable contributor to the local area economy was lost when an established municipal airport, a well known Canadian sky diving facility, and an internationally known pilot training and licensing academy, and many privately owned aircraft with local owners, and many other established aviation businesses were told to get out ? The cold hearted eviction also left our young Air Cadets over at Camp Aldershot without a base to train on and so now the next generation has to grow up without their nearby aviation training and education facility ?
And so, a group of out-of-towners that mostly don't even live in this community had transformed an active thriving local Aviation business center that had taken decades to build and establish, into a barren and useless place where unsupervised Michelin children now ride bikes and dodge weeds poking their heads thru a deteriorating asphalt runway that was once a platform for private and commercial aircraft to fly in and out of the local area on a daily basis ? To add salt to the wound, this unwarranted calculated forced closure and loss of a vital member of the local economy was to be hailed by the executioners at Kings Council, ( and also by the prestigious Ivany Report Committee ) as being a bold and brilliant business decision that will greatly improve and benefit the local area ?
After months of homelessness and uncertainty over the future, a few evicted tenants found new sites elsewhere and relocated at their own expense to start all over again, while others just quit, while others were finally redirected to a new location in Greenwood which just happened by chance to be the Kings Council County Warden's home riding ? And so, in the end this devastating loss for Kentville and local area became a windfall for the Kingston Greenwood area, and, Kentville was left to carry on without either a Railway or an Airport ?
When the original KCA town School closed down, existing high school students were separated from their home school and had to be bused to the nearby town of Canning ? This would leave only the Grade 1 to 8 age groups to now identify Kentville as their home school, an education reality that still exists in Kentville ? There is no longer a movie theater in Kentville as the downtown movie theater has been closed forever, and the popular Edge sports bar, eatery and pool hall also closed down and never replaced ? Harvey's Hamburgers drive thru closed down and it never was replaced ? The longtime bowling alley in New Minas was bought out by developers, torn down, and replaced with a business office complex ? We lost the local salvage, reclamation and disposal site in South Alton when ordered shut down by the Provincial Government, but these same people who shut it down never ever offered to replace it with another leaving the community without this vital facility ? One day a portion of roof blew off the long time town funeral home and it never re-opened leaving only one such establishment left in town ? And, just as the citizens of Kentville were learning that both the Apple Blossom Princess and the Queen Annapolisa pageants were to be cancelled after 87 consecutive years, at the same time there was an all age Drag Queen show getting ready to entertain at the Kings Arms Pub in a total flip flop from the popular Irish Rovers or Scottish pipers that most Kentville citizens identify with at this time of year ? Numerous local restaurants and small businesses have all come and gone - mostly gone - and the main town supermarket Jasons IGA had a fire and was forced to close down for over a year so there was no supermarket to provide groceries for the local citizens ? The ever popular multi venue Wandlyn Inn burned down with all venues now lost to the community ? It wasn't replaced after the fire and now there's just a fast food MacDonald's take out to replace all of Wandlyn's many facilities including hotel rooms, indoor swimming pool, whirlpool and sauna, nightclub, dual convention centers and dual restaurants ? Not a very good exchange for the community ?
The traditional July 1st Canada Day town sponsored party event of fun, food,speeches and local entertainment held each year at the wading Pool was curtailed by the Town due to budget considerations ? And so now, if you want to enjoy July 1st entertainment or fireworks you have to go to New Minas, Hantsport or Berwick ? Access to clean drinking water is well known as one of the most identifiable entitlements provided by a town ? Billions are currently being spent by the Canadian taxpayer to provide First Nations people with free safe drinking water ? Yet the Kentville water commission charges the customer 10,000 dollars just to turn their town water on at roadside ? And then after this rather large up front financial layout paid for by the brand new customer, he will still have to pay for all of his yard trenching and household plumbing work ? And in return for this large initial forced surcharge, the valued new customer will be rewarded with a water bill courtesy of the town of Kentville each month hereafter ?
They even managed to take away Kentville's most famous of all and most instantly identifiable town landmark in the hotel name Cornwallis Inn ? Cornwallis Inn is a well known trademark hotel name that is synonymous World wide with the name of Kentville, and this name represents a multitude of fond memories for the local area residents and for other residents living all over the Valley ? It was hard to understand why the Town would ever allow this historic name to change,, and also hard to understand why a previous Town of Kentville planning dept would ever allow subsidized apartment units to be built onto the side of such a respected Town centerpiece and also block the access lane to the rear parking lot while doing it ? The Cornwallis Inn will always be an important Valley landmark and a future protected Canadian heritage site ?
They have even changed well known identifiable names of some Streets and even the local traffic bridge traversing the Cornwallis River ? And so now many local residents and delivery drivers don't know what they're talking about when these stupid new names are used ? This name change is especially hard on Kentville's Seniors who can become confused with such absurd name changes and has in some cases, created safety hazards ?
In 2017 ABF Directors tried to move Kentville's 87 year old yearly Grand Street Parade to different location in the Valley, and the town was forced to claw and battle its way just to get its own local yearly parade returned back home to them after hosting it for the last 90 years ? And in yet another major step backwards that same year, ABF and the Town decided to cease and desist all public ABF Wednesday, Thursday and weekends of fun, food, music, displays, amusements, local student performances, etc. etc. held at Memorial Park during the Apple Blossom festival week ? No explanation was given and no replacement or apology was ever offered by the Town for such a devastating loss to be absorbed by the citizens of Kentville ? Kentville has now lost its most identifiable of all citizens, that being their beloved Apple Blossom Princess Kentville, when newcomer ABF Directors had shown an uncommon degree of disrespect, as well as their disregard and insensitivity when presuming to appoint themselves as the ones entitled to end the long running iconic 88 year old iconic Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess competition ? This termination means all public Royal party appearances including the Princess Teas, Kentville Children's Parade, all Royal visitations to schools, shut-ins, Seniors, and hospital attendances that are normally made by Queen Annapolisa and the Royal Princesses are now cancelled and no longer take place ?
In 2022 the Kentville Grand Street Parade was quite understandably very limited and downsized following the 2 previous Covi year cancellations, but this year's 2023 effort wasn't much better ? The immense contribution and the wonderful diversity supplied by nearby Valley communities from Windsor to Digby was no longer included in the Parade ? Apple Blossom royalty and all Princess floats were no longer included in the Parade ? And many local residents expressed disappointment when Apple Blossom Princess Kentville and her child attendant were no longer seen or to be included in the Town Parade ? It seemed that Kentville had lost yet another identifiable citizen and wonderful Ambassador that always performed her official duties including advertising, promoting the town and representing Kentville with charm, grace, dignity, talent and beauty wherever she went ?
After the long running 3 consecutive Apple Blossom weekdays of afternoon and evening mid week entertainment at the Park were all cancelled and Apple Blossom Week entertainment was cut down to a bare bone single Friday night affair, ( which btw will no longer include the highlight of the evening Royal Party visitation and rock music by Eddy's Basement ), it seems Officials were still unsatisfied and found yet another way to take away even more ? And this year they want to charge inflation stressed locals a fee to see entertainers like Matt Minglewood and Kevin Davison at private shows when in the past these entertainers appeared on a public stage free of charge ? Cut backs were also apparent in fireworks, (which btw will no longer be started by Queen Annapolisa at her official Royal Party visitation to the Park following Coronation ceremonies in Wolfville) ?
And so, in summing up, the citizens of Kentville are frustrated with cutbacks, the many steps backwards, and the cancellations and closures that never seem to be replaced once gone ? Both the Provincial Railway and municipal Airport are now permanently closed down and even Acadia Van lines inter provincial bus transit no longer stops ? The Wandlyn Inn complex and all of its popular hotel and restaurant services were lost by fire and never replaced ? Extreme cut backs were made to the historic Apple Blossom Festival that saw a week long fun filled period of public entertainment at Memorial Park reduced to one minimal Friday night affair followed the next day by a shortened mundane parade of less than an hour ? Concerns also remain about the absence of an in-Town High School for Teens, the loss of a key funeral home, the loss of the Pool Hall, the absence of a movie theater, the loss of Harveys drive thru burgers, the loss of one of the 2 dt Tim Hortons, the loss of the dt pizza parlor, the loss of Chinese food take out, the loss of the local fruit and vegetable market, the absence of a 7/24 convenience store, the closure of the bakery, and also the loss of the local disposal site when no replacement was ever offered by the Government that shut it down ? There was also the shocking cancellation and heartbreaking termination of her royal heinous the Apple Blossom Princess Kentville and the end of the prestigious Acadia U Coronation ceremonies in Wolfville ? There was also the erasing of, and then the changing of the name of Kentville's biggest most identifiable internationally known Cornwallis Inn name logo that is instantly recognizable world wide and symbolically married for decades to the Town name of Kentville ? There remains the problem of a serious local shortage of rental rooms and local dining spots for tourists created when the Wandlyn hotel complex burned down and when not one of these many hospitality, business, tourist, restaurant, hotel, night club, and recreational venues were ever replaced ?
And now, in a more recent issue, we are seeing more and more small businesses located all over the Valley that have not only provided local employment but also served as popular meet and greet gathering spots for friends and neighbors for years and years now, changing hands after being bought out and turned over to total strangers that are not from Halifax or from N.S. nor even Canada but have come here from another Continent ? A strange new phenomenon of foreign take-overs has arrived in the Valley that includes replacing the management, assuming full control of the business and taking over the labor force of many traditional Valley fast food, gas, and coffee businesses ? Some of these now include : the Petrocan in New Minas, many Valley Tim Hortons, the Subway, KFC, DQ, Burger King, and the Mary Brown's in New Minas to name a few ? And in another concern, because many newcomer employees are unfamiliar with the currency it is advisable to count your change carefully if paying by cash ? There are also some indications that nepotism is now being shown in the hiring of employees once these establishments are taken over by new foreign management, and that our local students can't get Summer jobs any more ? Another major local employer, Eassons Trucking, also seems affected by the current influx of new foreign workers with some reports of untrained, unlicensed, unqualified, (and Government subsidized) drivers behind the wheel, and rumors of some units with multiple drivers on board having a hole drilled in the floor of the sleeper cabin to accommodate a long piece of ABS plumbing pipe used to transfer raw shidzen sewage directly from the interior of the truck down onto the open highway below to avoid pit stops at the Big Stop ?
And, from the looks of a recent Town municipal election, most candidates might be unfamiliar with the Town's long time traditions, customs, character, and past history ? Some candidates even naively describe the town as a kind of happy go lucky, blissful, Hallmark or Who-ville movie set type of place teaming with busy villagers and joyful munchkins frolicking up and down picturesque cobblestone streets lined by colorful quaint shops and internationally known boutiques and fancy eateries which does not accurately describe the Town ?
