title: Knights of Columbus

text: To combat the animus targeted at racial and religious minorities, including Catholics, the Order formed a historical commission which published a series of books on their contributions, among other activities. The "Knights of Columbus Racial Contributions Series" of books included three titles: "The Gift of Black Folk", by W. E. B. Du Bois, "The Jews in the Making of America" by George Cohen, and "The Germans in the Making of America" by Frederick Schrader.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Meanwhile, though the membership system at the time did not explicitly exclude African Americans, as few as one negative vote (and later, four or five) against a prospective candidate (no matter the size of the council) was enough to deny someone entry. This occurred in a racist manner often enough, especially the Deep South, that the Josephites helped found the Knights of Peter Claver in 1909 for African Americans. The KoC national leadership later amended their policies so that rejections required a majority of council members.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Around 1915, during the nadir of American race relations, the Ku Klux Klan began promoting a conspiracy theory claiming that Fourth Degree Knights swore an oath to exterminate Freemasons and Protestants. The Knights of Columbia vehemently denied the existence of any such oath, calling the rumors libel. In 1923, the Knights of Columbus offered $25,000 to any person with proof that the fake oath attributed to the fourth degree membership was part of any authentic ceremony. The Knights began suing distributors for libel in an effort to stop this, and the KKK ended its publication of the false oath.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: According to church historian Massimo Faggioli, the Knights of Columbus are today "'an extreme version' of a post-VaticanII phenomenon, the rise of discrete lay groups that have become centers of power themselves."


title: Knights of Columbus

text: As the Order and its charitable works grew, so did its prominence within the Church. Pope John Paul I's first audience with a layman was with Supreme Knight Dechant, and Pope John Paul II met with Supreme Knight Virgil Dechant three days after his installation. During the pope's 1979 visit to the United States, the Supreme Officers and Board were the only lay organization to receive an audience.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: President Richard Nixon addressed the Supreme Convention in 1971. President Ronald Reagan spoke in 1982 and 1986 and George W. Bush spoke in 2004. George H. W. Bush spoke as vice president in 1984 and then again as president in 1992. President Bill Clinton sent a videotaped message to the 111th Supreme Convention saying the Order's "contributions to the Catholic Church and to your communities merit our applause."


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Faggioli believes the scope of the Knights' of philanthropy of can "create influence through money, especially in important places like Rome or Washington, D.C."


