title: Patti LaBelle

text: All three of LaBelle's sisters died young. Eldest sister Vivian Hogan Rogers died of lung cancer in October 1975 at the age of 43. Seven years later, in October 1982, her elder sister Barbara Holte Purifoy died from complications of colon cancer at the age of 40. In July 1989, three months before her father's death, LaBelle lost her youngest sister, Jacqueline "Jackie" Holte-Padgett, to brain cancer at the age of 43. A day after the singer buried Padgett, an emotionally-wrecked LaBelle shot the music video to "If You Asked Me To" where she was seen crying in various shots; the video was shot on what would've been Padgett's 44th birthday. The singer dedicated her 1991 "Burnin'" album, and her famous rendition of the song "Wind Beneath My Wings" during her concert tour in 1991–92 to Padgett.


title: Patti LaBelle

text: LaBelle said because of her sisters and parents dying "before their time", she wrote in her autobiography that she feared she wouldn't make it to 50. Once she reached that age, however, the singer said she felt her life "had just begun". A year later, LaBelle was diagnosed as having diabetes and later became a spokesperson for several organizations dedicated in fighting the disease.


title: Patti LaBelle

text: She has a home in the Philadelphia suburb of Wynnewood and also has condos in Los Angeles and in Eleuthera, the Bahamas.


title: Patti LaBelle

text: In 2010, LaBelle went into a rage that resulted in her verbally and physically attacking a mother and her 18 month old daughter. The singer threw water, yelled obscenities, and attempted to assault the mother during a 10-minute tirade in the lobby of the Trump Place Apartments in Manhattan, NY. LaBelle agreed to a settlement of $100,000 and attempted to get her son's deposition, where he lied that no altercation took place, destroyed following the settlement. The family donated the award to a charity.


title: Patti LaBelle

text: In June 2011, a West Point cadet filed a civil suit against LaBelle after he was allegedly assaulted by her bodyguards at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas. LaBelle and her entourage were on their way to a gig in Louisiana when Richard King, a 23-year-old cadet on spring break, was waiting to be picked up in the ride-share area. King alleged that Labelle's entourage attacked King, causing a concussion, and stated that he had provoked the attack. Video evidence showed he was on a cell phone prior to the attack and did not engage any of the members of Labelle's group until after they assaulted him. King was suspended from the U.S. Military Academy. He sued LaBelle and Holmes for assault, seeking $1 million in civil court. LaBelle filed a counter-suit. Efrem Holmes, Labelle's bodyguard, was acquitted of misdemeanor assault on November 12, 2013, stemming from the incident.


title: Patti LaBelle

text: Patti LaBelle has been described as "the greatest gay icon of all time and a prime example of the intersection of the LGBT community and black female artists". In a 2017 interview, she said: "when I think about it, the gay fans are some of the reason – one big reason – I'm still standing, 'cause they loved me when other people tried not to. Everybody always says, "What makes gay men like you?" "I have no clue," I say. I still don't. But I know that love has lifted me up for many, many years."


title: Patti LaBelle

text: LaBelle made some headlines in late 2015 when a vlogger known as James Wright (No Chanel) spoke enthusiastically on YouTube of her brand of sweet potato pies. The video quickly went viral and for a time, one pie sold every second at Walmart, selling out at stores across the country. She has appeared in two Walmart commercials also an Old Spice commercial.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: The 2021–22 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship was the eighth season of the FIA Formula E championship, a motor racing championship for electrically powered vehicles recognised by motorsport's governing body, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), as the highest class of competition for electric open-wheel racing cars.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: It was the final season of the Formula E Gen2 era, with the Gen3 being used from the 2022–23 season onwards.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: Following the London ePrix, Jaguar driver Sam Bird sustained a wrist fracture, with the team declaring him unable to participate in the Seoul ePrix. Jaguar's reserve driver Norman Nato was announced to be replacing Bird in the season-ending event. Sacha Fenestraz, having been a reserve driver for Jaguar in 2021, replaced Antonio Giovinazzi for the second Seoul ePrix after the latter suffered a hand injury during the first event.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: The Seoul ePrix was first scheduled for the 2019–20 season, but was cancelled twice because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Mexico City ePrix made a return for 2022, once again at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, after the race relocated to Autódromo Miguel E. Abed in Puebla in 2021. A new event, the Vancouver ePrix, was scheduled to be held on the site of the former Champ Car and IndyCar race, the Molson Indy Vancouver, utilising a different layout to those used previously.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: On 15 October 2021, the calendar was updated, with the planned Cape Town ePrix cancelled for unknown reasons in favor of the Jakarta ePrix.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: On 15 December 2021, the calendar was updated again, in which the Rome ePrix and the Berlin ePrix were once again made into double-header events, as was the previous season.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: On 23 April 2022, the Vancouver ePrix was cancelled by the race organizers. On 11 May 2022, the Marrakesh ePrix was announced in its place for the same 2 July date slot.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: A new qualifying format was introduced, where the drivers were split into two groups based on their position in the championship, those in odd-numbered places went into group A, whilst those in even-numbered places went into group B. The exception was in the first race of the season, where each team could nominate one driver into each group. Each group got a 10-minute session to set a fastest lap at 220kW, of which the top 4 of each group advanced to the duels stage, where drivers face off head-to-head at 250kW over a quarter-final, semi-final and final. The winner of the final then lined up in position 1, the loser of the final in position 2, the losers of the semi-final in positions 3 and 4, and the losers of the quarter-final in positions 5 through 8, in order of time set in their respective sessions. The rest of the drivers from the group stage then formed alternately from position 9, with the polesitter's group in the odd places, and the other group in the even places.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: For the fourth time, the championship kicked off at the Riyadh Street Circuit in Diriyah. Stoffel Vandoorne took pole position and led from the start, as António Félix da Costa retired in a four-way fight through the first corner of the race. Vandoorne controlled the first half of the race, surviving a safety car and the subsequent restart as Oliver Rowland was pushed into the wall in turn 16 ten minutes into the race. When he attempted to activate his second attack mode, he missed the sensors and was overtaken by his teammate Nyck de Vries, who started third and overtook Jake Dennis at the start. The latter was then also overtaken by André Lotterer, but managed to get by him again to keep a podium position. De Vries remained largely unchallenged in the second half of the race and led Vandoorne home in a Mercedes 1-2. Rookie Oliver Askew ended his debut race in eighth place and scored four points.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: The second part of the Diriyah double-header again saw a Mercedes take pole, this time it was de Vries. He held the lead during the early stages of the race, but was later passed by Lucas di Grassi around the outside in turn 18, with the latter's team-mate Edoardo Mortara also coming through one lap later. Mortara was then able to also overtake di Grassi, as de Vries lost his momentum and slid down the order, eventually ending up in tenth. Robin Frijns passed di Grassi for second with ten minutes remaining, but a battle for the lead was disrupted as a safety car was called to recover Alexander Sims, who lost control of his Mahindra through turn 5. A relatively slow recovery meant the race ended under yellow flag conditions. Mortara left Diriyah leading the standings, four points ahead of de Vries.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: Two weeks later, Formula E returned to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City. Pascal Wehrlein put his Porsche on pole and covered Mortara at the start of the race. He was then overtaken by Mortara after he took his first attack mode, and later also by Jean-Éric Vergne, who passed both Porsches in two laps. After the second round of attack modes, the Porsche pair in third and fourth had the most energy remaining and capitalized on that: both overtook Vergne on lap 25 and two laps later Wehrlein regained the race lead, with his teammate Lotterer in second place. Mortara dropped back behind both Techeetahs, as Porsche used team orders to seal their 1-2 finish. Wehrlein's win promoted him to third in the standings, behind de Vries and Mortara.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: A one-month break followed before the next round at the Circuito Cittadino dell'EUR in Rome. Mercedes seemed to be back on form, with Vandoorne taking pole and de Vries third on the grid. Vandoorne held the lead from Frijns, as both Rowland and Maximilian Günther hit the barriers on the first lap, bringing out a safety car. Frijns and Vandoorne continued to battle for the lead, overtaking each other multiple times as both used their attack mode activations, while de Vries was forced to retire with a technical issue. Mitch Evans, who started ninth, had made his way up past six cars and overtook both leaders to claim first place. Frijns dropped back to fourth, but overtook both Vergne and Vandoorne in the last two minutes of the race to regain second place.