And apparently the new Mayor who is also a new local business owner, appears to have befriended the ex- Kings County Warden Brothers who represents and resides in the Kingston/Greenwood area and who had previously sold out Kentville when she led the charge to shut down and evict our local municipal Airport, the well known skydiving academy, the international flight training academy and many other prosperous Waterville airport aviation businesses ? And who could forget the Mayors' recent New Year's message of congratulating himself on enlarging the size of his downtown retail store and expressing personal happiness over a new (taxpayer funded) installation of a brand new sidewalk in front of it, but failing to mention serious town issues like terrible poverty and youth unemployment, racial profile hiring at Tim Hortons, the opioid drug crisis, high cost of living crisis, the homelessness crisis, the devastating cancellation of thr Princess Kentville competition, the vacationers and travelers concerns over there being no place to stay in Kentville, and the much needed indoor town recreation facility, (no one wants to get their daily exercise by hiking down crude outdoor trails while attacked by mosquitos or witness a homeless user shoot up in the privacy of the forest) ? There was also the decimation of the Apple Blossom Festival and sad deterioration of the world famous Grande Street Parade ? And there's also the current Town housing crisis, the sudden high increases in rent, the alarming rate of downtown business bankruptcies, and also the urgent need to honor Kentvilles glorious past railroading history with a museum and outdoor display of some sort ? Adding to this there appears to be a newly elected Town Council that has immediately started to cancel and cut back on important traditional town public events when, ( due to a drop of rain ) they had cancelled this year's Military march-on and (best in the area) outdoors Remembrance Day ceremonies traditionally held at the Memorial Cenotaph on Park Street ? There was also this years' poor presentation of a Grande Street Parade and one unsafe situation in the newcomer Parade where normal residents (incl Seniors) were seen perched precariously aboard a stop and go, unsheltered, jerking motion, no sided vehicle without restraining devices, water or protection from the sun ? There was also the ridiculous changing of many of the long time well known town names including the most famous of them all the Cornwallis Inn ? There's also local residents plea to 'bring our high school students back home again' , and some complaints about the Town's failure to provide public outdoor entertainment events exceeding the grade school level ? There was also the controversy over the hanging up of the biggest pride flag money can buy above the main entrance of the honored heritage site Cornwallis Inn, and of course, also the recent down town flooding crisis ? The mayor did not address the question of why a Provincial Government would force the local reclamation and disposal site to permanently close down its operation and then those who ordered this major loss to the welfare of the community would not offer to replace it but would just leave the area without such a facility ? And, there was no mention of the need for an inquiry into the exorbitant five figure fee charged to customers by the Kentville water commission just to turn water on at the road ? And there are also concerns over the recent rash of sudden unopposed takeovers of small businesses by newly arrived foreigners from Asia when our locals around here can't find work ? And what about growing concerns over the formation of an exclusive Ontarioville newcomer type town growing within an already established town ? There were also many concerns expressed over the Spring pothole epidemic that made some streets unfit to drive on, at a time when a brand new double lane sidewalk was being installed in front of Phinneys that was smooth as a baby's bum ? And then there was the refusal by the Town to help citizens with expensive auto repairs caused by their dangerous unattended potholes ? And there was also the inadequate street lighting and residential streets and sidewalks that are still in need of attention ? There was also the inconvenience felt by many local residents when ultra slow motion repairs on Canaan Ave moved at three legged turtle racing speed causing this vital access route to remain closed to traffic, incl emergency vehicles, for many many Months, (very much unlike the speedy workmanship and high priority given to the new downtown sidewalk installation in the front of Phinneys) ?
And so, can it be time to stop the come from away newcomer mentality, and make it mandatory for all candidates bidding on these important Town governing positions to be born and raised and reside in Kentville in an effort to preserve, protect and retain the Town's unique character, history, diversity, identity, and its many longtime local traditions ?
OUCH ? ( could someone please remove the daggers from our back ), Et tu, Warden Brothers and u tu Leo ? March 10th 2014 - A Date That Will Live on in Infamy - Warden Brothers, (Greenwood riding) and the Kings County Council use a calculated forced eviction to shut down the Waterville Airport aviation complex and then relocate some components to the Kingston/Greenwood area ?
www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/28588465413/in/album-7...
Newcomer ABF directors trying to erase history ? The page showing all past Queens and Apple Blossom Princesses has been removed from the official Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival site ? The popular history page honoring all past Queen Annapolisa winners 1933-2018 with photos and bios has been taken down and apparently replaced with huge portraits of the newcomer directors ?
Meet the newcomer directors,
How dare They ! Kentville IS the Cornwallis Inn and the Cornwallis Inn IS Kentville ! If you were to google the 2 words Cornwallis Inn you will get over 600,000 entries with almost all of them married to the word Kentville.. (what a great promotional tool) . The world famous Cornwallis Inn is the source of many fond memories for local and Valley residents.. "It was the centre of everything’: The past and present of Kentville’s iconic Cornwallis Inn"
www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/lifestyles/it-was-the-centre...
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On the recent 2023 edition of the Grand Street Parade :
"it looked as if some spectators along the route just joined in and began to walk along and make themselves a part of the parade ? "
May 27th, 2023 - Dismay, disillusion and some extreme disappointment prevail in Kentville over shocking changes and many missing regular entrees in this years 2023 Grand Street Parade ? Where is our famous Queen Annapolisa and where are the many Apple Blossom Princesses and their child attendants riding in their beautiful hand crafted decorated floats ? Where's the town criers ? And what about the dazzling majorette groups, the Scottish pipers and large multi instrumental marching bands that always attend ? And where are the Hantsport and Windsor floats and their large delegations ? And where are Digby, Aylesford, Annapolis Royal, Canning, Middleton, Wolfville, and more ? Why are so many of the Valley towns and villages that normally participate not included in the parade this year ? It was also a major disappointment for many when for the first time ever, Kentville Apple Blossom Princess (aka Miss Kentville) was no longer included as there are many town residents young and old who identify with the Apple Blossom Princess at this time of year ? However, the now purposeless Apple Blossom Princess float was used this year to transport a grouping of everyday town residents as they sat around together in a social scene meant to identity Kentville with diversity and inclusion ? The New Minas float also did not include an Apple Blossom Princess for this year, however her float was transformed into an advertisement for the famous New Minas UFO incident which all New Minions identify with. The Berwick float didn't include a Princess Berwick this year either. but was altered to proudly identify with the town's upcoming Centennial celebrations. And the Kingston float was also missing an Apple Blossom Princess this year but was instead promoting their long running Kingston Steer Barbecue that all Kingstonians readily identify with. It was good to see an RCMP contingent again although they sent far less officers this year than usual ? And it was notable that only 1 other large marching band appeared in the parade when usually 4 or more big bands, many with many pipers usually attend after traveling up from places like Cape Breton, Bridgewater, Dartmouth etc ? And where have all the pets and animals gone ? There's no horse teams, wooden wagons, riders or livestock this year ? Even the usual greyhound dogs weren't there ? Also noticed that some spectators must have just joined in and began walking along within the parade, and others must have come over from the Children's parade with their strollers to join in ? There was a variety of advertisers, most from out of town but some local ? There were various Political parties represented, with the largest delegation coming from the Kody Blois Liberals ? All in all, this Year's parade seemed a bare minimum and a weak effort that really missed the inclusion of royal pageantry and the 7 to 10 spectacular Princess floats, and also missed the large marching bands and majorette groups that usually enter, the usual agriculture horticulture and livestock component, the popular Scottish pipers bands that always attend, and also the many large out of town contingents that always normally participate ? This was not the famous grand street parade that patrons are accustomed to seeing, and did not represent the high standards and degree of professionalism set by all previous Grand Street Parades ? It became obvious that what was being advertised as a newer, bolder, more inclusive and more diverse parade was instead the exact opposite because this new version of our Grand Street Parade had lost the inclusion, diversity and the major contribution put forth by the absent Valley communities along with their individual Princess contestants and Child attendants that always come to Kentville to participate in the Queen Annapolisa competition, the Friday evening coronation gala at Acadia University in Wolfville, the many Princess Teas, and the Royal attendances at schools, hospitals, senior citizen homes and shut-ins, as well as appearances at the Friday night Memorial Park outdoor concert and fireworks, Royal attendances highlighting the Saturday morning Children's Parade, and a Royal trip down Main street Kentville aboard a beautiful hand crafted royal float in the famous Grand Street parade ?
And so, to quickly sum up, can a strange looking, incomplete, shortened, now Royal-less, newcomer mentality amateur version of our elite world-famous Kentville Grand Street Parade that was now missing her heinous Queen Annapolisa and also missing 7 to 10 Apple Blossom Princesses and their individual 7 to 10 beautifully handcrafted Town Princess floats, and also missing much of the unique character and diversity usually provided by the numerous Valley villages and communities who were no longer included, and that also failed to include many of the large out of town marching bands and pipers and majorettes who usually attend, and that also lacked representation from local area farming, agriculture and livestock,, now signal the end of the once glorious Grand Street Parade era ?
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Some previous parades :
2011 Grand Street Parade Kentville 79th ABF
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVgh3Dh2xn8&t=208s
2012 Grand Street Parade Kentville www.youtube.com/watch?v=VB1VBx50b18
2014 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEo14IZKxp8&t=11s
2015 Kentville Grand Street Parade
www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBifeG2SdPY&t=47s
2016 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2wedvN5_Iw&t=8s
2017 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=JozwyGpvfSY&t=1978s
2018 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOK1GmiLmNk&t=986s
2019 Kentville Grand Street Parade www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMdEx8Zf-q0&t=1492s
2025 Grand Street Parade - The exclusion of so many regular parade participants and the denial of their valued diversity have marred the 2023 Grand Street Parade ? Where is Canning, Digby, Annapolis Royal, Hantsport Greenwood, Windsor ? Where's Queen Annapolisa ? Where's the Apple Blossom Princesses and all of the individual Town floats including Princess Kentville ? To view a complete (newcomer version) of the world famous Kentville Grand Street Parade press here www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie
A concerned Kentvillian speaks out, www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/44424045874
Kentville is an incorporated town in Nova Scotia. It is the most populous town in the Annapolis Valley. As of 2021, the town's population was 6,630.
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Photograph taken during the thirty degree record breaking heat of a long overdue British Summertime, at 12:34pm on Thursday July 18th 2013 off Hythe Avenue in Chessington Avenue, Bexleyheath, Kent, England.
Model: MANDY FROST
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Nikon D800 70mm 1/200s f/3.2 iso100 RAW (14-bit) Handheld
Nikkor AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED IF. Jessops 77mm UV filter. Nikon MB-D12 battery grip. Two Nikon EN-EL15 batteries Lowepro Transporter camera strap.Lowepro Vertex 200 AW camera bag.Sandisc 32GB Ultra Class 10 30MB/s SDHC card. Hoodman HGEC soft viewfinder eyecup. Nikon GP-1 GPS unit. Overhead tabletop umbrella for shade & a high speed oscillating fan to help prevent the model from fainting in the heat.