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The order is dedicated to the principles of charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism. Membership is restricted to adult male Catholics. , there were 2 million knights.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Each member belongs to one of more than 16,000 local "councils" around the world. The college councils program started at The Catholic University of America in 1898. The oldest continuously running college council is the University of Notre Dame Council #1477, chartered in 1910. As of 2018, there are more than 300 college councils. Separate organizations, known as Fourth Degree assemblies, may form color guards to attend important civic and church events; they are often the most visible arm of the Knights.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Supreme Council is the governing body of the order. It elects insurance members to serve three-year terms on a 24-member Board of Directors. Leaders' salaries are set by the board of directors and ratified by the delegates to the Supreme Convention. The seven-figure salaries of senior K of C officers have been criticized as excessive.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Charity is the foremost important principle of the Knights of Columbus. At their 2019 convention, then-Supreme Knight Carl Anderson said that the organization had donated $185million and 76million volunteer-hours toward charity projects in 2018. Charitable activities include support for refugees, aid for victims of natural disasters, and advocating Catholic ethics, such as opposition to same-sex marriage and opposition to abortion.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Beginning in 1897, the National Council encouraged local councils to establish funds to support members affected by the 1890s depression. Councils also offered employment agency services and provided aid to the poor and sick. Aid has also been dispensed to assist victims of natural and man-made disasters, starting with a flood in Kansas in 1903. In 2015 alone, the order donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to victims of typhoons and other natural disasters.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: During times of war, the Order supports aid to refugees. Between 2014 and 2018, the Knights gave more than $2million to provide food, shelter, clothing, and medical care to persecuted Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East. The Knights donated $250,000 in 2018 to help refugees crossing over the Mexico–United States border who were seeking asylum in the United States and later expanded the program. Within days of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the 2,000 Knights of Columbus in the country worked to help those impacted. They began by providing food and clothing to those at train and bus stations in Lviv who were fleeing into Poland. They then began organizing busses to take people the Polish border. In the first three months of the war, the Knights in Poland helped more than 300,000 people, or 10% of those who fled to that country.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Knights of Columbus has donated more than $600 million to those with intellectual and physical disabilities. One of the largest recipients of aid in this area has been the Special Olympics, where the Knights have been involved since the very first games in 1968.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: After the Knights had donated more than 1,000 ultrasound machines to crisis pregnancy centers from 2009 to 2019, Anderson said "Our ultrasound initiative is now the greatest humanitarian achievement in the history of the Knights of Columbus. ... We can, and I am confident that we will, save millions of unborn lives." Following the United States Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, Supreme Knight Patrick E. Kelly called on the order to increase their support for women facing unplanned and crisis pregnancies with the Aid and Support After Pregnancy (ASAP) initiative.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Knights also donate to the institutional church, including being a major donor to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. , the Knights "Vicarius Christi" fund has contributed more than $57 million to the charitable efforts of the pope. The Knights have supported the Vatican's news operation for decades.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: In the field of education, the Knights of Columbus have a number of scholarships and other programs for seminarians, veterans, students at The Catholic University of America, and at other Catholic colleges. Especially during World War I and World War II, the Order operated a number of "huts" to support troops serving in combat, regardless of race or religion.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The original insurance system devised by McGivney gave a deceased Knight's widow a $1,000 death benefit. Each member was assessed $1 upon a death, and when the number of Knights grew beyond 1,000, the assessment decreased according to the rate of increase. Each member, regardless of age, was assessed equally. As a result, younger, healthier members could expect to pay more over the course of their lifetimes than those men who joined when they were older.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: There was also a Sick Benefit Deposit for members who fell ill and could not work. Each sick Knight was entitled to draw up to $5 a week for 13 weeks. If he remained sick after that, the council to which he belonged determined the sum of money given to him.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: In the post-World War II era, to enhance yields on its capital, the organization began investing in real estate leaseback transactions. Between 1952 and 1962, 18 pieces of land were purchased for a total of $29million. Late in 1953 the order purchased the land beneath Yankee Stadium for $2.5million. In 1971, the City of New York took the land by eminent domain.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The order offers permanent and term life insurance, as well as annuities, long term care insurance, and disability insurance. The order has more than $109billion of life insurance policies in force and $26billion in assets as of 2019. A. M. Best ranked it 49th on the list of all life insurance companies in North America.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The order chooses equities that first, are a sound investment, and second, do not conflict with the investment guidelines produced by the United States bishops based on Catholic social teaching. Its insurance operation invests in loans to various Catholic institutions. , over $500million had been loaned through the ChurchLoan program.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: For 40 consecutive years, the order has received A. M. Best's highest rating, A++. A 2017 lawsuit claimed the Knights were inflating their membership numbers to improve their rankings and demanded $100million in damages. A jury ruled in favor of the Knights in two of the three counts of the lawsuit, but ordered them to pay $500,000 for breach of contract.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Since its earliest days, the Knights of Columbus has been a "Catholic anti-defamation society." In 1914, it established a Commission on Religious Prejudices. As part of the effort, the order distributed pamphlets, and lecturers toured the country speaking on how Catholics could love and be loyal to America.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The creation of the 4th Degree, with its emphasis on patriotism, performed an anti-defamation function as well as asserting claims to Americanism. In response to a defamatory "bogus oath" circulated by the KKK, in 1914 the Knights set up a framework for a lecture series and educational programs to combat anti-Catholic sentiment.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Knights have been urged to take a prominent role in the new evangelization. The CIS published a series on the new evangelization in 2011, and donations to other Catholic mass communication services represent one of the Knights' major expenditures. The Knights have also established councils in both secular and Catholic universities.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: While the Knights were active politically from an early date, in the years following the Second Vatican Council, as the "Catholic anti-defamation character" of the order began to diminish as Catholics became more accepted, the leadership began to use its financial resources to directly influence the direction of the church. That led to the creation of a "variety of new programs reflecting the proliferation of the new social ministries of the church."