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: The double-header in Rome continued with Vergne claiming his 14th pole position. He pulled away from the start, while Dennis started dropping back behind him, allowing Lotterer and Evans through. Championship leader Mortara had to retire after clipping the wall and ruining his suspension. The safety car was then deployed as Antonio Giovinazzi's car stopped on track, with Evans capitalizing on his Jaguar's speed on the restart and overtaking Vergne for the lead. He was then overtaken by Frijns and Lotterer, who both led for short stints, before a second safety car was brought out for the retired Sims. Evans took his attack mode late in the race and managed to regain the lead, holding onto it until the end to seal a double win in Rome, ahead of Vergne and Frijns. Vergne took the championship lead after Rome, albeit only by two points, while de Vries' pointless weekend saw him slipping back.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: The sixth round of the season was held on the historic Circuit de Monaco. Evans built upon his recent form, dominating qualifying and sealing pole position. He led away from Wehrlein and Vergne, controlling the pace in the early stages. Wehrlein passed Evans as the latter took his attack mode, but had to defend from Vergne and sustained damage to his car, forcing him to retire and bringing out a full course yellow. This hurt race leader Vergne, who had just taken his attack mode, and allowed Vandoorne and Evans to pull away in first and second place. Vandoorne befell the same bad luck, as shortly after his second attack mode activation, a safety car was called to recover Lotterer's Porsche at Sainte Devote. Vandoorne managed to control the restart and led until the chequered flag, ahead of Evans and Vergne. This promoted him to the championship lead, six points clear of Vergne.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: The championship went to Berlin next, setting up camp at Tempelhof Airport Street Circuit. The first half of the double-header, held on the traditional layout, began with Mortara claiming his maiden pole position. He held position at the start, while championship leader Vandoorne dropped down to twelfth. Mortara controlled the race, only dropping back to second for half a lap after picking up his attack mode. Behind him, multiple drivers fought for the podium positions, including a resurging Vandoorne. Mortara dropped behind Vandoorne and Lotterer for his second attack mode, but once again he retook the lead shortly after. Vergne had overtaken Lotterer and Vandoorne for second, but an attack on Mortara didn't work out. Mortara was then able to draw out a gap and win in front of Vergne and Vandoorne.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: For the second race in Berlin, the reverse track layout was used, but that didn't stop Mortara getting pole once again. At the race start however, it was de Vries who shone, getting away brilliantly from third and making quick work of Frijns in second and Mortara in first. Like Mortara the day before, de Vries lost the lead to take attack mode, but got back into first place quickly. Mortara, who had briefly dropped to fourth, overtook Vandoorne and then da Costa to slot back into second place. The top ten mostly sat as they were for the last part of the race, de Vries from Mortara, di Grassi and Vandoorne. At the end, di Grassi had to save energy, allowing Vandoorne to take his second third place in a row. This meant he solidified his championship lead, now twelve points ahead of Mortara and 16 ahead of Vergne.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: Next up was the inaugural Jakarta ePrix, held on the streets around the Ancol area. Vergne claimed his 15th pole position, a new record, and led his teammate da Costa at the start, with Evans in third. A safety car was deployed after only a lap to recover Rowland's car, and Evans took second place at the restart when da Costa made a mistake at turn 7. The leading pair remained the same after the first attack mode activation, while Mortara used the boost to gain third place. Vergne used fanboost and attack mode to draw out a gap to Evans, who managed to keep second place through his second attack mode and set off after Vergne. On lap 31, Evans caught Vergne unaware and made his move into turn 7, to gain a lead he didn't relinquish again. Mortara came third, having closed up to the pair in the final stages of the race. Vandoorne's fifth place meant the standings closed up: his lead was now only five points ahead of Vergne, with the top four within twelve points.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: The cancelled Vancouver ePrix was replaced by a scorching hot Marrakesh, with da Costa claiming pole around the Circuit International Automobile Moulay El Hassan, while championship leader Vandoorne struggled with brake problems and only managed 20th on the grid. In the race, the lead trio of both Techeetahs and Mortara were unchallenged at the start. Mortara took the lead from da Costa after the first round of attack modes, while Rowland was on a mission through both attack modes, overtaking four cars to slot into second place, behind Mortara. The two Techeetahs later flew back by Rowland, who then dropped back into the field. They took turns attacking Mortara in the final stages of the race, but no one managed to overtake him. Mortara held on to his third win of the season, ahead of da Costa and Evans, who snuck by Vergne on the final lap. Vandoorne crucially managed an eighth-place finish, but Mortara now led the standings by eleven points.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: New York City welcomed the teams and drivers with fickle weather conditions around the Brooklyn Street Circuit. Nick Cassidy took pole position, after rain hit during group B running. The race began in dry conditions, with Cassidy defending from Vandoorne, while title contender Vergne had a spin during the opening lap. Cassidy managed to regain his lead after losing it to di Grassi during the first round of attack mode, and continued to lead the pack. Vandoorne, who had momentarily dropped back to fifth, climbed back up the order, eventually rising up to second place. This was short-lived, however, as di Grassi quickly retook that position, also allowing Frijns to gain third place. With ten minutes left, heavy rain hit the circuit. The leaders hit the wet parts first and Cassidy, di Grassi and Vandoorne all slid off into the barriers at turn 6. A red flag was thrown, and after a restart was ruled out, Cassidy was awarded his maiden win on countback, ahead of di Grassi and Frijns.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: Cassidy was fastest once again in qualifying for the second New York City ePrix, but received a hefty penalty following the repairs after his crash the day before. Da Costa inherited pole and was unchallenged at the start, leading Sims and Vandoorne, while Lotterer stalled on the grid. After the leading group all took their single attack mode, the top six remained unchallenged, before Vandoorne took second place from Sims. The latter was then also overtaken by Evans, who slot into third. Da Costa remained on top, bringing home a first win of the season both for him and for his team. Vandoorne's second place meant he overtook Mortara for the championship lead, eleven points now splitting the pair, as the latter had a horrible day, being forced to start at the back and only managing tenth place.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: The penultimate location of the championship was the ExCeL exhibition centre in London. Dennis took pole on home soil, immediately having to defend from Vandoorne at the start. He prevailed, while Sam Bird and Mortara collided, the former retiring and the latter having to pit and dropping to the back. Sérgio Sette Câmara was the big surprise in the early stages of the race, overtaking de Vries for third place. He fell away later in the race, though, as de Vries got back by. Dennis remained first until the end, winning on home soil like last season, with Vandoorne coming home second and de Vries in third on the road, though he got a penalty after the race, promoting Cassidy to the podium.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: No one seemed to be able to stop Dennis in London, as the Englishman took his second pole around the ExCeL. He led di Grassi and Giovinazzi at the start, while Askew had to retire after contact with Rowland during the first lap. Vergne ended his race - and pretty much his title challenge - after contact, bringing out the safety car. During the first round of attack mode, de Vries was able to get past Giovinazzi for third, the latter then having to serve a drive-through penalty for overpower. Da Costa was shortly able to gain third place, but de Vries soon retook the place. Di Grassi started pressuring Dennis in the later stages of the race, gaining the lead through the final attack mode activation and Dennis unable to re-pass him. Evans had to retire with a technical problem and Mortara finished in 13th. This, together with Vandoorne finishing fourth, meant he now had a 36-point lead heading into the season finale.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: Seoul was the host of said finale, with a circuit around the olympic village and through the olympic stadium. Inclement weather was forecast for the whole weekend, and the first qualifying session was very wet throughout. Rowland mastered the conditions to take pole. The race started in damp conditions, and Evans had the perfect start, shooting from third up into the lead. An eight-car pileup into a wet penultimate corner caused a red flag, with Evans continuing to lead through the restart, from Rowland and di Grassi. Mortara's championship challenge came to an end as he retired with a puncture on lap 20. Evans was largely unchallenged through the rest of the race, with a full course yellow at the end to recover Sims' car cutting short any action. Evans' win meant the championship went down to the wire at the last race, even though a 21-point lead looked all but impossible to overcome.