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LATITUDE: N 51d 28m 28.40s
LONGITUDE: E 0d 8m 10.52s
ALTITUDE: 60.0m
RAW (TIFF) FILE: 103.00MB
PROCESSED FILE: 9.79MB
Rocinha slum - favela - , Río de Janeiro, Brazil. An agency arranges tours of the favelas and spends part of the gains is on charity in the favelas, mostly on building schools. This means that you're actually welcome - even though some of the young men, reasonably enough, showed signs of resentment.
Anger is like a volcano that erupts within your inner core fueled by a moment of intense rage, that is caused by some moment of agitation. Fury, Rage, Hate and Resentment as well as negativity are combined within this sin so actions are often connected with our stimulation to act out. The way most people act out from sin is characteristically a trip of power, a moment of questioned integrity, of dominating emotions overcoming the better sanity and the demoralized sensation of Hate. Anger is also a sub emotion of helplessness so to vent out ones fear it is often channeled into ear so to give that rage a reason to be let out, so fear is no longer at bay. Intense righting over the moment of emotional heights is a sin that is hard to control, just as the water that runs its course in a stream cannot be redirected. A channel for anger leads to much sinful demise, of hateful crimes, malevolent infestations of insanity, suicide, negative karma that comes back to destroy the aggressor. Sin of Anger is also fueled by a sense of weakness, a blockage of the self conscious to deal with the true feelings behind a real emotion and anger is a channel for that disguised emotion. Most often times anger management is a conflict a cause of pain and suffering for those connected to loved ones and society. Celebrities such as Angelina Jolie, Mel Gibson, Chris Brown, Lindsay Lohan, or Charlie Sheen are often subjects of sin channeled anger.
On Sunday evening, November 30, Roberto Micheletti, President of Congress and pre-candidate for the Liberal Party, accepted defeat against the “Elvincista movement” headed by Mauricio Villeda Bermudez, to whom he offered his support to win the next liberal victory in 2009.
At the same time, he said that Villeda’s victory is proof of the real democracy prevailed on Sunday.
“It has been proved that the michelitista movement was without fraud, as it was suggested; on the contrary, we are people that fight for democracy, and as of today, my candidate’s name is Mauricio Villeda, to whom we promise to fight for to secure the next triumph of the Liberal Party.”
“Our support is now for the Liberal Party’s candidate, without animosity or resentment. I thank the support and confidence of all the voters, campaign coordinators, and activists of our movement, as well as my vice president pre-candidate, Gabriela Nuñez, woman fighter who accepted with me the challenge to construct a dream, but could not be,” he added.
Definitely built without Council approval!
Tantallon Castle (but not the dodgy bit on the left here) was built in 1346 by William Douglas, nephew of Robert the Bruce's companion and trusted lieutenant - the "Good Sir James". William's father was killed at the battle of Halidon Hill and he became the ward of his kinsman and godfather, William Douglas, known to history as the Knight of Liddesdale. Liddesdale "rapaciously administered William's estates while in his ward-ship, and assumed direct ownership of some of the Douglas territories", for which his ward never forgave him, and for which there would be a reckoning!
In 1353, young William Douglas, returning from expelling Edward Baliol from lands on the Borders formerly owned by Baliol, but forfeited and granted to the Douglases, happened upon William of Liddesdale hunting in Ettrick Forest on land belonging to Douglas himself. Years of resentment over Liddesdale's assumption of the Douglas patrimony and other issues came to the boil and in the ensuing argument, William Douglas killed William of Liddesdale.
He was created Earl of Douglas in 1358!
It is not known quite how Douglas came to possess Tantallon, which had formerly belonged to the Earls of Fife. It would appear that he initially held the castle as tenant of the Earls of Fife, who subsequently made several attempts to get the Douglases out until Douglas ownership was formalised by parliament in April 1389.
National Monument to the linguists and collectors of fairy tales, Jacob Grimm (Hanau 04.01.1785 - Berlin, 20.09.1863) and Wilhelm Grimm (Hanau 02.24.1786 - Berlin, 12.16.1859).
Starting point of the German Fairy Tale Road Hanau-Bremen.
Nationaldenkmal der Sprachforscher und Märchensammler Jacob Grimm (Hanau 4.1.1785 - Berlin 20.9.1863) und Wilhelm Grimm (Hanau 24.2.1786 - Berlin 16.12.1859).
Ausgangspunkt der Deutschen Märchenstraße Hanau-Bremen.
(further pictures and informations you can see by clicking on the link at the end of page!)
Grimm Brothers National Memorial
A long way, since 1896 the brothers Grimm were cast in bronze.
View of the National Monument to the brothers Grimm in the New Town Market Square.
While still alive, the brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, in 1853, the respected citizen of Hanau and patron Pedro Jung donated 500 guilders for a monument to be constructed. Subsequent fund-raising and appeals, however, remained largely unsuccessful. On 21 January 1884 was founded a so-called Monument Committee and affirmed the prerogative of the city of Hanau to be a site for a National Monument to the brothers Grimm towards Kassel, Göttingen and Berlin. 1888 were invited eleven well-known sculptors to submit a draft, and all models were publicly exhibited at the Royal Academy of Drawing Hanau in January 1889. The population showed strong interest in the designs. A jury determined the first three winners: In first place came a design of Max Wiese, sculptor and director of the Academy of Drawing, the second Prize went to Gustav Eberlein, professor, sculptor and painter from Hannoversch-Münden. The third Price won Syrius Eberle, professor and sculptor from Munich.
Bronze plate
Bronze plate "Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm" at the National Monument.
But soon were stirred up resentment and counter-voices. It came to a dispute over the top-ranked design of sculptor Wiese. It was decided the son of Wilhelm Grimm, Herman Grimm, art and literary historian in Berlin, to ask his opinion. This examined the models and decided on the design of Syrius Eberle. So the order for the execution of the monument to Eberle was granted. The monument should be erected on the New Town Market Square, the figures measure a height of about three meters and a new base to be built. The Prussian Ministry withdraw thereupon indignantly its financial commitment.
Bronze plaque at the base of the national monument .
So the artist fell into default. The making of an auxiliary model in original size was delayed until 1894. Except for minor changes, the Hanauer have been taken with the design, but not the artist, because he destroyed the auxiliary model and was only a year later to present a new one. In the rush, the monument had to be poured in parts in two bronze foundries. On 18 October 1896 finally took place the solemn unveiling of the monument under great sympathy of the population.
From the sale of the original large cast model of plaster to Kassel the wrought iron grille has been paid.
Bronze plaque at the base of the national monument. The three winning models of the national monument of the Grimm brothers are now in the ownership of the Hanau Historical Association 1844 eV and can be marveled at among other Sien Grimm (Grimmensien) in the Historical Museum Hanau Castle Philippsruhe.
The national monument today is the starting point of the German Fairy Tale Road from Hanau to Bremen.
The preference of Japan for the brothers Grimm and their fairy tale collection led in 1989 to the cast of the monument, including a replica of the New Town Hall in scale 1:1 for the "Bliss Kingdom" Kofuko, an amusement park in Obihiro on Hokkaido Island/Japan.
Total height of the monument: 6.45 m.
Sculptor of the statue group: Syrius Eberle/Munich.
Neoclassical Bronze base and decorative grille: architect Friedrich August von Thiersch/Munich.
Seated Figure Wilhelm Grimm and base: Rupp'sche Erzgießerei/Munich, Germany;
standing figure Jacob Grimm: foundry of Miller/Munich.
Socle of Swedish granite: Dykerhoff & Naumann/Wetzlar.
Installation work: Hunter & Stumpf/Hanau.
Sons of the city - the brothers Grimm
Photograph taken during the thirty degree record breaking heat of a much needed British Summertime, at 12:35pm on Thursday July 18th 2013 off Hythe Avenue in Chessington Avenue, Bexleyheath, Kent, England.
Model: MANDY FROST
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Nikon D800 70mm 1/500s f/3.2 iso100 RAW (14-bit) Handheld
Nikkor AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED IF. Jessops 77mm UV filter. Nikon MB-D12 battery grip. Two Nikon EN-EL15 batteries Lowepro Transporter camera strap.Lowepro Vertex 200 AW camera bag.Sandisc 32GB Ultra Class 10 30MB/s SDHC card. Hoodman HGEC soft viewfinder eyecup. Nikon GP-1 GPS unit
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LATITUDE: N 51d 28m 28.39s
LONGITUDE: E 0d 8m 10.51s
ALTITUDE: 58.0m
RAW (TIFF) FILE: 103.00MB
PROCESSED FILE: 9.65MB
Rocinha slum - favela - , Río de Janeiro, Brazil. An agency arranges tours of the favelas and spends part of the gains is on charity in the favelas, mostly on building schools. This means that you're actually welcome - even though some of the young men, reasonably enough, showed signs of resentment.
This is a padrino birthday celebrated with fireworks in Rocinha slum - favela - , Río de Janeiro, Brazil. The padrinos make sure to keep order in the favelasand punish crime in the community severely. Brazilian police are not welcome there to say the least of it so they are relieved that someone takes the law in his own hand keeping order.
Coptic Christians in Cairo Egypt living in El Zabaleen, or garbage city. For generations families would work together to collect all the rubbish from the streets of Cairo and take it back to their homes. They then sift and sort through all the items which are then sold on to merchants. 85% of all solid waste is thus recycled from the city.
Families used to own pigs that used to eat the organic waste but everyone of them was slaughtered during 2009 during the outbreak of the H1N1 'swine' flu, even though there were no cases reported in Egypt. It was the only country that carried out a mass cull, and was also reported that it was done in an inhumane manner. This increased tension and resentment with the Government.
Coptic Christians in Cairo Egypt living in El Zabaleen, or garbage city. For generations families would work together to collect all the rubbish from the streets of Cairo and take it back to their homes. They then sift and sort through all the items which are then sold on to merchants. 85% of all solid waste is thus recycled from the city.
Families used to own pigs that used to eat the organic waste but everyone of them was slaughtered during 2009 during the outbreak of the H1N1 'swine' flu, even though there were no cases reported in Egypt. It was the only country that carried out a mass cull, and was also reported that it was done in an inhumane manner. This increased tension and resentment with the Government.
Day 224 of the 365 days challenge.
Little-known fact about me: I design jewelry! I make my own handmade chain, I can do those weird beading stitches, you name it. I used to subsidize my photography with money I earned designing jewelry, but then my photography started earning me way more than my jewelry, and so it kind of went by the wayside. I do occasionally take commissions, when people remember it's something I do. (Just got one in fact!)
As a result, I became really well aquainted with the spiritual properties traditionally associated with each stone. I don't really believe in it, but I keep the right stones around because.. well.. I mean, why does an atheist wear a cross? I don't know. I just like them around, it's comforting. And sometimes I make presents for my friends out of the stones which seem to remind me of my favorite qualities about them.
Anyway, this is malachite.
Malachite's gift is assisting one to be comfortable in changing situations.
Excellent stone for identifying, recognizing and releasing negative experiences, especially one that you cannot recall.
This is particularly useful for people on a spiritual path, or in recovery, for releasing guilt.
How does one make amends for that which you have no recollection or knowledge? Malachite will help you clear the past that you may have no conscious awareness of, yet remains a burden you are carrying.