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The leadership of the order has been, at times, both liberal and conservative. Martin H. Carmody and Luke E. Hart were both political conservatives, but John J. Phelan was a Democratic politician prior to becoming Supreme Knight, John Swift's "strong support for economic democracy and social-welfare legislation marks him as a fairly representative New Deal anti-communist," and Francis P. Matthews was a civil rights official and member of Harry Truman's cabinet. Anderson previously served in the Office of Public Liaison under Ronald Reagan.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Knights of Columbus is classified by the IRS as a 501(c)(8) fraternal benefit society. Unlike the more common 501(c)(3) nonprofits, 501(c)(8)s are allowed to engage in limited direct political activity without jeopardizing their tax exemptions. However, Anderson has said “One of our most important traditions throughout our 125-year history is that we do not, as an organization, become involved in partisan politics."


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Knights of Columbus support political awareness and activity among their membership and local councils. Public policy activity is limited to issue-specific campaigns, typically dealing with Catholic family and sanctity of life issues. They state that


title: Knights of Columbus

text: In addition to performing charitable works, the Knights of Columbus encourages its members to meet their responsibilities as Catholic citizens and to become active in the political life of their local communities, to vote and to speak out on the public issues of the day... In the political realm, this means opening our public policy efforts and deliberations to the life of Christ and the teachings of the Church. In accord with our Bishops, the Knights of Columbus has consistently maintained positions that take these concerns into account. The order supports and promotes the social doctrine of the Church, including a robust vision of religious liberty that embraces religion's proper role in the private and public spheres.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The order opposed persecution of Catholics in Mexico during the Cristero War, and opposed communism. Also during the 20th century, the order established the Commission on Religious Prejudices, and the Knights of Columbus Historical Commission which combated racism. It was also supportive of trade unionism, and published the works "of the broad array of intellectuals", including George Schuster, Samuel Flagg Bemis, Allan Nevins, and W. E. B. DuBois.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: During the Cold War, the order had a history of anti-socialist, anti-communist and anti-anarchist crusades. They lobbied to add "under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance, as a religious response to Soviet atheism. The Knights have been active opponents against the legal introduction of same-sex marriage and have been a key contributor in terms of funding to local measures. The Knights have donated over to the Susan B. Anthony Foundation and other anti-abortion and anti-contraception organizations.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: On March 10, 2001, the order opened a museum in New Haven dedicated to their history. The 77,000 square foot building cost to renovate. It holds mosaics on loan from the Vatican and gifts from Popes, the membership application from John F. Kennedy, and a number of other items related to the history of the Knights. Near the entrance is the cross held by Jesus Christ on the facade of St. Peter's Basilica before undergoing a Knights-financed renovation.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: In 2015, the order launched Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors, a money management firm which invests money in accordance with Catholic social teaching. The firm uses the Socially Responsible Investment Guidelines published by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to guide their investment decisions. The guidelines include protecting human life, promoting human dignity, reducing arms production, pursuing economic justice, protecting the environment, and encouraging corporate responsibility.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: In addition to the wholly owned subsidiary, it also purchased 20% of Boston Advisors, a boutique investment management firm, managing assets for institutional and high-net-worth investors. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors manages the fixed-income strategies for their funds while Boston Advisors sub-advises on the equity strategies. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors also offers model portfolio, outsourced CIO services, a bank loan strategy, and other alternative investment strategies. In 2019, the Knights purchased the institutional management business of Boston Advisors.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The order owns and operates the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington D.C. In 2011, the Order purchased the 130,000-square-foot John Paul II Cultural Center. The mission as a cultural center ended in 2009 and the Knights rebranded it as a shrine to Pope John Paul II. Soon after the pope was canonized, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops named the building a national shrine.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Each year 64,000 pilgrims visit the shrine, which features video content, interactive displays, and personal effects from John Paul. There is also a first class relic of the pope's blood on display for veneration. It also serves as a base for the Order in Washington, D.C.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Many notable Catholic men from all over the world have been Knights of Columbus. In the US, some of the most notable include John F. Kennedy; Ted Kennedy; Al Smith; Sargent Shriver; Samuel Alito; Conrad Hilton; John Boehner; Ray Flynn; Jeb Bush; film maker John Ford; and Sergeant Major Daniel Daly, a two-time Medal of Honor recipient.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: In the world of sports, Vince Lombardi, the famed former coach of the Green Bay Packers; James Connolly, the first Olympic gold medal champion in modern times; Floyd Patterson, former heavyweight boxing champion; and baseball legend Babe Ruth were all knights.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: On October 15, 2006, Bishop Rafael Guízar y Valencia (1878–1938) was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in Rome. In 2000, six other Knights, who were killed in the violence following the Mexican Revolution, were declared saints by Pope John Paul II.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The emblem of the order was designed by Past Supreme Knight James T. Mullen and adopted at the second Supreme Council meeting on May 12, 1883. Shields used by medieval knights served as the inspiration. The emblem consists of a shield mounted on a Formée cross, which is an artistic representation of the cross of Christ. This represents the Catholic identity of the order.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Mounted on the shield are three objects: the fasces, an anchor, and a dagger. In ancient Rome, the fasces was carried before magistrates as an emblem of authority. The order uses it as "symbolic of authority which must exist in any tightly-bonded and efficiently operating organization." The anchor represents Christopher Columbus, admiral under the orders of the kings of Spain and patron of this partnership, here a symbol of the Catholic contribution to America. The short sword, or dagger, was a weapon used by medieval knights. The shield as a whole, with the letters "K of C", represents "Catholic Knighthood in organized merciful action."