title: 2021–22 Formula E World Championship

text: Da Costa ended the last qualifying of the Gen2 era on pole, holding the lead on a now dry track. Mortara overtook him on lap 3, with Dennis following him through. Vandoorne sat comfortably in fourth, more than enough to seal the title. After a safety car was brought out to recover Günther's car, da Costa tried to make a move on Dennis for third, with the latter spinning the former around and then sustaining a penalty for the contact. This meant Vandoorne got second place over the line, with Dennis slipping back to third. Vandoorne took a deserved world championship, only winning once but being the most consistent among his rivals, scoring points in 15 of the 16 races. Mercedes ended the second generation of the championship and their Formula E commitment with back-to-back driver and team championships.


title: Conspiracy theories about the death of Diana, Princess of Wales

text: Various conspiracy theories have arisen surrounding the death of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997. Official investigations in both Britain and France found that Diana died in a manner consistent with media reports following the fatal car crash in Paris on 31 August 1997. In 1999, a French investigation concluded that Diana died as the result of a crash. The French investigator, Judge Hervé Stephan, concluded that the paparazzi were some distance from the Mercedes S280 when it crashed and were not responsible. After hearing evidence at the British inquest, a jury in 2008 returned a verdict of "unlawful killing" by driver Henri Paul and the paparazzi pursuing the car. The jury's verdict also stated: "In addition, the death of the deceased was caused or contributed to by the fact that the deceased were not wearing a seat belt and by the fact that the Mercedes struck the pillar in the Alma Tunnel rather than colliding with something else".


text: Active in disputing the official version of events were the British tabloid newspaper, the "Daily Express", and Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed, whose son, Dodi, was Diana's partner at the time and also died in the crash. In 2003, Diana's butler Paul Burrell published a note that he claimed had been written by Diana in October 1993, in which there were allegations that her husband was "planning 'an accident' in [Diana's] car, brake failure and serious head injury" so that he could marry again. She had allegedly expressed similar concerns in October 1995 to Lord Mishcon, her solicitor, that "reliable sources" had told her "that she and Camilla would be put aside" for Charles to marry Tiggy Legge-Bourke. A special Metropolitan Police inquiry team was established in 2004, Operation Paget, headed by Commissioner John Stevens to investigate the various conspiracy theories which led up to the British inquest. This investigation looked into 175 conspiracy claims that had been made by Fayed. In 2005, Charles III, as a witness, told Stevens that he did not know about his former wife's note from 1995 and could not understand why she had these feelings. Fayed has persistently propounded what were found to be conspiracy theories at the inquest and has repeatedly claimed that he believes his son was murdered with Diana.


text: Theorists have alleged that the driver of the Mercedes-Benz W140, Henri Paul, was in the pay of a national security service, though different versions of the allegation name the country of the security service alternately as Britain, France or the United States. Evidence purported to support this arises mainly from money in his possession at the time of his death and his personal wealth. These allegations are covered in chapter four of the Operation Paget criminal investigation report. Mohamed Al-Fayed claims that Henri Paul was working for MI6 and that they set him up. The inquiry found no evidence Henri Paul was an agent for any security service.


text: Another allegation concerns the reliability of blood tests carried out, which indicated Paul had been drinking before he took the controls of the car. The French investigators' conclusion that Paul was drunk was made on the basis of an analysis of blood samples, which were said to contain an alcohol level that (according to Jay's September 1997 report) was three times the French legal limit. This initial analysis was challenged by a British pathologist hired by Al-Fayed. In response, French authorities carried out a third test, this time using the more medically conclusive vitreous fluid from inside the eye, which confirmed the level of alcohol measured by blood and also showed Paul had been taking antidepressants.