It can be helpful in gaining insight into the cause of specific conditions, such as relationships, resentments, and anxiety so that you can release them.
“Baby, if tonight is the last night
Can’t you accept this love, even if it’s childish?
Just because you created this waiting and obsession
Doesn’t mean I’ve never held resentment toward you
Please stop playing with my brand new heart
My innocent heart.” (www.kpoplyrics.net/nature-girls-english-romanized-lyrics....)
The lyrics above are the English translation of Nature’s song “Girls,” from the site “Kpop Lyrics.Net.” I took all ten of these images for this project on a walk, where I only had myself and this song for company. During my walk, I lost myself through the haunting atmosphere of Nature’s “Girls.” My images were heavily influenced by the gothic ambiance of the song, and the aesthetic of the accompanying music video. This is why I edited all of my images in the style of black and white. I didn’t face any particular challenges for this project. However, my goal with shooting and editing was to show a different side of myself. I wanted to demonstrate that I’m not just a “one trick pony” per say. With that, I sincerely hope you all enjoy my photography series.
“I’m just a girl in front of love
Love Really really
Makes me silly silly
I feel so ridiculous, I feel so ridiculous
My heart is Really really
Hot like chilly chilly
I keep getting more childish
I’m just a girl in front of love
Because I want to hear the words, “I love you”
I’ll probably be crying again, alone tonight
Please stop playing with my brand new heart
My innocent heart.” (www.kpoplyrics.net/nature-girls-english-romanized-lyrics....)
This majestic castle was built over 700 years ago, and was inspired by Roman, Constantinople, and Arthurian architecture. It sits on the intersection of the River Seiont, and the Menai Strait, and was a symbol of British rule over the Welsh; to the Welsh it was also a source of resentment towards the British.
This horse galloped into the paddock after a long ride at the end of a hot day.
First, it tried to cool off by rolling in the sand, then headed to the farm shed - but the farm dog chased it out again.
The horse got agitated and started a set of exercises to show its discontent and resentment.
Stamping on the ground fiercely it raised a cloud of dust, capturing the afternoon sun sneaking in through the trees and creating the perfect setting for this series of photos.
Coptic Christians in Cairo Egypt living in El Zabaleen, or garbage city. For generations families would work together to collect all the rubbish from the streets of Cairo and take it back to their homes. They then sift and sort through all the items which are then sold on to merchants. 85% of all solid waste is thus recycled from the city.
Families used to own pigs that used to eat the organic waste but everyone of them was slaughtered during 2009 during the outbreak of the H1N1 'swine' flu, even though there were no cases reported in Egypt. It was the only country that carried out a mass cull, and was also reported that it was done in an inhumane manner. This increased tension and resentment with the Government.
Eight vertical curved and truncated elements stand along a high black hole. They are covered with questions about threats to the future of the human species:
Could weapons of mass destruction and rivalries between states or populations lead to the disappearance of
Could an excessive increase of human population and social inequalities lead to the disappearance of
Could aggressivity, resentment, contempt, greed and hate lead to the disappearance of
Could pollution of human origin and excessive biodiversity loss lead to the disappearance of
Could excessive greenhouse gas emissions of human origin lead to the disappearance of
Could an excessive exploitation of natural resources lead to the disappearance of
Could an excessive deforestation and the melting of permafrost and glaciers lead to the disappearance of
Could religious wars and an excessive instrumentalization of gods lead to the disappearance of
Technique: wood, paper, cardboard. Size: 150 x 95 x 95 cm.
SHIR KHAN, AFGHANISTAN - JUNE 03: Afghan children walk past German soldiers on June 3, 2010 in Shir Khan, Afghanistan. Germany has more than 4,500 military forces in Afghanistan as part of the US-led International Security Assistance Force. Amid growing public resentment towards the prolonged mission in Afghanistan, the German parliament, the Bundestag, voted in February for extension of Germany's military mission in Afghanistan and the deployment of additional 859 troops.
It was when I got to this image in my review of my most recent batch of uploads that I was suddenly gripped by a mortal dread that I had jeopardized the existence of my Flickr account. I broke out in a cold sweat.
For all I knew, the 28,868 photos I've placed here and the incalculable amount of time I have devoted to creating the images and writing about them might go down the tubes instantaneously. That could happen if the powers that be were to conclude that my photo of a famous print of Custer's Last Stand constituted a repeat violation of Flickr's community standards so grave that it required summary application of the virtual death penalty.
You, my Flicker followers, are probably as astonished to learn that Flickr's compliance folks took issue with one of my images as I was when I received the notice a while ago.
Here is the notice as translated from the original Portuguese, the language I've selected in order to hold on to some of what I learned during my two years of university-level study of that language.
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Hi, By joining Flickr, you have agreed to abide by Flickr's Terms of Service and Community Guidelines. www.flickr.com/help/guidelines www.flickr.com/help/terms
Your account has been brought to our attention and, upon review, we have determined that its contents were a violation because it contains a collection of confidential material.
This may include images of war events or graphic crimes copied from the media or news reports. It is forbidden to send screenshots or videos of news and other sources.
As a reminder, only content you've photographed or created is allowed on Flickr.
As a result, we remove content of this nature from your account.
Please ensure that any remaining uploads containing similar material are removed as soon as possible.
Please be aware that any subsequent violation of Flickr's Community Guidelines or Terms may result in termination of your account without notice. Best regards, Flickr Team.
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Does anyone see the glaring due-process deficiency here?
Because Flickr failed to identify the offending image, I have no idea which of my more than 28,000 images allegedly violated the standards cited in the notice. How, then, can I possibly "ensure that any remaining uploads containing similar material are removed as soon as possible"?
Frankly, I'm not aware of ever having uploaded "confidential material. . . . [that] may include images of war events or graphic crimes copied from the media or news reports."
Tell me, have you ever come across anything matching that description in my photostream?
For that matter, if images are copied from the media or news reports, how can they be considered confidential? Did Flickr's moderators mean to use a different word beginning with the letter "C"? Were they grasping for the word "copyrighted"?
I did not appeal this to Flickr because I have no reason to believe that a bureaucracy that bungled a takedown notice this badly would give me a fair hearing. For all I know someone could pull the plug on my account in retaliation for my perceived impertinence and I'd be screwed.
Hence, out of an abundance of caution, I have decided to self-censor my photo of a painting of Custer's Last Stand that was probably as ubiquitous as urban pigeons in its day. That's because the painting itself is one big image of a "war event." Depending on one's perspective, the painting also depicts "crimes" (i.e., homicide) on a massive scale.
If anyone is aware of any Flickr community standards that prohibit venting about Flickr itself, please let me know right away. This minor piece of dissent isn't worth the life of my Flickr account!
Here's what I had to say about the now obscured image. If you wish to see it, Flicker has left me no choice but to tell you to search for it yourselves.
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This is yet another piece I did not buy when I was making the rounds of antique and vintage stores in Astoria over the weekend.
It is a piece of Americana that seems downright transgressive by today's standards.
It appears that there are scads of this print for sale on eBay and elsewhere at any given time. I've established that style of the Anheuser-Busch label changed over the years, but I didn't find any examples online with a label identical to this one. My sense is that it dates to the first half of the 20th century.
There is a story behind this image:
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Craig Johnson on Custer, and the painting that ornamented barroom walls across America, then vanished.
October 2, 2020 By Craig Johnson
Questionable, inebriated art critics have referred to Custer’s Last Fight as the most viewed piece of artwork in the history of America. You may not know the artist, but I can assure most of you that you’ve seen his work in either a bar, saloon, restaurant, garage or rumpus room across the country.
The story of Cassilly Adams’ 1885 painting approaches the drama of the historic moment it represents and is something I’ve wanted to write about for some time. Although I’ve been interested in the Battle of the Little Big Horn, I never have developed the mania that seems to overtake those who fall under the spell of the historic incident that took place on the rolling hills of eastern Montana just up the road from my ranch. There has been so much written and re-written on the subject that I’ve avoided it like a mountain that seemed too tall to have to climb until I stumbled onto a story that triggered my interest.
I have seen reproductions of the painting hanging in every bar and saloon in the West, but I stumbled onto its story in the Norman Maclean Reader, a collection of essays, letters, and other writings by, in my estimation, one of the most eminent men of letters in the West, the man who gave us A River Runs Through It. A portion of the book is dedicated to an unfinished Custer manuscript that the great writer either gave up on, or one which he simply discovered he didn’t have time to write. The Cassilly Adams painting is referred to numerous times and its social implications intrigued me to the point that I started off on the first of many steps in climbing mount Custer.
The trick to approaching any monumental and controversial aspect of history is to find an access point, a facet that provides an entrance that might not have been used before or affords a perspective that endows the subject matter with a fresh point of view.
A shirttail ancestor of the Adam’s family of Boston fame, Cassilly was a Civil War veteran who studied at the Boston Academy of Arts and the Cincinnati Art School before settling in St. Louis. At 9.5 by 16.5 feet, his most epic work took a year to complete whereupon it toured the country where citizens could relive the battle at two bits a pop.
The painting, however, didn’t realize the profits the owners imagined, so it was sold to a saloonkeeper in St. Louis where it hung on the wall until the establishment went bankrupt, at which point Adolphus Busch, the head of a fledgling brewery named Anheuser Busch, acquired the painting in exchange for a $35,000 beer bill.
He then rolled it up, stuck it under his arm, and carried it back to the fledgling brewery where he instructed his advertising department that they were going to reproduce the painting in order to advertise their beer. The company began distributing lithographs, prints, and posters wherever Budweiser beer was sold, the theory being that the brewery in St. Louis would be a much greater and going concern once the marketing campaign had run its course—and boy howdy, did it ever.
The eighteen-nineties were an interesting period in American history. Following the depression of ’93 when advertising was just beginning to take hold nationally, campaigns combined with manufacturing to become consumer driven, big business. Even though Libby Custer’s campaign to revitalize her husband’s reputation had been in full swing for decades, it now seemed like a perfect pairing with Budweiser, the beer of action, even if George Armstrong Custer was a teetotaler.
In the painting flaxen tousled Custer is depicted swinging a sabre even though the 7th Cavalry as an expeditionary force had not been issued them and the general had cut off all his hair the night before. The rest of the painting itself is not without controversy, with a number of historical inaccuracies, not the least of which is a somewhat foreign topography that has the Lakota/Cheyenne village on both sides of the Little Big Horn River which may have been borrowed from the highly successful Buffalo Bill’s Wild West recreation backdrops of the day.
The son of the artist, William Apthorp Adams, stated that models were posed by Sioux Indians in their war paint and also by cavalrymen in the costume of the period. If such is the case, the soldiers fared much better in that the warriors of the Northern Plains appear to have arrived via Rorke’s Drift, by way of the Everglades.
It’s no surprise that the influence of the Zulu war in Africa would’ve held stead in the artist’s imagination in that the two comparably technologically advanced and colonializing countries had been knocked for a loop by what were then seen then as primitive tribesman.