title: Knights of Columbus

text: Many councils also have women's auxiliaries. At the turn of the 20th century, two were formed by local councils, each taking the name Daughters of Isabella. They expanded and issued charters to other circles but never merged. The newer organization renamed itself the Catholic Daughters of the Americas in 1921, and both have structures independent of the Knights of Columbus. Other groups are known as the Columbiettes. In the Philippines, the ladies' auxiliary is known as the Daughters of Mary Immaculate.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Knights' official junior organization is the Columbian Squires. According to its founder Barnabas McDonald, "The supreme purpose of the Columbian Squires is character building."


title: Knights of Columbus

text: It was founded in 1925 in Duluth, Minnesota, by Barnabas McDonald. The formation of new Squire Circles in the United States and Canada is discouraged, as the Order desires to move youth activities from exclusive clubs into the local parish youth groups.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Knights of Columbus is a member of the International Alliance of Catholic Knights (IACK), which includes fifteen fraternal orders such as the Knights of Saint Columbanus in Ireland, the Knights of St Columba in Great Britain, the Knights of Peter Claver in the United States, the Knights of the Southern Cross in Australia and New Zealand, the Knights of Marshall in Ghana, the Knights of Da Gama in South Africa, and the Knights of Saint Mulumba in Nigeria.


title: Knights of Columbus

text: The Loyal Orange Institution, also known as the Orange Order, is a similar organization for Protestant Christians.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Carla Kristen Esparza (born October 10, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), in which she is a former two-time UFC Women's Strawweight Champion. Esparza was the first UFC Strawweight Champion, the first Invicta FC Strawweight Champion, and was generally considered the best Strawweight fighter in the world during both initial title reigns. She first earned the UFC championship by winning a 16-woman tournament that was televised on the reality series "The Ultimate Fighter". She also competed in Bellator MMA's first women's tournament. As of November 15, 2022, she is #1 in the UFC women's strawweight rankings, and #6 in the UFC women's pound-for-pound rankings.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Carla Esparza's foray into mixed martial arts (MMA) began when she started wrestling for the varsity team during her junior year at Redondo Union High School in Redondo Beach, California. After winning multiple local and national high-school wrestling tournaments, Esparza was awarded a scholarship to Menlo College, a NAIA Division school in northern California, to wrestle under coach and former two-time Olympian Lee Allen.


title: Carla Esparza

text: While in college, Esparza started training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at the Gracie Academy in Torrance under Rener, Ryron, and Ralek Gracie. She then expanded her mixed martial arts repertoire when she began training at Team Oyama during the summer of her junior year of college.