text: It has been claimed that the level of alcohol reported to have been found in Paul's blood was inconsistent with his sober demeanour, as captured on the CCTV of the Ritz that evening. Robert Forrest, a forensic pathologist, said that an alcoholic like Paul, with a higher tolerance for alcohol, would be able to appear more sober than he actually was. The families of Dodi Fayed and Henri Paul did not accept the findings of the French investigation.


text: It was disclosed in 2006 that Lord Stevens had met with Paul's elderly parents telling them that their son was not drunk. Just prior to Stevens's appearance at the inquest, a source close to Stevens stated that this inconsistency could be explained as him being "considerate" and "sensitive" towards the elderly couple, an assessment Scott Baker suggested might be credible in his opening comments to the jury. Under cross-examination at the British inquest in 2008, Stevens denied "deliberately misleading" Paul's parents and said that the chauffeur's condition at the time of the crash did not match the police's definition of being drunk, which he said relied upon someone's physical responses. Stevens said that the available evidence suggested Paul had consumed only two alcoholic drinks, but this was not necessarily all that Paul had consumed, and that he was indeed "under the influence" of alcohol at the time of the crash. An expert cited in the report estimated that Paul had drunk the equivalent of five measures of Ricard, his favourite liquorice-flavoured French aperitif, before driving.


text: In two French TOXLAB tests, Paul was found to have 12.8% carbon monoxide haemoglobin saturation, which occurs when blood's iron-carrying pigment (haemoglobin) is bound with carbon monoxide (instead of oxygen). Smokers normally have about 10% of haemoglobin bound with carbon monoxide, so the results in Paul's case were not unusual. Paul had been smoking small Cigarillo cigars in the hours before the crash. Another test, backed by the opponents of the official findings, showed Paul had a carbon monoxide haemoglobin saturation of 20.7% at the time of his death; that result, if accurate, combined with the rate of dispersal of carbon monoxide from the bloodstream, would have meant that Paul's blood had 40% saturation a few hours earlier, and he would scarcely have been able to function at all.


text: In 2009, it was reported that DNA samples confirm the blood samples with high alcohol levels were indeed from Paul. This was established by a comparison with samples provided by Paul's parents, demonstrating that the blood tested was that of Paul and that he had three times the French legal limit of alcohol in his blood.


text: Richard Tomlinson, a former MI6 officer who was dismissed from the intelligence services and later served five months in prison for breaching the Official Secrets Act 1989, claimed in a sworn statement to the French inquiry in May 1999 that Britain's MI6 had been involved in the crash, suggesting that the security service had documentation which would assist Judge Stephan in his inquiry. The previous August, he had been reported by the BBC to have claimed that Paul was working for the security services and that one of Diana's bodyguards, either Trevor Rees-Jones (now known as Trevor Rees) or Kes Wingfield, was a contact for British intelligence. Tomlinson alleged that MI6 was monitoring Diana before her death, had told Mohamed Al-Fayed that Paul was an MI6 agent, and that her death mirrored plans he saw in 1992 for the assassination of then President of Serbia Slobodan Milošević, using a strobe light to blind his chauffeur.


text: On 13 February 2008, Tomlinson told the inquest that he may have misremembered and that he had no evidence that Paul was an MI6 agent, but he had said in the previous day's court session that Paul was supplying MI6 with information. Speaking by video-link from France, Tomlinson conceded that, after the interval of 16 or 17 years, he "could not remember specifically" whether the document he had seen during 1992 had in fact proposed the use of a strobe light to cause a traffic crash as a means of assassinating Milošević, although use of lights for this purpose had been covered in his MI6 training. The Operation Paget Inquiry was given unprecedented access to the offices of both MI5 and MI6 to investigate Tomlinson's claims. It was later revealed that the mentioned memo was a proposal written in March 1993 to assassinate another Serbian figure if he gained power, not Milošević. Furthermore, the plan did not involve anything about using flashlights.


text: Further evidence discrediting Tomlinson's claims was found in drafts of a book he was writing about his time in MI6 before he was jailed in 1998 for breaching the Official Secrets Act. The draft, dating from 1996, referred to the memo and contained none of the detail about a staged car crash with flashlights in a tunnel.


text: The inquest was later told by an anonymous MI6 manager (referred to during proceedings as "Miss X") that MI6 were not keeping any file on either the Princess or Dodi, and that there was no plan involving them. The inquiry concluded by dismissing Tomlinson's claims as an embellishment. It went on to comment that this embellishment was largely responsible for giving rise to the theories Diana was murdered.


text: Tomlinson was arrested by French authorities in July 2006 as part of their inquiry into the death of Diana. French police were also reported to have seized computer files and personal papers from his home in Cannes.


text: One of the main motives which has been advanced for alleged murder includes suggestions Diana was pregnant with Mohamed "Dodi" Fayed's child and the couple were about to get engaged. The alleged dislike of the idea of a non-Christian within the British Royal Family meant such a relationship between the mother of the future king and an Egyptian Muslim would not be tolerated. In Mohamed Al-Fayed's view, which he repeated in court at the inquest in February 2008, Prince Philip, Prince Charles, Diana's sister Lady Sarah McCorquodale and numerous others were all involved in a plot to kill the Princess and his son. Jeffrey Steinberg of the "Executive Intelligence Review" (EIR), a publication of the American Lyndon LaRouche movement, has also put forward theories that the Princess of Wales was murdered by the security services under the instructions of Prince Philip. An article in "The Daily Telegraph" in 1998 reporting the "EIR" conspiracy theories alleged earlier links between the "EIR" and Al-Fayed, while Francis Wheen reported the following year that Al-Fayed's spokesman had advised journalists to contact Steinberg.


text: Al-Fayed made the assertion in television interviews that the couple were going to announce their engagement on the Monday after the crash, 1 September 1997. Operation Paget commented that an announcement of such magnitude from the Princess of Wales would have been a substantial media event of worldwide interest and would have required significant preparation. No evidence was found that any such preparation had been made.


text: CCTV evidence shown at the inquest indicates that Dodi left Repossi jewellers on the 30 August with nothing more than a catalogue. Alberto Repossi said in 2003 that the ring had been placed on Diana's finger in a St Tropez hotel, and was being resized for future collection in Paris, but later admitted to writer Martyn Gregory that he had received "legal papers" from Al-Fayed, a client for more than 20 years. Al-Fayed said the couple chose the ring in Monte Carlo, and Dodi had picked it up in Paris the day before he died after it had been altered. This statement of Al-Fayed was contradicted by the statements of Claude Roulet, a shop assistant, and the CCTV footage. A CCTV recording demonstrated that a ring had been selected by a Ritz hotel official. It was bought by Mohammed Al-Fayed after the couple's death.


text: A few hours before the crash, on the afternoon of 30 August, Diana's journalist friend Richard Kay received a call on his mobile phone from Diana in which she asked about what was likely to appear in the following day's Sunday papers about her. During this call, she made no mention of any announcement she intended to make.


text: More revealing was the statement given by Diana's eldest sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, who testified that in a phone conversation with Diana on Friday 29 August, Diana spoke about Dodi Fayed in a manner that gave her sister the impression the relationship was on "stony ground". Statements from other friends and confidantes Diana spoke to in the week before her death, including her butler Paul Burrell, her friend Lady Annabel Goldsmith, and her spiritual adviser Rita Rogers, were unanimous that she was firm about not wanting to get engaged or married to anyone at that point in her life. A week before she died, the princess had told Goldsmith: "I need marriage like a rash on my face."


text: Diana's former private secretary, Patrick Jephson, said to the BBC in reaction to the publication of the Operation Paget Report in December 2006 that her facial expression in the CCTV footage of her at the Paris Ritz on her final evening with Dodi Fayed was one she would wear when she was disgruntled with a situation. However, CCTV images released on 6 October taken just minutes before their deaths, show a relaxed Diana and Dodi affectionately holding hands.


text: An inquiry witness was Hasnat Khan, a Muslim heart surgeon of Pakistani origin based in London, who had a relationship with Diana for two years. Diana had explored the possibility of marriage with him. This had been met with no opposition from the Royal Family and then-Prince Charles had given his blessing. Khan stated that he had received some racist hate mail from members of the public because of the relationship but had no reason to take what was said in this hate mail seriously. He also stated that he felt the relationship was not opposed by the Royal Family or any other branch of the British Government including the security services. Paul Burrell stated that Diana was still not over her break-up with Khan at the time of her death. It was also pointed out that Dodi and Diana had only met just under seven weeks before the crash, at Al-Fayed's villa in St. Tropez on 14 July, meaning there were only 47 days from their first meeting until the night of the crash. Of those days, their schedules permitted them to be together for an absolute maximum of 35 days. From analysis of Diana's actual movements, it is likely they had spent approximately 23 days together before the crash.


text: John Macnamara, a former senior detective at Scotland Yard, headed Al-Fayed's own investigation for five years from 1997. Cross-examined at the inquest on 14 February, he conceded that he had found no evidence of a criminal conspiracy to kill the Princess, or that she was engaged or pregnant at the time of her death, apart from the claims Al-Fayed had relayed to him.


text: In January 2004, the former coroner of the Queen's Household, John Burton, said (in an interview with "The Times") that he attended a post-mortem examination of the Princess's body at Fulham mortuary, where he personally examined her womb and found her not to be pregnant. Robert Chapman, who carried out the post-mortem examination, stated that Diana's womb and ovaries showed no sign of pregnancy.


text: In an effort to examine the assertions made by Al-Fayed, Operation Paget had scientific tests carried out on pre-transfusion blood found in the footwell of the seat in the wrecked Mercedes the Princess of Wales occupied at the time of the crash. This blood was found to have no trace of the hCG hormone associated with pregnancy. The inquiry also extensively interviewed friends of Diana's who were in close contact with her in the weeks leading up to her death. The evidence obtained from these witnesses was of a very sensitive nature and most of it was not included in Operation Paget's criminal investigation report. However, it was reported that friends said she was in her normal menstrual cycle and there was evidence she was using contraception.