The Seminole headdresses are little more difficult to explain.
Even Ernest Hemingway mentions the advertising device in For Whom the Bell Tolls when Robert Jordan remembers his grandfather remarking, “Custer was not an intelligent leader of cavalry, Robert.” His grandfather had said. “He was not even an intelligent man.”
He remembered that when his grandfather said that he felt resentment that any one should speak against that figure in the buckskin shirt, the yellow curls blowing, that stood on the hill holding a service revolver as the Sioux closed in around him in the old Anheuser-Busch lithograph that hung on the poolroom wall in Red Lodge.
With an initial run of over 15,000 prints and 18 subsequent editions totaling well over a million copies, Adolphus Busch, having realized the commercial potential of the painting had waned, presented Custer’s Last Fight to the 7th Cavalry in Fort Riley, Kansas in 1896 in a fit of philanthropic zeal. Later, the headquarters was relocated to Fort Grant and the painting decamped along with them but was then lost or misplaced. Abandoned to antiquity, it was rediscovered by Col. John K. Herr in 1934 while on maneuvers in the abandoned Arizona fort, rolled onto a flagpole and stuffed in the rafters of a derelict building. By then in poor condition, it was restored by the W.P.A. in Boston and was returned to the 7th where it hung on the wall in the officer’s club in Fort Bliss, Texas.
At this point I’d like to tell you where you could visit the painting and access its artistic merits yourself, but such is not the case in that on the velvety night of June 13, 1946, there was a fire in the officer’s club and the painting was destroyed.
Or was it?
Herein lies the better part of being an author of fiction, and my first step up mount Custer.
Rocinha slum - favela - , Río de Janeiro, Brazil. An agency arranges tours of the favelas and spends part of the gains is on charity in the favelas, mostly on building schools. This means that you're actually welcome - even though some of the young men, reasonably enough, showed signs of resentment.
These are photos from a school.
"Humor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritations and resentments slip away, and a sunny spirit takes their place."
(Mark Twain)
sorry my darling Nasher ...a special photo will come for you... but for now... at least here is a smile ;)
Thomas Wolsey (c. March 1473[1] – 29 November 1530; sometimes spelled Woolsey) was an English political figure and cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. When Henry VIII became king of England in 1509, Wolsey became the King's almoner.[2] Wolsey's affairs prospered, and by 1514 he was the controlling figure in virtually all matters of state and extremely powerful within the Church. The highest political position he attained was Lord Chancellor, the King's chief adviser. In that position, he enjoyed great freedom, and was often depicted as an alter rex (other king).
Within the Church, he became Archbishop of York, the second most important seat in England, and then was made a cardinal in 1515, giving him precedence, even over the Archbishop of Canterbury. His main legacy is from his interest in architecture, in particular his old home of Hampton Court Palace, which stands today.
Thomas Wolsey was born circa 1473, the son of Robert Wolsey of Ipswich and his wife Joan Daundy.[2] His father was widely thought to have been a butcher[3] and a cattle dealer,[4] but sources indicate that Robert Wolsey died at the Battle of Bosworth Field and was a significant casualty. Robert may have been a respected and wealthy cloth merchant, and the butcher story was perhaps invented to demean Wolsey and show how high he had climbed in terms of status.
Thomas Wolsey attended Ipswich School[5] and Magdalen College School before studying theology at Magdalen College, Oxford. On 10 March 1498, he was ordained a priest in Marlborough,[6] Wiltshire and remained in Oxford, first as the Master of Magdalen College School before quickly being appointed the dean of divinity. Between 1500 and 1509 he held the living of Church of Saint Mary, Limington, in Somerset.[7] In 1502, he left and became a chaplain to Henry Deane, archbishop of Canterbury, who died the following year.[2] He was then taken into the household of Sir Richard Nanfan, who trusted Wolsey to be executor of his estate. After Nanfan's death in 1507, Wolsey entered the service of Henry VII.
It was to Wolsey’s advantage that Henry VII had introduced measures to curb the power of the nobility and was prepared to favour those from more humble backgrounds.[8] Henry VII appointed Wolsey royal chaplain.[9] In this position Wolsey was secretary to Richard Foxe, who recognized Wolsey's innate ability and dedication and appreciated his industry and willingness to take on tedious tasks.[10] Thomas Wolsey’s remarkable rise to power from humble origins can be attributed to his high level of intelligence and organisation, his extremely industrious nature, his driving ambition for power, and the rapport he was able to achieve with the King. In April 1508, Wolsey was sent to Scotland to discuss rumours of the renewal of the auld alliance with King James IV.[11]
Wolsey's rise coincided with the accession of the new monarch, Henry VIII, whose character, policies and diplomatic mindset differed significantly from those of his father. In 1509, Henry appointed Wolsey to the post of Almoner,[2] a position that gave him a seat on the Privy Council, providing an opportunity to raise his profile and to establish a rapport with the King.[12] A factor in Wolsey's rise was that the young Henry VIII was not particularly interested in the details of governing during his early years.[13] Under the tight personal monarchy of Henry VII, Wolsey was unlikely to have obtained so much trust and responsibility.
The primary counsellors whom Henry VIII inherited from his father – Richard Foxe (Bishop of Winchester) and William Warham (Archbishop of Canterbury) – were cautious and conservative, advising the King to be a careful administrator like his father. Henry soon appointed to his Privy Council individuals more sympathetic to his own views and inclinations. Until 1511, Wolsey was adamantly anti-war; however, when the King expressed his enthusiasm for an invasion of France, Wolsey was able to adapt to the King's mindset and gave persuasive speeches to the Privy Council in favour of war. Warham and Foxe, who failed to share the King’s enthusiasm for the French war, fell from power (1515/1516) and Wolsey took over as the King's most trusted advisor and administrator. In 1515, Warham resigned as Lord Chancellor, probably under pressure from the King and Wolsey, and Henry appointed Wolsey in his place.[14]
Wolsey carefully tried to destroy or neutralise the influence of other courtiers. He was blamed for the fall of Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, in 1521; and in 1527 he prosecuted Henry's close friend William Compton and Henry's ex-mistress Anne Stafford, Countess of Huntingdon, through the ecclesiastical courts for adultery. In the case of Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, Wolsey attempted to win his favour instead, by his actions after the Duke secretly married Henry’s sister Mary Tudor, Queen of France, much to the King’s displeasure. Wolsey advised the King not to execute the newlyweds, but to embrace them.
Wolsey's rise to a position of great secular power paralleled increased responsibilities in the Church. He became a Canon of Windsor in 1511, the same year that he became a member of the Privy Council. In 1514 he was made Bishop of Lincoln, and then Archbishop of York in the same year. Pope Leo X made him a cardinal in 1515, with the titular church S. Cæciliæ trans Tiberim. As tribute to the success of his campaign in France and subsequent peace negotiations, Wolsey was further rewarded by the church: in 1523 he became Prince-Bishop of Durham.
The war against France in 1512–14 was the most significant opportunity for Wolsey to demonstrate his talents in the foreign policy arena. A convenient justification for going to war came in 1511 in the form of a plea for help from Pope Julius II, who was beginning to feel threatened by France. England formed an alliance with the Pope, Ferdinand V of Spain, and Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor against Louis XII of France.
The first campaign against France was not a success, partly due to the unreliability of the alliance with Ferdinand. Henry learned from the mistakes of the campaign and in 1513, still with papal support, launched a joint attack on France with Maximilian, successfully capturing two French cities and causing the French to retreat. Wolsey's ability to keep a large number of troops supplied and equipped for the duration of the war was a major factor in its success. Wolsey also had a key role in negotiating the Anglo-French treaty of 1514, which secured a temporary peace between the two nations. Under this treaty, the French king, Louis XII would marry Henry’s young sister, Mary. In addition England was able to keep the captured city of Tournai and to secure an increase in the annual pension paid by France.[16]
Meanwhile, a turnover of rulers in Europe threatened to diminish England’s influence. Peace with France in 1514 had been a true achievement for Wolsey and the King. With Henry’s sister, Mary, married to the French King, Louis XII, an alliance was formed, but Louis was not in good health. Less than three months later, Louis died and was replaced by the young and ambitious Francis I.
Queen Mary had allegedly secured a promise from Henry that if Louis died, she could marry whomever she pleased.[citation needed] On Louis' death, she secretly married Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, with Francis I's assistance, which prevented another marriage alliance. As Mary was the only princess Henry could use to secure marriage alliances, this was a bitter blow. Wolsey then proposed an alliance with Spain and the Holy Roman Empire against France.
The death of King Ferdinand of Spain, the father-in-law of Henry VIII, and England's closest ally, in 1516 was a further blow. Ferdinand was succeeded by Charles V, who immediately proposed peace with France. On the death of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, in 1519, Charles was elected in his stead; thus Charles ruled a substantial portion of Europe and English influence became limited on the continent.
Wolsey, however, managed to assert English influence through another means. In 1517, Pope Leo X sought peace in Europe to form a crusade against the Ottoman Empire. In 1518 Wolsey was made Papal Legate in England, enabling him to work for the Pope’s desire for peace by organising the Treaty of London. The Treaty showed Wolsey as the arbiter of Europe, organising a massive peace summit involving twenty nations. This put England at the forefront of European diplomacy and drew her out of isolation, making her a desirable ally. This is well illustrated by the Anglo-French treaty signed two days afterwards.
It was partly this peace treaty that caused conflict between France and Spain. In 1519, when Charles V ascended to the throne of the Holy Roman Emperor, Francis I, the King of France, was infuriated. He had invested enormous sums in bribing the electorate to elect him as emperor, and thus, he used the Treaty of London as a justification for the Habsburg-Valois conflict. Wolsey appeared to act as mediator between the two powers, both of whom were vying for England’s support.
Another of his diplomatic triumphs was the Field of the Cloth of Gold, in 1520. Wolsey organised much of this grandiose meeting between Francis I of France and Henry VIII, accompanied by some five thousand followers. Though it seemed to open the door to peaceful negotiations with France, if that was the direction the King wished to go, it was also a chance for a lavish display of English wealth and power before the rest of Europe. With both France and Spain vying for England’s allegiance, Wolsey could choose the ally that better suited his policies. Wolsey chose Charles mainly because England's economy would suffer from the loss of the lucrative cloth trade industry between England and the Netherlands had France been chosen instead.
Under Wolsey's guidance, the chief nations of Europe sought to outlaw war forever among Christian nations. Mattingly (1938) studied the causes of wars in that era, finding that treaties of nonaggression such as this one could never be stronger than the armies of their sponsors. When those forces were about equal, these treaties typically widened the conflict. That is, diplomacy could sometimes postpone war, but could not prevent wars based on irreconcilable interests and ambitions. What was lacking, Mattingly concludes, was a neutral power whose judgements were generally accepted either by impartial justice or by overwhelming force
The Treaty of London is often regarded as Wolsey’s finest moment, but it was abandoned within a year. Wolsey developed links with Charles in 1520 at the Field of the Cloth of Gold. Later at the Calais Conference (1521) Wolsey signed the Secret Treaty of Bruges (1521) with Charles, stating that they would join Spain in a war against France if France refused to sign the peace treaty; ignoring the Anglo-French treaty of 1518. Wolsey's relationship with Rome was also ambivalent. Despite his links to the papacy, Wolsey was strictly Henry’s servant. Though the Treaty of London was an elaboration on Pope Leo's ambitions for European peace, it was seen in Rome as a vain attempt by England to assert her influence over Europe and steal some papal thunder. Furthermore, Wolsey’s peace initiatives prevented a crusade to the Holy Land, which was the catalyst for the Pope’s desire for European peace.