title: Carla Esparza

text: In August 2010, only six months after her pro debut and with just three professional MMA fights, Esparza was called in by Bellator MMA as a last-minute replacement for Angela Magaña, who was forced to withdraw from her upcoming fight due to a foot injury. Esparza was inserted in the bracket of the at "Bellator 24". On just three days' notice, Esparza's opponent in the quarterfinal round was the undefeated and then #1 pound-for-pound female MMA fighter in the world, Megumi Fujii. Esparza lost the fight to the heavily favored Fujii via second-round armbar submission.


title: Carla Esparza

text: In June 2011, Esparza returned to the Bellator cage and faced fellow Season 3 tournament challenger Jessica Aguilar at "". After a three-round back and forth battle, Aguilar defeated Esparza via split decision.


title: Carla Esparza

text: On December 2, 2011, Esparza made her XFC debut against Felice Herrig at "" in Tampa, Florida. She defeated Herrig via unanimous decision.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Three months later, Esparza was scheduled to face Angela Magana at "Pandemonium VI" for the MEZ Sports women's flyweight title. Unfortunately, Magana was involved in a car accident on the day of the fight while in transit to the Riverside Convention Center, where the event was being staged. Magana re-broke her back in the collision and was unable to compete in the fight.


title: Carla Esparza

text: In May 2012, it was announced that Esparza had signed with the upstart all-female Invicta Fighting Championships promotion.


title: Carla Esparza

text: On July 28, 2012, Esparza made her Invicta debut at the promotion's second event, entitled "", and faced Sarah Schneider on the preliminary card. Esparza won the fight via TKO (punches) at 4:28 of round two.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza returned to Invicta to face Lynn Alvarez at "" on October 6, 2012. She defeated Alvarez via TKO (punches) at 2:53 of round one.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza was expected to face Ayaka Hamasaki for the Invicta FC Strawweight Championship at "" on January 5, 2013. However, Hamasaki withdrew from the fight in order to defend her Jewels Lightweight title in Japan. Esparza was then set to face Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cláudia Gadelha in the Invicta FC 4 main event, but Gadelha broke her nose in training and was forced to withdraw.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza ultimately faced Bec Hyatt for the Invicta FC Strawweight Championship. Esparza won the fight via unanimous decision to become the first Invicta FC Strawweight Champion.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza agreed to defend her title against Ayaka Hamasaki at "" on July 13, 2013. However, on June 4 she withdrew from the fight due to a knee injury.


title: Carla Esparza

text: On December 7, 2013, Esparza was set to defend her strawweight title against Cláudia Gadelha at Invicta FC 7. However, on the day of the event, Gadelha was taken to the hospital due to a bacterial infection and the fight was canceled. Esparza vacated the title on December 11, 2013 to compete on "The Ultimate Fighter".


title: Carla Esparza

text: On December 11, 2013, it was announced that Esparza was signed by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) along with 10 other strawweight fighters to compete on season 20 of "The Ultimate Fighter", which would crown the first ever UFC Strawweight Champion.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza was the top seed in the tournament. She faced Angela Hill in the preliminary round and won via submission in the first round. In the quarterfinal round, she faced Tecia Torres and won the fight via majority decision. She then faced teammate Jessica Penne in the semifinal, and won by unanimous decision.


title: Carla Esparza

text: By winning the tournament on "The Ultimate Fighter", Esparza advanced to the final on December 12, 2014, against Rose Namajunas.


title: Carla Esparza

text: After dominating much of the fight with her grappling and ground strikes, Esparza defeated Namajunas via rear-naked choke in the third round to become the inaugural UFC Strawweight Champion. The result also earned Esparza a "Performance of the Night" bonus.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Kevin Iole of "Yahoo Sports" noted, "Namajunas tapped at 1:26 of the third round, but the fight was over long before that. Esparza was too strong, too smart and simply too good for the far less experienced Namajunas." He went on to state that "Esparza dominated her three fights on the reality show and was no less dominant on Saturday. There is clearly a gap between Esparza and the next level of challengers". Following the fight, Brad Walker of "MMATorch" declared, "Esparza is the best fighter in her division in the world, not just in the UFC."


title: Carla Esparza

text: In her first title defense, Esparza faced kickboxer Joanna Jędrzejczyk on March 14, 2015, at UFC 185. Prior to the fight, Jędrzejczyk stated, "I have lots of respect for her." She also noted, "I know she's not going to give up easy, so it's going to be a tough fight for me and for her." Throughout the bout, Esparza was out-struck while standing and unable to keep Jędrzejczyk on the mat. Jędrzejczyk won via TKO in the second round. In an interview afterward, Esparza noted, "She had great takedown defense, obviously. I feel like I wasn't really setting it up, but that's on me." She went on to state, "There's never any excuses. I fought my fight and I lost tonight. She did a great job."