text: Al-Fayed's persistence in asserting Diana was pregnant led him to get members of his staff to tell the media that on their final day together, Diana and his son had visited a villa he owned in Paris to choose a room "for the baby". While the couple had indeed visited the villa, the circumstances of the visit were exaggerated to say it had lasted two hours and that it was in the presence of a prominent Italian interior designer. A security guard at the villa, Reuben Murrell, felt uncomfortable lying about the matter and sold his story to "The Sun" stating that the visit lasted just under thirty minutes and was not in the company of any interior designer. He provided stills from CCTV to prove this and said he had been in the presence of Diana and Dodi for the entirety of their visit, with there having been no conversation about them coming to live at the villa. He later resigned from Al-Fayed's employment and initiated an employment tribunal for constructive dismissal after Al-Fayed successfully sued him for breach of contract because of the CCTV images he supplied to "The Sun". Senior members of Al-Fayed's staff made derogatory comments about Murrell and Trevor Rees-Jones in their statements to Operation Paget. In 2004, a Channel 4 documentary, "The Diana Conspiracy", claimed that the butler at the villa who, in a June 1998 interview with the ITV documentary "Diana: Secrets Behind the Crash," claimed to have shown the couple around with their intent being to live there, was not even present at the villa on that day as he was on vacation.


text: Al-Fayed first claimed that the Princess of Wales was pregnant at the time of her death to the "Daily Express" in May 2001. "If it is true, it is strange that he sat upon this important information for three and a half years," Scott Baker said at the inquest.


text: The absence of CCTV images showing the Mercedes's journey from the hotel to the crash site has been frequently cited as evidence of an organised conspiracy. According to "The Independent" newspaper in 2006, there were more than 14 CCTV cameras in the Pont de l'Alma underpass, though none recorded footage of the fatal collision.


text: Judge Hervé Stéphan was appointed as Examining Magistrate in this case on 2 September 1997. On that day, by Judicial Order, he tasked the Brigade Criminelle with identifying all video and photographic images along the route taken by the Mercedes. Lieutenant Eric Gigou of the Brigade Criminelle led the team that carried out that work, initially by retracing the route several times and drawing up a list of possible locations. His report showed that the team identified ten locations of CCTV cameras. None of these had any images relevant to the inquiry, since they were principally security cameras facing the entrances to buildings. Most of the cameras were not maintained by the City of Paris; the owners of the buildings to which they were attached operated them privately. There was a traffic-monitoring camera above the underpass in the Place de l'Alma itself but this was under the control of la Compagnie de Circulation Urbaine de Paris (Paris Urban Traffic Unit). That department closed down at about 11 p.m., had no night duty staff and made no recordings. Officers in the Police Headquarters Information and Command Centre could continue to view the pictures shown by the traffic camera in real time but could not control it.


text: The subject of the CCTV cameras is dealt with in Chapter 5 of the Operation Paget report. It was also found that a photograph that was published in a book by David Cohen "Diana, Death of a Goddess" and captioned as having been taken just before the car entered the tunnel was in fact taken by a photographer as the car left the back of the Paris Ritz.


text: Analysis of the wreckage of the Mercedes revealed it had glancing contact with a white Fiat Uno car which left traces of paint on the Mercedes bodywork. Extensive attempts by the French police to find the vehicle involved were unsuccessful. Although no one had seen the Fiat in the tunnel, some witnesses reported seeing an Uno exiting the tunnel.


text: Mohamed Al-Fayed alleged in his July 2005 statement to Operation Paget, and at other times, that the white Fiat Uno was being used by MI6 as a means of causing the Mercedes to swerve and thereby crash into the side of the tunnel. Al-Fayed further alleged that the Fiat Uno was owned by a French photojournalist named Jean-Paul James Andanson, a security services agent according to Al-Fayed, who had photographed Diana while she was at his villa in St. Tropez in July 1997. Andanson's death in May 2000, Al-Fayed claimed, was either due to guilt over what he had done or because he was assassinated by the French or British security services to silence him.


text: Operation Paget found that the white Fiat Uno Andanson owned was in an unroadworthy condition, being nine years old at the time, with on the odometer (suggesting that the car had been driven 27,000 miles per annum) and had not been maintained for several years prior. Andanson's neighbours confirmed the veracity of this evidence. Andanson had sold the car in October 1997. Operation Paget concluded it was extremely unlikely due to the car's condition and the fact Andanson had so openly disposed of it that it was the one at the scene of the crash in Paris. French police had examined Andanson's car as part of their effort to trace the one that had come into contact with the Mercedes with a view to prosecuting the driver for failing to render assistance and had reached the same conclusion. The French police spent a year after the crash searching for the vehicle and eliminated over 4,000 white Fiat Unos from their inquiry. Operation Paget decided it would be unlikely that renewed enquiries would identify the vehicle involved, as such a long period had elapsed since the crash. It concluded the threat of prosecution for a custodial offence probably deterred the driver from coming forward at the time.


text: A retired major in the French Brigade Criminelle, Jean Claude Mules, gave evidence to the inquest in February 2008. Andanson had been interviewed by French police in February 1998, and had been able to provide documentary evidence about his movements on the previous 30 and 31 August which had satisfied them that he could not have been the driver of the Fiat Uno involved. These demonstrated that Andanson could only have been at his home in Lignieres, from Paris, at the time of the crash. Elizabeth, his widow, said at the London inquest in February 2008 that her husband had been at home in bed with her at the time of the crash.


text: Andanson died in May 2000. The official verdict was suicide. His body was found in a black, burnt-out BMW in a forest near the town of Nant, near Millau, in Southern France. Andanson's death was attributed to problems in his private life. The 2008 inquest into the death of the Princess of Wales heard that evidence was uncovered from his friends and associates that prior to his death he had talked of suicide by pouring petrol in a car and lighting a cigar, as noted by Richard Horwell QC, for the Metropolitan Commissioner.


text: The Paget report states that when the car was found, Andanson's body was in the driver's seat of the car, and his head was detached and lay between the front seats. There was a hole in his left temple. The French pathologist concluded this hole was caused by the intense heat of the fire rather than, for example, a bullet wound.


text: Operation Paget found no evidence Andanson was known to any security service and, contrary to Al-Fayed's claims, his death was thoroughly investigated by French police (although the whereabouts of the car keys has never been explained). A break-in at his former workplace in June 2000 alleged to have been carried out by security services was found to be unconnected to his death, as no items related to him were stolen.


text: It has been reported by numerous publications that the white Fiat Uno belonged to Le Van Thanh who was a 22-year-old taxi driver at the time of the crash. Thanh owned a white Fiat Uno identical to the one that struck the Princess of Wales' Mercedes. Georges and Sabine Dauzonne identified Thanh as "the agitated man they may have seen driving the car". Thanh has always refused interview requests. In 2006, Thanh's father said his son had re-sprayed his white Uno red hours after the crash, allegedly waking up his mechanic brother in the night to help him. Following tests, it was concluded that the car "could have been involved in the accident", but Thanh's involvement in the crash "was ruled out by French police because he said he was at work on the night in question". It was later uncovered that he had left work early that night and could have been at the scene of the crash. Multiple witnesses recall seeing a man matching his description exit the tunnel seconds after the crash.


text: An alternative explanation for the cause of the crash has been reports of a bright white flash just before the car entered the tunnel, blinding the driver. Richard Tomlinson made this allegation at the inquiry, but the veracity of his evidence was found wanting.


text: It was found by the authorities that three eyewitnesses at the scene of the crash claimed to see a bright flash of light before the crash. François Levistre (originally François Levi) made a clear, specific claim that he saw a bright flash, but his three statements to the authorities were in conflict with each other. Both the French detectives investigating after the crash and later the officers who worked on Operation Paget rejected his evidence. With the Mercedes behind him, he claimed to have seen the flash in his rear-view mirror and recounted other elements of what he saw while he was negotiating the difficult bend out of the tunnel. Crucially, however, his testimony was directly contradicted by his then-wife, who was in the passenger seat next to him. However, eyewitness Brian Anderson, an American tourist, told detectives that he too saw a bright flash.


text: French Police in 1997 were aware of Levistre's conviction in Rouen during 1989 for dishonesty and his subsequent prison sentence, and he was not thought by them to be a reliable witness. Television documentaries produced by Channel 4 in 2004 and the BBC in 2006 both raised this issue; he appeared as a witness at the British inquiry via a video link in October 2007. "Diana: Secrets Behind the Crash" (3 June 1998), an ITV programme presented by Nicholas Owen, then ITN's Royal Correspondent, gave enough weight to the claims of Levistre that 93% of viewers polled by the "Mirror" newspaper just after the broadcast believed there had been a bright flash of light at the time of the crash.


text: The detail of eyewitness testimony was thoroughly reviewed and Operation Paget officers succeeded in uncovering two new witnesses. Other eyewitness testimony made little reference to the appearance of any inexplicable flashes at the crash site. Several witnesses who would be expected to have seen a blinding flash made no reference to one. In any event, the detailed crash reconstruction revealed that the chain of events that led to the car unavoidably colliding with the pillar started well before it was at the mouth of the tunnel where the flash is alleged to have occurred. Furthermore, a strobe light of the type that was alleged to have been used is so powerful that a flash emitted from it would have been bright enough to illuminate a very wide area. It would have likely blinded not only Paul, but also the driver of the white Fiat Uno, the pursuing paparazzi and witnesses standing at the road side. The Operation Paget report concluded that the alleged flash did not happen.


text: There was some media discussion in April 2006 suggesting that Diana was a faithful seat belt user and therefore the fact that both her and Dodi's seat belts either failed or were not used was sinister and might suggest sabotage. Her sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale later said that Diana "was religious in putting on her seat belt". Other sources question if she did in fact use her seat belt all the time, as was suggested.