Cardinal Lorenzo Campeggio, who represented the Pope at the Treaty of London, was kept waiting for many months in Calais before being allowed to cross the Channel and join the festivities in London; thereby, Wolsey was asserting his independence of Rome. An alternative hypothesis is that Campeggio was kept waiting until Wolsey received his legacy, thus asserting Wolsey's attachment to Rome.
Though the English gain from the wars of 1522–23 was minimal, their contribution certainly aided Charles in his defeat of the French, particularly in 1525 at the Battle of Pavia, where Charles' army captured the French king, Francis I. Henry then felt there was a realistic opportunity for him to seize the French crown, which the kings of England had long laid claim to. Parliament, however, refused to raise taxes. This led Wolsey to devise the Amicable Grant, which was met with even more hostility, and ultimately led to his downfall. In 1525, after Charles had abandoned England as an ally, Wolsey began to negotiate with France, and the Treaty of the More was signed with the Regent of France during Francis' captivity, his mother, Louise of Savoy.
The closeness between England and Rome can be seen in the formulation of the League of Cognac in 1526. Though England was not a part of it, the League was organized in part by Wolsey with papal support. Wolsey’s plan was that the League of Cognac, composed of an alliance between France and some Italian states, would challenge Charles’ League of Cambrai. This initiative was both a gesture of allegiance to Rome and an answer to growing concerns about Charles V's dominance over Europe.
The final blow to this policy came in 1529, when the French made peace with Charles. Meanwhile, the French also continued to honour the "Auld Alliance" with Scotland, stirring up hostility on England's border. With peace between France and the Emperor, there was no one to free the Pope from Charles, who had effectively held Clement VII captive since the Sack of Rome in 1527. Therefore there was little hope of securing Henry an annulment from his marriage to Charles’ aunt, Catherine of Aragon. Since 1527, Wolsey’s foreign policy had been dominated by his attempts to secure an annulment for his master, and, by 1529, none of his endeavours had succeeded.
Henry's marriage to Catherine of Aragon had produced no sons who survived infancy; the Wars of the Roses were still within living memory, leading to the fear of a power struggle after Henry's death. His daughter Mary was not considered capable of holding the country together and continuing the Tudor dynasty because England, until then, had not accepted a queen regnant (with the exception, perhaps, of Empress Matilda, who fought and lost a long civil war in an attempt to keep her throne).
Henry expressed the belief that Catherine's inability to produce a viable male heir was due to her being the widow of his elder brother, Arthur, Prince of Wales, which, he professed, violated Biblical proscription and cursed his marriage as incestuous. He also believed that the papal dispensation for his marriage to Catherine was invalid because it was based upon the claim that Catherine was still a virgin after her first husband's death. Henry argued that Catherine's claim was not credible, and thus, the original papal dispensation must be withdrawn and their marriage annulled. Henry's motivation has been attributed to his determination to have a son and heir, and to his desire for Anne Boleyn, one of his wife's maids-of-honour. Catherine had no further pregnancies after 1519; Henry began annulment proceedings in 1527.
Catherine, however, maintained that she had been a virgin when she married King Henry. Because Catherine was opposed to the annulment and a return to her previous status as Dowager Princess of Wales, the annulment request became a matter of international diplomacy, with Catherine's nephew, Charles V, pressuring the Pope to not annul his aunt's marriage. Pope Clement VII was presented with a problem: he could either anger Charles or else anger Henry. He delayed announcing a decision for as long as possible; this infuriated Henry and Anne Boleyn, who began to doubt the papal legate Wolsey's loyalty to the State over the Church.
Wolsey appealed to the Pope for an annulment on three fronts. Firstly, he tried to convince the Pope that the original papal dispensation was void as the marriage clearly went against words in the Bible, in the book of Leviticus. Secondly, Wolsey objected to the original dispensation on technical grounds, and claimed it was incorrectly worded. (However, shortly afterwards, a correctly worded version was found in Spain). Thirdly, Wolsey wanted the Pope to allow the final decision to be made in England, which of course, as papal legate, he would supervise.
In 1528 the Pope decided to allow two papal legates to decide the outcome in England: Wolsey and Cardinal Campeggio. Wolsey was confident of the decision. However, Campeggio took a long time to arrive, and when he finally did arrive he delayed proceedings so much, the case had to be suspended in July 1529, effectively sealing Wolsey's fate.
During his fourteen years of chancellorship, Cardinal Wolsey had more power than any other Crown servant in English history. As long as he was in the King’s favour, Wolsey had a large amount of freedom within the domestic sphere, and had his hand in nearly every aspect of its ruling. For much of the time, Henry VIII had complete confidence in him, and as Henry's interests inclined more towards foreign policy, he was willing to give Wolsey a free hand in reforming the management of domestic affairs, for which Wolsey had grand plans.
Wolsey made significant changes to the taxation system, devising, with the treasurer of the Chamber, John Heron, the "Subsidy". This revolutionary form of tax was based upon accurate valuations of the taxpayer’s wealth, where one shilling was taken per pound from the income. The old fixed tax of 15ths and 10ths had meant that those who earned very little money had to pay almost as much in tax as the wealthy. With the new income tax the poorer members of society paid much less. This more efficient form of taxation enabled Wolsey to raise enough money for the King’s foreign expeditions, bringing in over £300,000. Wolsey was also able to raise considerable amounts of capital through other means, such as through "benevolences" and enforced loans from the nobility, which raised £200,000 in 1522.
As a legal administrator Wolsey reinvented the equity court, where the verdict was decided by the judge on the principle of "fairness". As an alternative to the Common Law courts, Wolsey re-established the position of the prerogative courts of the Star Chamber and the Court of Chancery. The system in both courts concentrated on simple, inexpensive cases, and promised impartial justice. He also established the Court of Requests (although this court was only given this name later on) for the poor, where no fees were required. Wolsey’s legal reforms were popular, and overflow courts were required to attend to all the cases. Many powerful individuals who had felt themselves invincible under the law found themselves convicted; for example, in 1515, the Earl of Northumberland was sent to Fleet Prison and in 1516 Lord Abergavenny was accused of illegal retaining.
Wolsey also used his courts to tackle national controversies, such as the pressing issue of enclosures. The countryside had been thrown into discord by the entrepreneurial actions of landlords enclosing areas of land and converting from arable farming to pastoral farming, requiring fewer workers. The Tudors valued stability, and this mass urban migration represented a serious crisis. Wolsey conducted national enquires in 1517, 1518 and 1527 into the presence of enclosures. In the course of his administration he used the court of Chancery to prosecute two hundred and sixty-four landowners, including peers, bishops, knights, religious heads, and Oxford colleges. Enclosures were seen as directly linked to rural unemployment and depopulation, vagrancy, food shortages and, accordingly, inflation. This pattern was repeated with many of Wolsey’s other initiatives, particularly his quest to abolish enclosure. Despite spending significant time and effort in investigating the state of the countryside and prosecuting numerous offenders, Wolsey freely surrendered his policy during the parliament of 1523 to ensure that Parliament passed his proposed taxes for Henry’s war in France. Enclosures remained a problem for many years.
Wolsey used the Star Chamber to enforce his 1518 policy of Just Price, which attempted to regulate the price of meat in London and other major cities. Those found to be charging excessive amounts were prosecuted by the Chamber. After the bad harvest of 1527, Wolsey took the initiative of buying up surplus grain and selling it off cheaply to the needy. This act of generosity greatly eased disorder and became common practice after a disappointing harvest.
Although it would be difficult to find a better example of abuses in the Church than the Cardinal himself, Wolsey appeared to make some steps towards reform. In 1524 and 1527 he used his powers as papal legate to dissolve thirty decayed monasteries where corruption had run rife, including abbeys in Ipswich and Oxford. However, he then used the income to found a grammar school in Ipswich (The King's School, Ipswich) and Cardinal College in Oxford. The college in Oxford was renamed King's College after Wolsey's fall. Today, it is known as Christ Church. In 1528 he began to limit the benefit of clergy.
Wolsey died five years before Henry's dissolution of the monasteries began.
Wolsey’s position in power relied solely on maintaining good relations with Henry. He grew increasingly suspicious of the "minions"—young, influential members of the Privy chamber—particularly after infiltrating one of his own men into the group. He attempted many times to disperse them from court, giving them jobs that took them to the Continent and far from the King. After the Amicable Grant failed, the minions began to undermine him once again. Consequently, Wolsey devised a grand plan of administrative reforms, incorporating the notorious Eltham Ordinances of 1526. This reduced the members of the Privy Council from twelve to six, removing Henry's friends such as Sir William Compton and Nicholas Carew.
One of Wolsey’s greatest impediments was his lack of popularity amongst the nobles at court and in Parliament. Their dislike and mistrust partly stemmed from Wolsey’s excessive demands for money in the form of the Subsidy or through Benevolences. They also resented the Act of Resumption of 1486, by which Henry VII had resumed possession of all lands granted by the crown since 1455.[18] These lands had passed onto his heir, Henry VIII. Many nobles resented the rise to power of a low-born man, whilst others simply disliked that he monopolized the court and concealed information from the Privy Council.
When mass riots broke out in East Anglia, which should have been under the control of the Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk, Henry was quick to denounce the Amicable Grant, and began to lose faith in his chief minister. During the relatively peaceful period in England after the War of the Roses, the population of the nation increased. With more demand for food and no additional supply, prices increased. Landowners were forced to enclose land and convert to pastoral farming, which brought in more profit. Wolsey’s quest against enclosure was fruitless in terms of restoring the stability of the economy.
The same can be said for Wolsey’s legal reforms. By making justice accessible to all and encouraging more people to bring their cases to court, the system was ultimately abused. The courts became overloaded with incoherent, tenuous cases, which would have been far too expensive to have rambled on in the Common Law courts. Wolsey eventually ordered all minor cases out of the Star Chamber in 1528. The result of this venture was further resentment from the nobility and the gentry.
As well as his State duties, Wolsey simultaneously attempted to exert his influence over the Church in England. As cardinal and, from 1524, lifetime papal legate, Wolsey was continually vying for control over others in the Church. His principal rival was William Warham, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who made it more difficult for Wolsey to follow through with his plans for reform. Despite making promises to reform the bishoprics of England and Ireland, and, in 1519, encouraging monasteries to embark on a programme of reform, he did nothing to bring about these changes.
In spite of having many enemies, Cardinal Wolsey retained Henry VIII's confidence until Henry decided to seek an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, so that he could marry Anne Boleyn. Wolsey's failure to secure the annulment is widely perceived to have directly caused his downfall and arrest.
Ultimately, Anne Boleyn and her faction, it was rumored, convinced Henry that Wolsey was deliberately slowing proceedings, and as a result, he was arrested in 1529, and the Pope decided the official decision should be made in Rome anyway.
In 1529 Wolsey was stripped of his government office and property, including his magnificently expanded residence of Hampton Court, which Henry chose to replace the Palace of Westminster as his own main London residence. However, Wolsey was permitted to remain Archbishop of York. He travelled to Yorkshire for the first time in his career, but at Cawood in North Yorkshire, he was accused of treason and ordered to London by Henry Percy, 6th Earl of Northumberland. In great distress, he set out for the capital with his personal chaplain, Edmund Bonner. He fell ill on the journey, and died at Leicester on 29 November 1530, around the age of 60. "If I had served my God", the Cardinal said remorsefully, "as diligently as I did my king, He would not have given me over in my grey hairs."[19]
In keeping with his practice of erecting magnificent buildings at Hampton Court, Westminster and Oxford, Wolsey had planned a magnificent tomb at Windsor by Benedetto da Rovezzano and Giovanni da Maiano but he was buried in Leicester Abbey (now Abbey Park) without a monument. After his own even grander plans fell through, Henry VIII eventually intended the impressive black sarcophagus for himself, but Lord Nelson now lies in it, within the crypt of St. Paul's Cathedral. Henry often receives credit for artistic patronage that properly belongs to Wolsey.[20]
The longest day . . . the demolition time was kept secret all day causing a great resentment among the spectators. There was a real blackout of information on the internet. The Ministry of Misinformation kept up a running timescale going from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Absolute dross. Whoever planned the demolition did an absolutely rotten public relations job.
Coptic Christians in Cairo Egypt living in El Zabaleen, or garbage city. For generations families would work together to collect all the rubbish from the streets of Cairo and take it back to their homes. They then sift and sort through all the items which are then sold on to merchants. 85% of all solid waste is thus recycled from the city.
Families used to own pigs that used to eat the organic waste but everyone of them was slaughtered during 2009 during the outbreak of the H1N1 'swine' flu, even though there were no cases reported in Egypt. It was the only country that carried out a mass cull, and was also reported that it was done in an inhumane manner. This increased tension and resentment with the Government.
youtu.be/KcPcJ9ycEu4?t=2m22s Full Feature
Curse of the Demon / Night of the Demon
Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment
1957/58 / B&W / 1:78 anamorphic 16:9 / 82, 95 min. / Street Date August 13, 2002 / $24.95
Starring Dana Andrews, Peggy Cummins, Niall MacGinnis, Maurice Denham, Athene Seyler
Cinematography Ted Scaife
Production Designer Ken Adam
Special Effects George Blackwell, S.D. Onions, Wally Veevers
Film Editor Michael Gordon
Original Music Clifton Parker
Written by Charles Bennett and Hal E. Chester from the story Casting the Runes by Montague R. James
Produced by Frank Bevis, Hal E. Chester
Directed by Jacques Tourneur
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Savant champions a lot of genre movies but only infrequently does one appear like Jacques Tourneur's superlative Curse of the Demon. It's simply better than the rest -- an intelligent horror film with some very good scares. It occupies a stylistic space that sums up what's best in ghost stories and can hold its own with most any supernatural film ever made. Oh, it's also a great entertainment that never fails to put audiences at the edge of their seats.
What's more, Columbia TriStar has shown uncommon respect for their genre output by including both versions of Curse of the Demon on one disc. Savant has full coverage on the versions and their restoration below, following his thorough and analytical (read: long-winded and anal) coverage of the film itself.
Synopsis:
Dr. John Holden (Dana Andrews), a scientist and professional debunker of superstitious charlatans, arrives in England to help Professor Henry Harrington (Maurice Denham) assault the phony cult surrounding Dr. Julian Karswell (Niall McGinnis). But Harrington has mysteriously died and Holden becomes involved with his niece Joanna (Peggy Cummins), who thinks Karswell had something to do with it. Karswell's 'tricks' confuse the skeptical Holden, but he stubbornly holds on to his conviction that he's " ... not a sucker, like 90% of the human race." That is, until the evidence mounts that Harrington was indeed killed by a demon summoned from Hell, and that Holden is the next intended victim!
The majority of horror films are fantasies in which we accept supernatural ghosts, demons and monsters as part of a deal we've made with the authors: they dress the fantasy in an attractive guise and arrange the variables into an interesting pattern, and we agree to play along for the sake of enjoyment. When it works the movies can resonate with personal meaning. Even though Dracula and Frankenstein are unreal, they are relevant because they're aligned with ideas and themes in our subconscious.
Horror films that seriously confront the no-man's land between rational reality and supernatural belief have a tough time of it. Everyone who believes in God knows that the tug o' war between rationality and faith in our culture has become so clogged with insane belief systems it's considered impolite to dismiss people who believe in flying saucers or the powers of crystals or little glass pyramids. One of Dana Andrews' key lines in Curse of the Demon, defending his dogged skepticism against those urging him to have an open mind, is his retort, "If the world is a dark place ruled by Devils and Demons, we all might as well give up right now." Curse of the Demon balances itself between skepticism and belief with polite English manners, letting us have our fun as it lays its trap. We watch Andrews roll his eyes and scoff at the feeble séance hucksters and the dire warnings of a foolish-looking necromancer. Meanwhile, a whole dark world of horror sneaks up on him. The film's intelligent is such that we're not offended by its advocacy of dark forces or even its literal, in-your-face demon.
The remarkable Curse of the Demon was made in England for Columbia but is gloriously unaffected by that company's zero-zero track record with horror films. Producer Hal E. Chester would seem an odd choice to make a horror classic after producing Joe Palooka films and acting as a criminal punk in dozens of teen crime movies. The obvious strong cards are writer Charles Bennett, the brains behind several classic English Hitchcock pictures (who 'retired' into meaningless bliss writing for schlockmeister Irwin Allen) and Jacques Tourneur, a master stylist who put Val Lewton on the map with Cat People and I Walked With a Zombie. Tourneur made interesting Westerns (Canyon Passage, Great Day in the Morning) and perhaps the most romantic film noir, Out of the Past. By the late '50s he was on what Andrew Sarris in his American Film called 'a commercial downgrade'. The critic lumped Curse of the Demon with low budget American turkeys like The Fearmakers. 1
Put Tourneur with an intelligent script, a decent cameraman and more than a minimal budget and great things could happen. We're used to watching Corman Poe films, English Hammer films and Italian Bavas and Fredas, all the while making excuses for the shortcomings that keep them in the genre ghetto (where they all do quite well, thank you). There's even a veiled resentment against upscale shockers like The Innocents that have resources (money, time, great actors) denied our favorite toilers in the genre realm. Curse of the Demon is above all those considerations. It has name actors past their prime and reasonable production values. Its own studio (at least in America) released it like a genre quickie, double-billed with dreck like The Night the World Exploded and The Giant Claw. They cut it by 13 minutes, changed its title (to ape The Curse of Frankenstein?) and released a poster featuring a huge, slavering demon monster that some believe was originally meant to be barely glimpsed in the film itself. 2
Horror movies can work on more than one level but Curse of the Demon handles several levels and then some. The narrative sets up John Holden as a professional skeptic who raises a smirking eyebrow to the open minds of his colleagues. Unlike most second-banana scientists in horror films, they express divergent points of view. Holden just sees himself as having common sense but his peers are impressed by the consistency of demonological beliefs through history. Maybe they all saw Christensen's Witchcraft through the Ages, which might have served as a primer for author Charles Bennett. Smart dialogue allows Holden to score points by scoffing at the then-current "regression to past lives" scam popularized by the Bridey Murphy craze. 3 While Holden stays firmly rooted to his position, coining smart phrases and sarcastic put-downs of believers, the other scientists are at least willing to consider alternate possibilities. Indian colleague K.T. Kumar (Peter Elliott) keeps his opinion to himself. But when asked, he politely states that he believes entirely in the world of demons! 4
Holden may think he has the truth by the tail but it takes Kindergarten teacher Joanna Harrington (Peggy Cummins of Gun Crazy fame) to show him that being a skeptic doesn't mean ignoring facts in front of one's face. Always ready for a drink (a detail added to tailor the part to Andrews?), Holden spends the first couple of reels as interested in pursuing Miss Harrington, as he is the devil-worshippers. The details and coincidences pile up with alarming speed -- the disappearing ink untraceable by the lab, the visual distortions that might be induced by hypnosis, the pages torn from his date book and the parchment of runic symbols. Holden believes them to be props in a conspiracy to draw him into a vortex of doubt and fear. Is he being set up the way a Voodoo master cons his victim, by being told he will die, with fabricated clues to make it all appear real? Holden even gets a bar of sinister music stuck in his head. It's the title theme -- is this a wicked joke on movie soundtracks?
Speak of the Devil...
This brings us to the wonderful character of Julian Karswell, the kiddie-clown turned multi-millionaire cult leader. The man who launched Alfred Hitchcock as a maker of sophisticated thrillers here creates one of the most interesting villains ever written, one surely as good as any of Hitchcock's. In the short American cut Karswell is a shrewd games-player who shows Holden too many of his cards and finally outsmarts himself. The longer UK cut retains the full depth of his character.
Karswell has tapped into the secrets of demonology to gain riches and power, yet he tragically recognizes that he is as vulnerable to the forces of Hell as are the cowering minions he controls through fear. Karswell's coven means business. It's an entirely different conception from the aesthetic salon coffee klatch of The Seventh Victim, where nothing really supernatural happens and the only menace comes from a secret society committing new crimes to hide old ones.
Karswell keeps his vast following living in fear, and supporting his extravagant lifestyle under the idea that Evil is Good, and Good Evil. At first the Hobart Farm seems to harbor religious Christian fundamentalists who have turned their backs on their son. Then we find out that they're Karswell followers, living blighted lives on cursed acreage and bled dry by their cultist "leader." Karswell's mum (Athene Seyler) is an inversion of the usual insane Hitchcock mother. She lovingly resists her son's philosophy and actively tries to help the heroes. That's in the Night version, of course. In the shorter American cut she only makes silly attempts to interest Joanna in her available son and arranges for a séance. Concerned by his "negativity", Mother confronts Julian on the stairs. He has no friends, no wife, no family. He may be a mass extortionist but he's still her baby. Karswell explains that by exploiting his occult knowledge, he's immersed himself forever in Evil. "You get nothing for nothing"
Karswell is like the Devil on Earth, a force with very limited powers that he can't always control. By definition he cannot trust any of his own minions. They're unreliable, weak and prone to double-cross each other, and they attract publicity that makes a secret society difficult to conceal. He can't just kill Holden, as he hasn't a single henchman on the payroll. He instead summons the demon, a magic trick he's only recently mastered. When Karswell turns Harrington away in the first scene we can sense his loneliness. The only person who can possibly understand is right before him, finally willing to admit his power and perhaps even tolerate him. Karswell has no choice but to surrender Harrington over to the un-recallable Demon. In his dealings with the cult-debunker Holden, Karswell defends his turf but is also attempting to justify himself to a peer, another man who might be a potential equal. It's more than a duel of egos between a James Bond and a Goldfinger, with arrogance and aggression masking a mutual respect; Karswell knows he's taken Lewton's "wrong turning in life," and will have to pay for it eventually.