text: "What is certain is that she was not wearing a seat belt and this made things worse. We would like to think that if she had been wearing a seat belt, we'd have been able to save her," said André Lienhart, who reviewed the emergency services' response for the French government investigation of the incident. CNN did an analysis of the crash in early September 1997 and concluded that injuries would have been minor had the occupants been wearing seat belts. The conclusions were provisional owing to limited data about the specific Mercedes model as the limousine was not sold in the US.


text: Analysis of the wreckage of the car after its repatriation to England in 2005 by a forensic accident investigator from the Transport Research Laboratory of thirty-five years experience on behalf of Operation Paget found that all the seat belts were in good working order except for the right rear one which was attached to the seat Diana occupied. Follow up enquiries with French investigators found that they had declared all the seat belts operational at an examination in October 1997, suggesting the damage to this seat belt took place after the crash.


text: The British inquest verdict explicitly stated that lack of seat belts had "caused or contributed to" the deaths of both Dodi and Diana.


text: The first call to the emergency services' switchboard was logged at 12:26 a.m. The SAMU ambulance carrying the Princess arrived at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital at 2:06 a.m. The French system of emergency care adhered to the "stay and play" mantra, which meant that the patient needed to be stabilised first at a fully equipped medical ambulance before being directed to a specialised hospital that could treat his or her injuries, no matter how far away it was. Nevertheless, this length of time has prompted much conspiracy-related comment.


text: The period between the crash and the arrival at the hospital takes into account the following: the time taken for emergency services to arrive; the time taken by the Sapeurs-Pompiers (fire service) of Paris to remove Diana from the damaged car; and the actual journey time from the crash site to the hospital. Police Officers Sébastien Dorzee and Lino Gagliadorne were the first emergency officials to arrive at the scene at around 12:30 a.m. Sergeants Xavier Gourmelom and Philippe Boyer of the Sapeurs-Pompiers arrived at around 12:32 a.m. Jean-Marc Martino, a specialist in anaesthetics and intensive care treatment and the doctor in charge of the SAMU ambulance, arrived at around 12:40 a.m. Diana was removed from the car at 1:00 a.m. She then went into cardiac arrest. Following external cardiopulmonary resuscitation, her heart started beating again. She was moved to the SAMU ambulance at 1:18 a.m.


text: The ambulance departed from the crash scene at 1:41 a.m. and arrived at the hospital at 2:06 a.m.—a journey time of approximately 26 minutes. This included a stop at the Gare d'Austerlitz ordered by Martino because of the drop in the blood pressure of the Princess of Wales and the necessity of dealing with it. The ambulance was travelling slowly on his express instructions. The doctor was concerned about Diana's blood pressure and the effects on her medical condition of deceleration and acceleration.


text: The SAMU ambulance carrying Diana passed the Hôtel-Dieu Hospital on the Ile de la Cité en route to the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital. The decision to transfer her to the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital was taken by Marc Lejay who was on despatch duty in SAMU Control on that night, in consultation with Dr Derossi, who was at the scene. The Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital was the main reception centre for multiple trauma patients in Paris. The Hôtel-Dieu was not equipped to deal with the injuries Diana had sustained. Lejay stated: "The Hôtel-Dieu hospital on the 'Ile de la Cité' is closer but not equipped with heart surgery teams or neurosurgical teams or teams trained to take patients with multiple injuries." Lejay was also aware that Bruno Riou was on duty at the Pitié-Salpêtrière that night and was particularly skilled to treat her injuries. Martino supported this view.


text: Mohamed Al-Fayed alleged that Diana's body was deliberately embalmed shortly after her death to ensure that any pregnancy test at the post-mortem would produce a false result. Robert Chapman, who carried out the post-mortem examination, stated that the embalming fluids would have had no effect on determining whether Diana was pregnant or not as the physical evidence would have been present in her womb and ovaries.


text: Operation Paget found that 31 August 1997 was a very hot day in Paris. Diana's body had been stored in an empty room adjacent to the emergency room where she had been treated at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, as the mortuary was on the other side of the hospital grounds and some distance away. Dry ice and air conditioning units were placed in the room to keep it cool but appeared to have had little success.


text: Diana's two sisters and Prince Charles were scheduled to view the body later that afternoon before bringing it back to the United Kingdom. President Jacques Chirac and his wife also wished to pay their respects. This meant there was very little time to prepare the body for viewing, and it was deemed unacceptable to present Diana's body to her family and the President of France in the state it was in. Faced with this situation, the hospital staff decided to press ahead with embalming with only verbal authority from Martine Monteil, the local superintendent of police, who assured Jean Monceau "that everything would be in order". Under French law, paperwork must be completed before undertaking the embalming of any corpse likely to be subject to a post-mortem. This paperwork was completed, but only after the embalming had been carried out, giving rise to allegations of suspicious circumstances. The allegations were made despite there being no way the hospital staff could have known whether or not Diana was pregnant, as a pregnancy test would have been irrelevant to her post crash treatment and accordingly was not carried out.


text: The Court Martial of SAS Sniper Danny Nightingale led to a letter written by witness, Soldier N, and sent to his in-laws coming to wider attention. Soldier N, Nightingale's former roommate, was in prison for illegally hiding firearms and ammunition. On 17 August 2013, the Metropolitan Police announced they were reviewing evidence that Soldier N had boasted that the SAS were behind the death of Princess Diana. The parents of Soldier N's estranged wife reportedly wrote to the SAS's commanding officer, claiming Soldier N had told his wife the unit "arranged" Diana's death and it was "covered up". The information was reportedly passed onto Scotland Yard by the Royal Military Police. However, Scotland Yard stressed that this information would not lead to a re-investigation and that they were examining its "relevance and credibility". They also confirmed that Prince Charles and Mohamed Al-Fayed were being kept informed as preliminary examination progressed. At the end of November 2013, Scotland Yard ended its study of the SAS allegations and released a statement: "The Metropolitan Police Service has scoped the information and is in the process of drawing up conclusions, which will be communicated to the families and interested parties first, before any further comment can be made," On 16 December, it emerged from Sky News reports that there was "no credible evidence" that the SAS was involved in the death of the Princess and the others, and thus no reason to re-open the investigation.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Mycenaean Greece (or the Mycenaean civilization) was the last phase of the Bronze Age in Ancient Greece, spanning the period from approximately 1750 to 1050 BC. It represents the first advanced and distinctively Greek civilization in mainland Greece with its palatial states, urban organization, works of art, and writing system. The Mycenaeans were mainland Greek peoples who were likely stimulated by their contact with insular Minoan Crete and other Mediterranean cultures to develop a more sophisticated sociopolitical culture of their own. The most prominent site was Mycenae, after which the culture of this era is named. Other centers of power that emerged included Pylos, Tiryns, Midea in the Peloponnese, Orchomenos, Thebes, Athens in Central Greece and Iolcos in Thessaly. Mycenaean settlements also appeared in Epirus, Macedonia, on islands in the Aegean Sea, on the south-west coast of Asia Minor, Cyprus, while Mycenaean-influenced settlements appeared in the Levant, and Italy.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The Mycenaean Greeks introduced several innovations in the fields of engineering, architecture and military infrastructure, while trade over vast areas of the Mediterranean was essential for the Mycenaean economy. Their syllabic script, the Linear B, offers the first written records of the Indo-European Greek language, and their religion already included several deities that can also be found in the Olympic Pantheon. Mycenaean Greece was dominated by a warrior elite society and consisted of a network of palace-centered states that developed rigid hierarchical, political, social and economic systems. At the head of this society was the king, known as a "wanax".


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Mycenaean Greece perished with the collapse of Bronze Age culture in the eastern Mediterranean, to be followed by the Greek Dark Ages, a recordless transitional period leading to Archaic Greece where significant shifts occurred from palace-centralized to de-centralized forms of socio-economic organization (including the extensive use of iron). Various theories have been proposed for the end of this civilization, among them the Dorian invasion or activities connected to the "Sea Peoples". Additional theories such as natural disasters and climatic changes have also been suggested. The Mycenaean period became the historical setting of much ancient Greek literature and mythology, including the Trojan Epic Cycle.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The Bronze Age in mainland Greece is generally termed as the "Helladic period" by modern archaeologists, after "Hellas", the Greek name for Greece. This period is divided into three subperiods: The Early Helladic (EH) period (c. 3200–2000 BC) was a time of prosperity with the use of metals and a growth in technology, economy and social organization. The Middle Helladic (MH) period (c. 2000–1700/1675 BC) faced a slower pace of development, as well as the evolution of megaron-type dwellings and cist grave burials. The last phase of Middle Helladic, the Middle Helladic III (c. 1750–1675 BC), along with the Late Helladic (LH) period (c. 1700/1675–1050 BC) roughly coincide with Mycenaean Greece.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The Late Helladic period is further divided into LHI and LHII, both of which coincide with the middle phase of Mycenaean Greece (c. 1700/1675–1420 BC), and LHIII (c. 1420–1050 BC), the period of expansion, and decline of the Mycenaean civilization. The transition period from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age in Greece is known as Sub-Mycenaean (c. 1050–1000 BC).


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Based on recent research, Alex Knodell (2021) considers the beginning of Mycenaean occupation in Peloponnese in Middle Helladic III (c. 1750–1675 BC), and divides the whole Mycenaean time into three cultural periods: Early Mycenaean (c. 1750–1400 BC), Palatial Bronze Age (c. 1400–1200 BC), and Postpalatial Bronze Age (c. 1200–1050 BC).


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The decipherment of the Mycenaean Linear B script, a writing system adapted for the use of the (Indo-European) Greek language of the Late Bronze Age, demonstrated the continuity of Greek speech from the second millennium BC into the eighth century BC when a new Phoenician-derived alphabetic script emerged. Moreover, it revealed that the bearers of Mycenaean culture were ethnically connected with the populations that resided in the Greek peninsula after the end of this cultural period. Lastly, the decipherment marked the advent of an Indo-European language in the Aegean region in contrast to unrelated prior languages spoken in adjoining areas. Various collective terms for the inhabitants of Mycenaean Greece were used by Homer in his 8th-century BC epic the "Iliad" in reference to the Trojan War. It, supposedly, happened in the late 13th to early 12th century BC when a coalition of small Greek states under the king of Mycenae besieged the walled city of Troy.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Homer interchangeably used the ethnonyms "Achaeans", "Danaans", and "Argives" to refer to the besiegers, and these names appear to have passed down from the time they were in use to the time when Homer applied them as collective terms in his "Iliad". There is an isolated reference to "a-ka-wi-ja-de" in the Linear B records in Knossos, Crete dated to c. 1400 BC, which presumably refers to a Mycenaean (Achaean) state on the Greek mainland.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Egyptian records mention a "T(D)-n-j" or "Danaya" ("Tanaju") land for the first time c. 1437 BC, during the reign of Pharaoh Thutmoses III (r. 1479–1425 BC). This land is geographically defined in an inscription from the reign of Amenhotep III (r. circa 1390–1352 BC), where a number of Danaya cities are mentioned, which cover the largest part of southern mainland Greece. Among them, cities such as Mycenae, Nauplion, and Thebes have been identified with certainty. Danaya has been equated with the ethnonym "Danaoi" (), the name of the mythical dynasty that ruled in the region of Argos, also used as an ethnonym for the Greek people by Homer.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: In the official records of another Bronze Age empire, that of the Hittites in Anatolia, various references from c. 1400 BC to 1220 BC mention a country named "Ahhiyawa". Recent scholarship, based on textual evidence, new interpretations of the Hittite inscriptions, and recent surveys of archaeological evidence about Mycenaean–Anatolian contacts during this period, concludes that the term "Ahhiyawa" must have been used in reference to the Mycenaean world (land of the Achaeans), or at least to a part of it. This term may have also had broader connotations in some texts, possibly referring to all regions settled by Mycenaeans or regions under direct Mycenaean political control. Another similar ethnonym, "Ekwesh," in twelfth century BC Egyptian inscriptions has been commonly identified with the Ahhiyawans. These Ekwesh were mentioned as a group of the Sea People.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Scholars have proposed different theories on the origins of the Mycenaeans. According to one theory, Mycenaean civilization reflected the exogenous imposition of archaic Indo-Europeans from the Eurasian steppe onto the pre-Mycenaean local population. An issue with this theory, however, entails the very tenuous material and cultural relationship between Aegean and northern steppe populations during the Bronze Age. Another theory proposes that Mycenaean culture in Greece dates back to circa 3000 BC with Indo-European migrants entering a mainly-depopulated area; other hypotheses argue for a date as early as the seventh millennium BC (with the spread of agriculture) and as late as 1600 BC (with the spread of chariot technology). In a 2017 genetic study conducted by Lazaridis et al., "the Minoans and Mycenaeans were genetically similar, [but] the Mycenaeans differed from Minoans in deriving additional ancestry from an ultimate source related to the hunter–gatherers of eastern Europe and Siberia, introduced via a proximal source related to the inhabitants of either the Eurasian steppe or Armenia." However, Lazaridis et al. admit that their research "does not settle th[e] debate" on Mycenaean origins. Historian Bernard Sergent notes that archaeology alone is not able to solve the issue and that the majority of Hellenists believed Mycenaeans spoke a non-Indo-European Minoan language before Linear B was deciphered in 1952.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Notwithstanding the above academic disputes, the mainstream consensus among modern Mycenologists is that Mycenaean civilization began around 1750 BC, earlier than the Shaft Graves, originating and evolving from the local socio-cultural landscape of the Early and Middle Bronze Age in mainland Greece with influences from Minoan Crete. Towards the end of the Middle Bronze Age (c. 1700/1675 BC), a significant increase in the population and the number of settlements occurred. A number of centers of power emerged in southern mainland Greece dominated by a warrior elite society; while the typical dwellings of that era were an early type of megaron buildings, some more complex structures are classified as forerunners of the later palaces. In a number of sites, defensive walls were also erected.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Meanwhile, new types of burials and more imposing ones have been unearthed, which display a great variety of luxurious objects. Among the various burial types, the shaft grave became the most common form of elite burial, a feature that gave the name to the early period of Mycenaean Greece. Among the Mycenaean elite, deceased men were usually laid to rest in gold masks and funerary armor, and women in gold crowns and clothes gleaming with gold ornaments. The royal shaft graves next to the acropolis of Mycenae, in particular the Grave Circles A and B, signified the elevation of a native Greek-speaking royal dynasty whose economic power depended on long-distance sea trade.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: During this period, the Mycenaean centers witnessed increased contact with the outside world, especially with the Cyclades and the Minoan centers on the island of Crete. Mycenaean presence appears to be also depicted in a fresco at Akrotiri, on Thera island, which possibly displays many warriors in boar's tusk helmets, a feature typical of Mycenaean warfare. In the early 15th century BC, commerce intensified with Mycenaean pottery reaching the western coast of Asia Minor, including Miletus and Troy, Cyprus, Lebanon, Palestine and Egypt.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: At the end of the Shaft Grave era, a new and more imposing type of elite burial emerged, the tholos: large circular burial chambers with high vaulted roofs and a straight entry passage lined with stone.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The eruption of Thera, which according to archaeological data occurred c. 1500 BC, resulted in the decline of the Minoan civilization of Crete. In all probability the eruption happened sometime between 1612 and 1538 BC. This turn of events gave the opportunity to the Mycenaeans to spread their influence throughout the Aegean. Around c. 1450 BC, they were in control of Crete itself, including Knossos, and colonized several other Aegean islands, reaching as far as Rhodes. Thus the Mycenaeans became the dominant power of the region, marking the beginning of the Mycenaean 'Koine' era (from , common), a highly uniform culture that spread in mainland Greece and the Aegean.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: From the early 14th century BC, Mycenaean trade began to take advantage of the new commercial opportunities in the Mediterranean after the Minoan collapse. The trade routes were expanded further, reaching Cyprus, Amman in the Near East, Apulia in Italy and Spain. From that time period (c. 1400 BC), the palace of Knossos has yielded the earliest records of the Greek Linear B script, based on the previous Linear A of the Minoans. The use of the new script spread in mainland Greece and offers valuable insight into the administrative network of the palatial centers. However, the unearthed records are too fragmentary for a political reconstruction of Bronze Age Greece.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Excavations at Miletus, southwest Asia Minor, indicate the existence of a Mycenaean settlement there already from c. 1450 BC, replacing the previous Minoan installations. This site became a sizable and prosperous Mycenaean center until the 12th century BC. Apart from the archaeological evidence, this is also attested in Hittite records, which indicate that Miletos (Milawata in Hittite) was the most important base for Mycenaean activity in Asia Minor. Mycenaean presence also reached the adjacent sites of Iasus and Ephesus.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Meanwhile, imposing palaces were built in the main Mycenaean centers of the mainland. The earliest palace structures were megaron-type buildings, such as the Menelaion in Sparta, Lakonia. Palaces proper are datable from c. 1400 BC, when Cyclopean fortifications were erected at Mycenae and nearby Tiryns. Additional palaces were built in Midea and Pylos in Peloponnese, Athens, Eleusis, Thebes and Orchomenos in Central Greece and Iolcos, in Thessaly, the latter being the northernmost Mycenaean center. Knossos in Crete also became a Mycenaean center, where the former Minoan complex underwent a number of adjustments, including the addition of a throne room. These centers were based on a rigid network of bureaucracy where administrative competencies were classified into various sections and offices according to specialization of work and trades. At the head of this society was the king, known as "wanax" (Linear B: wa-na-ka) in Mycenaean Greek. All powers were vested in him, as the main landlord and spiritual and military leader. At the same time he was an entrepreneur and trader and was aided by a network of high officials.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The presence of "Ahhiyawa" in western Anatolia is mentioned in various Hittite accounts from c. 1400 to c. 1220 BC. "Ahhiyawa" is generally accepted as a Hittite translation of Mycenaean Greece ("Achaeans" in Homeric Greek), but a precise geographical definition of the term cannot be drawn from the texts. During this time, the kings of Ahhiyawa were evidently capable of dealing with their Hittite counterparts both on a diplomatic and military level. Moreover, Ahhiyawan activity was to interfere in Anatolian affairs, with the support of anti-Hittite uprisings or through local vassal rulers, which the Ahhiyawan king used as agents for the extension of his influence.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: In c. 1400 BC, Hittite records mention the military activities of an Ahhiyawan warlord, Attarsiya, a possible Hittite way of writing the Greek name Atreus, who attacked Hittite vassals in western Anatolia. Later, in c. 1315 BC, an anti-Hittite rebellion headed by Arzawa, a Hittite vassal state, received support from Ahhiyawa. Meanwhile, Ahhiyawa appears to be in control of a number of islands in the Aegean, an impression also supported by archaeological evidence. During the reign of the Hittite king Hattusili III (c. 1267–1237 BC), the king of Ahhiyawa is recognized as a "Great King" and of equal status with the other contemporary great Bronze Age rulers: the kings of Egypt, Babylonia and Assyria. At that time, another anti-Hittite movement, led by Piyama-Radu, broke out and was supported by the king of Ahhiyawa. Piyama-Radu caused major unrest in the region of Wilusa and later invaded the island of Lesbos, which then passed into Ahhiyawan control.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The Hittite-Ahhiyawan confrontation in Wilusa, the Hittite name for Troy, may provide the historical foundation for the Trojan War tradition. As a result of this instability, the Hittite king initiated correspondence in order to convince his Ahhiyawan counterpart to restore peace in the region. The Hittite record mentions a certain Tawagalawa, a possible Hittite translation for Greek Eteocles, as brother of the king of Ahhiyawa.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: In 1250 BC, the first wave of destruction apparently occurred in various centers of mainland Greece for reasons that cannot be identified by archaeologists. In Boeotia, Thebes was burned to the ground, around that year or slightly later. Nearby Orchomenos shared the same fate, while the Boeotian fortifications of Gla were deserted. In the Peloponnese, a number of buildings surrounding the citadel of Mycenae were attacked and burned.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: These incidents appear to have prompted the massive strengthening and expansion of the fortifications in various sites. In some cases, arrangements were also made for the creation of subterranean passages which led to underground cisterns. Tiryns, Midea and Athens expanded their defences with new cyclopean-style walls. The extension program in Mycenae almost doubled the fortified area of the citadel. To this phase of extension belongs the impressive Lion Gate, the main entrance into the Mycenaean acropolis.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: It appears that after this first wave of destruction a short-lived revival of Mycenaean culture followed. Mycenaean Greece continues to be mentioned in international affairs, particularly in Hittite records. In c. 1220 BC, the king of Ahhiyawa is again reported to have been involved in an anti-Hittite uprising in western Anatolia. Another contemporary Hittite account reports that Ahhiyawan ships should avoid Assyrian-controlled harbors, as part of a trade embargo imposed on Assyria. In general, in the second half of 13th century BC, trade was in decline in the Eastern Mediterranean, most probably due to the unstable political environment there.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: None of the defence measures appear to have prevented the final destruction and collapse of the Mycenaean states. A second destruction struck Mycenae in c. 1190 BC or shortly thereafter. This event marked the end of Mycenae as a major power. The site was then reoccupied, but on a smaller scale. The palace of Pylos, in the southwestern Peloponnese, was destroyed in c. 1180 BC. The Linear B archives found there, preserved by the heat of the fire that destroyed the palace, mention hasty defence preparations due to an imminent attack without giving any detail about the attacking force.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: As a result of this turmoil, specific regions in mainland Greece witnessed a dramatic population decrease, especially Boeotia, Argolis and Messenia. Mycenaean refugees migrated to Cyprus and the Levantine coast. Nevertheless, other regions on the edge of the Mycenaean world prospered, such as the Ionian islands, the northwestern Peloponnese, parts of Attica and a number of Aegean islands. The acropolis of Athens, oddly, appears to have avoided destruction.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Athens and the eastern coast of Attica were still occupied in the 12th century BC, and were not destroyed or abandoned; this points to the existence of new decentralized coastal and maritime networks there. It is attested by the cemetery of Perati that lasted a century and showed imports from Cyclades, Dodecanese, Crete, Cyprus, Egypt and Syria, as well as by the Late Helladic IIIC (c. 1210-1040 BC) cemetery of Drivlia at Porto Rafti; located 2 km west of Perati. This indicates that Attica participated in long-distance trade, and was also incorporated in a mainland-looking network.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The site of Mycenae experienced a gradual loss of political and economic status, while Tiryns, also in the Argolid region, expanded its settlement and became the largest local center during the post-palatial period, in Late Helladic IIIC, c. 1200-1050 BC.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The reasons for the end of the Mycenaean culture have been hotly debated among scholars. At present, there is no satisfactory explanation for the collapse of the Mycenaean palace systems. The two most common theories are population movement and internal conflict. The first attributes the destruction of Mycenaean sites to invaders.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The hypothesis of a Dorian invasion, known as such in Ancient Greek tradition, that led to the end of Mycenaean Greece, is supported by sporadic archaeological evidence such as new types of burials, in particular cist graves, and the use of a new dialect of Greek, the Doric one. It appears that the Dorians moved southward gradually over a number of years and devastated the territory, until they managed to establish themselves in the Mycenaean centers. A new type of ceramic also appeared, called "Barbarian Ware" because it was attributed to invaders from the north. On the other hand, the collapse of Mycenaean Greece coincides with the activity of the Sea Peoples in the Eastern Mediterranean. They caused widespread destruction in Anatolia and the Levant and were finally defeated by Pharaoh Ramesses III in c. 1175 BC. One of the ethnic groups that comprised these people were the "Eqwesh", a name that appears to be linked with the Ahhiyawa of the Hittite inscriptions.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Alternative scenarios propose that the fall of Mycenaean Greece was a result of internal disturbances which led to internecine warfare among the Mycenaean states or civil unrest in a number of states, as a result of the strict hierarchical social system and the ideology of the wanax. In general, due to the obscure archaeological picture in 12th–11th century BC Greece, there is a continuing controversy among scholars over whether the impoverished societies that succeeded the Mycenaean palatial states were newcomers or populations that already resided in Mycenaean Greece. Recent archaeological findings tend to favor the latter scenario. Additional theories, concerning natural factors, such as climate change, droughts or earthquakes have also been proposed. Another theory considers the decline of the Mycenaean civilization as a manifestation of a common pattern for the decline of many ancient civilizations: the Minoan, the Harappan and the Western Roman Empire; the reason for the decline is migration due to overpopulation. The period following the end of Mycenaean Greece, c. 1100–800 BC, is generally termed the "Greek Dark Ages".