Karswell eventually earns Holden's respect, especially after the fearful testimony of Rand Hobart. It's taken an extreme demonstration to do it, but Holden budges from his smug position. He may not buy all of the demonology hocus-pocus but it's plain enough that Karswell or his "demon" is going to somehow rub him out. Seeking to sneak the parchment back into Karswell's possession, Holden becomes a worthy hero because he's found the maturity to question his own preconceptions. Armed with his rational, cool head, he's a force that makes Karswell -- without his demon, of course -- a relative weakling. Curse of the Demon ends in a classic ghost story twist, with just desserts dished out and balance recovered. The good characters are less sure of their world than when they started, but they're still able to cope. Evil has been defeated not by love or faith, but by intellect.
Curse of the Demon has the Val Lewton sensibility as has often been cited in Tourneur's frequent (and very effective) use of the device called the Lewton "Bus" -- a wholly artificial jolt of fast motion and noise interrupting a tense scene. There's an ultimate "bus" at the end when a train blasts in and sets us up for the end title. It "erases" the embracing actors behind it and I've always thought it had to be an inspiration for the last shot of North by NorthWest. The ever-playful Hitchcock was reportedly a big viewer of fantastic films, from which he seems to have gotten many ideas. He's said to have dined with Lewton on more than one occasion (makes sense, they were at one time both Selznick contractees) and carried on a covert competition with William Castle, of all people.
Visually, Tourneur's film is marvelous, effortlessly conjuring menacing forests lit in the fantastic Mario Bava mode by Ted Scaife, who was not known as a genre stylist. There are more than a few perfunctory sets, with some unflattering mattes used for airport interiors, etc.. Elsewhere we see beautiful designs by Ken Adam in one of his earliest outings. Karswell's ornate floor and central staircase evoke an Escher print, especially when visible/invisible hands appear on the banister. A hypnotic, maze-like set for a hotel corridor is also tainted by Escher and evokes a sense of the uncanny even better than the horrid sounds Holden hears. The build-up of terror is so effective that one rather unconvincing episode (a fight with a Cat People - like transforming cat) does no harm. Other effects, such as the demon footprints appearing in the forest, work beautifully.
In his Encyclopedia of Horror Movies Phil Hardy very rightly relates Curse of the Demon's emphasis on the visual to the then just-beginning Euro-horror subgenre. The works of Bava, Margheriti and Freda would make the photographic texture of the screen the prime element of their films, sometimes above acting and story logic.
Columbia TriStar's DVD of Curse of the Demon / Night of the Demon presents both versions of this classic in one package. American viewers saw an effective but abbreviated cut-down. If you've seen Curse of the Demon on cable TV or rented a VHS or a laser anytime after 1987, you're not going to see anything different in the film. In 1987 Columbia happened to pull out the English cut when it went to re-master. When the title came up as Night of the Demon, they just slugged in the Curse main title card and let it go.
From such a happy accident (believe me, nobody in charge at Columbia at the time would have purposely given a film like this a second glance) came a restoration at least as wonderful as the earlier reversion of The Fearless Vampire Killers to its original form. Genre fans were taken by surprise and the Laserdisc became a hot item that often traded for hundreds of dollars. 6
Back in film school Savant had been convinced that ever seeing the long, original Night cut was a lost cause. An excellent article in the old Photon magazine in the early '70s 5, before such analytical work was common, accurately laid out the differences between the two versions, something Savant needs to do sometime with The Damned and These Are the Damned. The Photon article very accurately describes the cut scenes and what the film lost without them, and certainly inspired many of the ideas here.
Being able to see the two versions back-to-back shows exactly how they differ. Curse omits some scenes and rearranges others. Gone is some narration from the title sequence, most of the airplane ride, some dialogue on the ground with the newsmen and several scenes with Karswell talking to his mother. Most crucially missing are Karswell's mother showing Joanna the cabalistic book everyone talks so much about and Holden's entire visit to the Hobart farm to secure a release for his examination of Rand Hobart. Of course the cut film still works (we loved the cut Curse at UCLA screenings and there are people who actually think it's better) but it's nowhere near as involving as the complete UK version. Curse also reshuffles some events, moving Holden's phantom encounter in the hallway nearer the beginning, which may have been to get a spooky scene in the middle section or to better disguise the loss of whole scenes later. The chop-job should have been obvious. The newly imposed fades and dissolves look awkward. One cut very sloppily happens right in the middle of a previous dissolve.
Night places both Andrews and Cummins' credits above the title and gives McGinnis an "also starring" credit immediately afterwards. Oddly, Curse sticks Cummins afterwards and relegates McGinnis to the top of the "also with" cast list. Maybe with his role chopped down, some Columbia executive thought he didn't deserve the billing?
Technically, both versions look just fine, very sharp and free of digital funk that would spoil the film's spooky visual texture. Night of the Demon is the version to watch for both content and quality. It's not perfect but has better contrast and less dirt than the American version. Curse has more emulsion scratches and flecking white dandruff in its dark scenes, yet looks fine until one sees the improvement of Night. Both shows are widescreen enhanced (hosanna), framing the action at its original tighter aspect ratio.
It's terrific that Columbia TriStar has brought out this film so thoughtfully, even though some viewers are going to be confused when their "double feature" disc appears to be two copies of the same movie. Let 'em stew. This is Savant's favorite release so far this year.
On a scale of Excellent, Good, Fair, and Poor, Curse of the Demon / Night of the Demon rates:
Movie: Excellent
Footnotes:
Made very close to Curse of the Demon and starring Dana Andrews, The Fearmakers (great title) was a Savant must-see until he caught up with it in the UA collection at MGM. It's a pitiful no-budgeter that claims Madison Avenue was providing public relations for foreign subversives, and is negligible even in the lists of '50s anti-Commie films.
Return
Curse of the Demon's Demon has been the subject of debate ever since the heyday of Famous Monsters of Filmland. From what's on record it's clear that producer Chester added or maximized the shots of the creature, a literal visualization of a fiery, brimstone-smoking classical woodcut demon that some viewers think looks ridiculous. Bennett and Tourneur's original idea was to never show a demon but the producer changed that. Tourneur probably directed most of the shots, only to have Chester over-use them. To Savant's thinking, the demon looks great. It is first perceived as an ominous sound, a less strident version of the disturbing noise made by Them! Then it manifests itself visually as a strange disturbance in the sky (bubbles? sparks? early slit-scan?) followed by a billowing cloud of sulphurous smoke (a dandy effect not exploited again until Close Encounters of the Third Kind). The long-shot demon is sometimes called the bicycle demon because he's a rod puppet with legs that move on a wheel-rig. Smoke belches from all over his scaly body. Close-ups are provided by a wonderfully sculpted head 'n' shoulders demon with articulated eyes and lips, a full decade or so before Carlo Rambaldi started engineering such devices.
Most of the debate centers on how much Demon should have been shown with the general consensus that less would have been better. People who dote on Lewton-esque ambivalence say that the film's slow buildup of rationality-versus demonology is destroyed by the very real Demon's appearance in the first scene, and that's where they'd like it removed or radically reduced. The Demon is so nicely integrated into the cutting (the giant foot in the first scene is a real jolt) that it's likely that Tourneur himself filmed it all, perhaps expecting the shots to be shorter or more obscured. It is also possible that the giant head was a post-Tourneur addition - it doesn't tie in with the other shots as well (especially when it rolls forward rather stiffly) and is rather blunt. Detractors lump it in with the gawd-awful head of The Black Scorpion, which is filmed the same way and almost certainly was an afterthought - and also became a key poster image. This demon head matches the surrounding action a lot better than did the drooling Scorpion.
Savant wouldn't change Curse of the Demon but if you put a gun to my head I'd shorten most of the shots in its first appearance, perhaps eliminating all close-ups except for the final, superb shot of the the giant claw reaching for Harrington / us.
Kumar, played (I assume) by an Anglo actor, immediately evokes all those Indian and other Third World characters in Hammer films whose indigenous cultures invariably hold all manner of black magic and insidious horror. When Hammer films are repetitious it's because they take eighty minutes or so to convince the imagination-challenged English heroes to even consider the premise of the film as being real. In Curse of the Demon, Holden's smart-tongued dismissal of outside viewpoints seems much more pigheaded now than it did in 1957, when heroes confidently defended conformist values without being challenged. Kumar is a scientist but also probably a Hindu or a Sikh. He has no difficulty reconciling his faith with his scientific detachment. Holden is far too tactful to call Kumar a crazy third-world guru but that's probably what he's thinking. He instead politely ignores him. Good old Kumar then saves Holden's hide with some timely information. I hope Holden remembered to thank him.
There's an unstated conclusion in Curse of the Demon: Holden's rigid disbelief of the supernatural means he also does not believe in a Christian God with its fundamentally spiritual faith system of Good and Evil, saints and devils, angels and demons. Horror movies that deal directly with religious symbolism and "real faith" can be hypocritical in their exploitation and brutal in their cheap toying with what are for many people sacred personal concepts. I'm thinking of course of The Exorcist here. That movie has all the grace of a reporter who shows a serial killer's atrocity photos to a mother whose child has just been kidnapped. Curse of the Demon hasn't The Exorcist's ruthless commercial instincts but instead has the modesty not to pretend to be profound, or even "real." Yet it expresses our basic human conflict between rationality and faith very nicely.
Savant called Jim Wyrnoski, who was associated with Photon, in an effort to find out more about the article, namely who wrote it. It was very well done and I've never forgotten it; I unfortunately loaned my copy out to good old Jim Ursini and it disappeared. Obviously, a lot of the ideas here, I first read there. Perhaps a reader who knows better how to take care of their belongings can help me with the info? Ursini and Alain Silvers' More Things than are Dreamt Of Limelight, 1994, analyzes Curse of the Demon (and many other horror movies) in the context of its source story.
This is a true story: Cut to 2000. Columbia goes to re-master Curse of the Demon and finds that the fine-grain original of the English version is missing. The original long version of the movie may be lost forever. A few months later a collector appears who says he bought it from another unnamed collector and offers to trade it for a print copy of the American version, which he prefers. Luckily, an intermediary helps the collector follow up on his offer and the authorities are not contacted about what some would certainly call stolen property. The long version is now once again safe. Studios clearly need to defend their property but many collectors have "items" they personally have acquired legally. More often than you might think, such finds come about because studios throw away important elements. If the studios threaten prosecution, they will find that collectors will never approach them. They'd probably prefer to destroy irreplaceable film to avoid being criminalized.