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Mycenaean palatial states, or centrally organized palace-operating polities, are recorded in ancient Greek literature and mythology (e.g., "Iliad", Catalogue of Ships) and confirmed by discoveries made by modern archaeologists such as Heinrich Schliemann. Each Mycenaean kingdom was governed from the palace, which exercised control over most, if not all, industries within its realm. The palatial territory was divided into several sub-regions, each headed by its provincial center. Each province was further divided in smaller districts, the "da-mo". A number of palaces and fortifications appear to be part of a wider kingdom. For instance, Gla, located in the region of Boeotia, belonged to the state of nearby Orchomenos. Moreover, the palace of Mycenae appeared to have ruled over a territory two to three times the size of the other palatial states in Bronze Age Greece. Its territory would have also included adjacent centers, including Tiryns and Nauplion, which could plausibly be ruled by a member of Mycenae's ruling dynasty.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The unearthed Linear B texts are too fragmentary for the reconstruction of the political landscape in Mycenaean Greece and they do not support nor deny the existence of a larger Mycenaean state. On the other hand, contemporary Hittite and Egyptian records suggest the presence of a single state under a "Great King". Alternatively, based on archaeological data, some sort of confederation among a number of palatial states appears to be possible. If some kind of united political entity existed, the dominant center was probably located in Thebes or in Mycenae, with the latter state being the most probable center of power.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The Neolithic agrarian village (6000 BC) constituted the foundation of Bronze Age political culture in Greece. The vast majority of the preserved Linear B records deal with administrative issues and give the impression that Mycenaean palatial administration was highly systematized, featuring thoroughly consistent language, terminology, tax calculations, and distribution logistics. Considering this sense of uniformity, the Pylos archive, which is the best preserved one in the Mycenaean world, is generally taken as a representative one.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The state was ruled by a king, the "wanax" (ϝάναξ), whose role was religious and perhaps also military and judicial. The wanax oversaw virtually all aspects of palatial life, from religious feasting and offerings to the distribution of goods, craftsmen and troops. Under him was the ("the leader of the people"), whose role appears mainly religious. His activities possibly overlap with the wanax and is usually seen as the second-in-command. Both wanax and lāwāgetas were at the head of a military aristocracy known as the ("companions" or "followers"). The land possessed by the "wanax" is usually the (te-me-no). There is also at least one instance of a person, Enkhelyawon, at Pylos, who appears titleless in the written record but whom modern scholars regard as probably a king.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: A number of local officials positioned by the "wanax" appear to be in charge of the districts, such as "ko-re-te" (, '"governor"), "po-ro-ko-re-te" (, "deputy") and the "da-mo-ko-ro" ("damokoros", "one who takes care of a damos"), the latter probably being appointed to take charge of the commune. A council of elders was chaired, the "ke-ro-si-ja" (cf. γερουσία, ). The , who in later Greek society was the name of the king, refers to communal officials.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: In general, Mycenaean society appears to have been divided into two groups of free men: the king's entourage, who conducted administrative duties at the palace, and the people, "da-mo". These last were watched over by royal agents and were obliged to perform duties for and pay taxes to the palace. Among those who could be found in the palace were well-to-do high officials, who probably lived in the vast residences found in proximity to Mycenaean palaces, but also others, tied by their work to the palace and not necessarily better off than the members of the "da-mo", such as craftsmen, farmers, and perhaps merchants. Occupying a lower rung of the social ladder were the slaves, "do-e-ro", (cf. , ). These are recorded in the texts as working either for the palace or for specific deities.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The Mycenaean economy, given its pre-monetary nature, was focused on the redistribution of goods, commodities and labor by a central administration. The preserved Linear B records in Pylos and Knossos indicate that the palaces were closely monitoring a variety of industries and commodities, the organization of land management and the rations given to the dependent personnel. The Mycenaean palaces maintained extensive control of the nondomestic areas of production through careful control and acquisition and distribution in the palace industries, and the tallying of produced goods. For instance, the Knossos tablets record c. 80,000–100,000 sheep grazing in central Crete, and the quantity of the expected wool from these sheep and their offspring, as well as how this wool was allocated. The archives of Pylos display a specialized workforce, where each worker belonged to a precise category and was assigned to a specific task in the stages of production, notably in textiles.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Nevertheless, palatial control over resources appears to have been highly selective in spatial terms and in terms of how different industries were managed. Thus, sectors like the production of perfumed oil and bronze materials were directly monitored from the palace, but the production of ceramics was only indirectly monitored. Regional transactions between the palaces are also recorded on a few occasions.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The palatial centers organized their workforce and resources for the construction of large scale projects in the fields of agriculture and industry. The magnitude of some projects indicates that this was the result of combined efforts from multiple palatial centers. Most notable of them are the drainage system of the Kopais basin in Boeotia, the building of a large dam outside Tiryns, and the drainage of the swamp in the Nemea valley. Also noticeable is the construction of harbors, such as the harbor of Pylos, that were capable of accommodating large Bronze Age era vessels like the one found at Uluburun. The Mycenaean economy also featured large-scale manufacturing as testified by the extent of workshop complexes that have been discovered, the largest known to date being the recent ceramic and hydraulic installations found in Euonymeia, next to Athens, that produced tableware, textiles, sails, and ropes for export and shipbuilding.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The most famous project of the Mycenaean era was the network of roads in the Peloponnese. This appears to have facilitated the speedy deployment of troops—for example, the remnants of a Mycenaean road, along with what appears to have been a Mycenaean defensive wall on the Isthmus of Corinth. The Mycenaean era saw the zenith of infrastructure engineering in Greece, and this appears not to have been limited to the Argive plain.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Trade over vast areas of the Mediterranean was essential for the economy of Mycenaean Greece. The Mycenaean palaces imported raw materials, such as metals, ivory and glass, and exported processed commodities and objects made from these materials, in addition to local products: oil, perfume, wine, wool and pottery. International trade of that time was not only conducted by palatial emissaries but also by independent merchants.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Based on archaeological findings in the Middle East, in particular physical artifacts, textual references, inscriptions and wall paintings, it appears that Mycenaean Greeks achieved strong commercial and cultural interaction with most of the Bronze Age people living in this region: Canaanites, Kassites, Mitanni, Assyrians, and Egyptians. The 14th century BC Uluburun shipwreck, off the coast of southern Anatolia, displays the established trade routes that supplied the Mycenaeans with all the raw materials and items that the economy of Mycenaean Greece needed, such as copper and tin for the production of bronze products. A chief export of the Mycenaeans was olive oil, which was a multi-purpose product.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Cyprus appears to be the principal intermediary station between Mycenaean Greece and the Middle East, based on the considerable greater quantities of Mycenaean goods found there. On the other hand, trade with the Hittite lands in central Anatolia appears to have been limited. Trade with Troy is also well attested, while Mycenaean trade routes expanded further to the Bosphorus and the shores of the Black Sea. Mycenaean swords have been found as far away as Georgia in the eastern Black Sea coast.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Commercial interaction was also intense with the Italian peninsula and the western Mediterranean. Mycenaean products, especially pottery, were exported to southern Italy, Sicily and the Aeolian islands. Mycenaean products also penetrated further into Sardinia, as well as southern Spain.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Sporadic objects of Mycenaean manufacture were found in various distant locations, like in Central Europe, such as in Bavaria, Germany, where an amber object inscribed with Linear B symbols has been unearthed. Mycenaean bronze double axes and other objects dating from the 13th century BC have been found in Ireland and in Wessex and Cornwall in England.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Anthropologists have found traces of opium in Mycenaean ceramic vases. The drug trade in Mycenaean Greece is traced as early as 1650-1350 BC, with opium poppies being traded in the eastern Mediterranean.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Temples and shrines are strangely rare in the Mycenaean archaeological sites. Monumental cultic structures are absent at all the palatial centers, with the exception of Mycenae. However, the cultic center of Mycenae seems to have been a later (13th century BC) development. Small shrines have been identified in Asine, Berbati, Malthi and Pylos, while a number of sacred enclosures have been located near Mycenae, Delphi and Amyclae. Linear B records mention a number of sanctuaries dedicated to a variety of deities, at least in Pylos and Knossos. They also indicate that there were various religious festivities including offerings. Written Mycenaean records mention various priests and priestesses who were responsible for specific shrines and temples. The latter were prominent figures in society, and the role of Mycenaean women in religious festivities was also important, just as in Minoan Crete.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The Mycenaean pantheon already included many divinities that were subsequently encountered in Classical Greece, although it is difficult to determine whether these deities had the characteristics and responsibilities that would be attributed to them in later periods. In general, the same divinities were worshipped throughout the Mycenaean palatial world. There may be some indications for local deities at various sites, in particular in Crete. The uniformity of Mycenaean religion is also reflected in archaeological evidence with the phi- and psi-figurines that have been found all over Late Bronze Age Greece.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Poseidon (Linear B: "Po-se-da-o") seems to have occupied a place of privilege. He was a chthonic deity, connected with earthquakes ("E-ne-si-da-o-ne": Earth-shaker), but it seems that he also represented the river spirit of the underworld. Paean ("Pa-ja-wo") is probably the precursor of the Greek physician of the gods in Homer's "Iliad". He was the personification of the magic-song which was supposed to "heal" the patient. A number of divinities have been identified in the Mycenaean scripts only by their epithets used during later antiquity. For example, "Qo-wi-ja" ("cow-eyed") is a standard Homeric epithet of Hera. Ares appeared under the name "Enyalios" (assuming that "Enyalios" is not a separate god). Additional divinities that can be also found in later periods include Hephaestus, Erinya, Artemis ("a-te-mi-to" and "a-ti-mi-te") and Dionysos ("Di-wo-nu-so"). Zeus also appears in the Mycenaean pantheon, but he was certainly not the chief deity.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: A collection of "ladies" or "mistresses", "Po-ti-ni-ja" ("Potnia") are named in the Mycenaean scripts. As such, Athena ("A-ta-na") appears in an inscription at Knossos as "mistress Athena", similar to a later Homeric expression, but in the Pylos tablets she is mentioned without any accompanying word. "Si-to po-ti-ni-ja" appears to be an agricultural goddess, possibly related to Demeter of later antiquity, while in Knossos there is the "mistress of the Labyrinth". The "two queens and the king" ("wa-na-ssoi", "wa-na-ka-te") are mentioned in Pylos. Goddess "Pe-re-swa" mentioned may be related to Persephone. A number of Mycenaean divinities seem to have no later equivalents, such as Marineus, Diwia and Komawenteia.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: By observing Mycenaean wall paintings, scholars have deduced that women during this time often wore long dresses, their hair long, and wore jewelry, most notably beads. Mycenaean beads have long been an aspect of Mycenaean culture that is shrouded in a significant amount of mystery. It is not known for certain why they (men, women, and children) wore them, or why they appear to have been significant to the culture, but beads made of carnelian, lapis lazuli, etc., were known to have been worn by women on bracelets, necklaces, and buttons on cloaks, and were often buried with the deceased.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: In later periods of Greek history, seclusion of females from males was common in the household, though scholars have found no evidence of seclusion during Mycenaean times, and believe that males and females worked with and around each other on a regular basis. Not much is known about women's duties in the home or whether they differed from the duties of men. And though men were involved in warfare and hunting, there is no evidence that suggests women ever took part in either of the two, though whether women took part in hunting has been up for debate amongst some historians. There is evidence that, in this patriarchal society, men and women were, in some respects, viewed equally. Mycenae practiced a system of rationing food to citizens, and evidence shows that women received the same amount of rations as men.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: If women were not officials in the cult or married to high-ranking male officers, they were likely low-ranking laborers. Linear B details specialized groups of female laborers called "workgroups." These women labored with other women as well as their children, and usually were located close to the palace. Women who belonged to workgroups did not belong to independent households, but were managed and fed by palace scribes. All of the women in a workgroup would serve the same occupation, such as textiles. Women in workgroups are not believed to have been able to acquire land holdings or have had economic independence of any kind, and are believed by some to have been slaves, though there are some conflicting debates among scholars concerning this. Though scholars are unsure if ordinary women could obtain land and exert economic power, there is evidence that women could obtain positions of power, such as the title of priestess, which allowed them to have land holdings, have elite connections, and high social status. Mycenaean society is believed to have been largely patriarchal, but women could exert social and economic power through titles and positions of power, like that of a priestess, though religion was not the only place that a woman could gain social authority. Women with special talents or skills, such as being a skilled midwife or craftswomen, could gain social authority in their villages, but are not believed to have been able to receive land holdings. Elite women (those who were married to male elites) were afforded benefits fitting their high social standing, but even the wife of elites could not own land and had no economic independence. Some scholars believe that Knossos was probably more equal in relation to gender than Pylos, though the evidence for this is little and is highly disputed.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: Men and women alike were involved in cult activity. Some women could be elevated to becoming legally independent by becoming priestesses, which appears to be hereditary through both the male and female line. No woman in Mycenae is believed to have been able to "own" land at this time, but priestesses were women who could legally procure land. Through the cult, land was "leased" to them, rather than given to them in ownership. Along with land holding benefits, priestesses often had ties with the upper-class elites, and were usually wealthy themselves. Only a small number of women could become priestesses in Mycenae, but there were other cultic titles that women could aspire to obtain, such as that of "Key-bearer". Key-bearers appear to be women who had authority over the sacred treasury of a particular deity, and were able to dispense it in times of need. Though scholars do not have enough evidence to suggest that all Key-bearers could own land and had high status, there is a written record in Linear B of a Key-bearer with elite ties who owned land, so it is possible that they had similar benefits to priestesses. Other religious roles filled by women were the three types of sacred slaves: slave of the God, slave of the Priestess, and slave of the Key-bearer. Though not as grand a title as that of "Priestess of Key-Bearer", the sacred slaves were allotted certain benefits fitting their positions in the cult. One other documented position women filled in the cult was called "ki-ri-te-wi-ja". Though documented, scholars are not certain exactly what the duties of this role entailed, or what type of women would have filled it. What they do know, however, is that these religious roles afforded the women who occupied them a certain amount of economic autonomy.


title: Mycenaean Greece

text: The palatial structures at Mycenae, Tiryns and Pylos were erected on the summits of hills or rocky outcrops, dominating the immediate surroundings. The best preserved are found in Pylos and Tiryns, while Mycenae and the Menelaion are only partially preserved. In Central Greece, Thebes and Orchomenos have been only partially exposed. On the other hand, the palace built at the acropolis of Athens has been almost completely destroyed. A substantial building at Dimini in Thessaly, possibly ancient Iolcos, is believed by a number of archaeologists to be a palace. A Mycenaean palace has been also unearthed in Laconia, near the modern village of Xirokambi.