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza underwent shoulder surgery in mid-2015 and subsequently was out of action for the rest of the year.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza returned at UFC 197 on April 23, 2016, defeating Juliana Lima via unanimous decision. Esparza, who stepped in for Jessica Aguilar, noted, "I took this fight semi-last minute, and I kind of wanted it that way too. Even though I wasn't in the best shape I wanted to be, I just kind of wanted to avoid the stress of a long camp." She also stated, "It's a huge relief off my shoulders to go out there and get my hand raised."


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza next faced Randa Markos on February 19, 2017 at . She lost the fight via controversial split decision. 19 of 23 media outlets scored the fight 29-28 for Esparza.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza faced Maryna Moroz on June 25, 2017 at UFC Fight Night 112. She won the fight via unanimous decision.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza faced Cynthia Calvillo on December 30, 2017 at UFC 219. She won the fight via unanimous decision.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza faced Tatiana Suarez on September 8, 2018 at UFC 228. Esparza lost the fight via TKO in the third round.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza was scheduled to face Lívia Renata Souza on April 27, 2019 at . However, it was reported that Souza pulled out of the bout, citing ankle injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Virna Jandiroba. Esparza won the fight via unanimous decision.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza faced Alexa Grasso on September 21, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 159. She won the fight via majority decision. This fight earned her the "Fight of the Night" award, the first of her UFC career.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza was scheduled to face Michelle Waterson on April 11, 2020 at . Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was eventually postponed and the bout eventually took place on May 9, 2020 at UFC 249. She won the fight via split decision.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza was expected to face Marina Rodriguez on July 15, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 172. However the bout was cancelled after one of Rodriguez's cornermen tested positive for COVID-19. The pair eventually fought at UFC on ESPN 14 on July 26, 2020. Esparza won the fight via split decision.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza was expected to face Amanda Ribas on December 12, 2020 at UFC 256. However on October 9, it was announced that Esparza was pulled due to undisclosed reasons.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza faced Yan Xiaonan on May 22, 2021 at UFC Fight Night 188. She won the bout via TKO after dominating Yan on the ground throughout the bout. This win earned her the" Performance of the Night" award.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza faced Rose Namajunas in a rematch for the UFC Women's Strawweight Championship on May 7, 2022 at UFC 274. Esparza won a largely uneventful fight by split decision to claim the UFC Women's Strawweight Championship for a second time. With the victory, Esparza set a record for longest time between UFC title reigns by any fighter, male or female, at 2,612 days.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza defended her belt against Zhang Weili on November 12, 2022, at UFC 281. Esparza lost the bout and the belt by the way of a rear-naked choke submission in the second round.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza stepped up on short notice to replace Rose Namajunas in a grappling match against Danielle Kelly at Fury Pro Grappling 3 on December 30, 2021. After a tough match, Esparza slammed Kelly from full guard and the resulting clash of heads opened up a cut above Esparza's eyebrow. The doctors attending called the match off and the victory was awarded to Kelly as a result of the injury.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza is known for powerful wrestling and Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. On the mat, she often mounts an opponent and controls her with strikes while seeking submissions. While standing, she typically clinches and attacks with punches, knees and elbows.


title: Carla Esparza

text: Esparza is of Mexican, Ecuadorian and Irish descent. She married her husband Matthew Lomeli in May 2022.


title: Sam Elliott filmography

text: The filmography of American actor Sam Elliott includes nearly 100 credits in both film and television. He came to prominence for his portrayal of gruff cowboy characters in Western films and TV series, making early minor appearances in "The Way West" (1967) and "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969). He went on to appear in several horror films, such as "Frogs" (1972) and "The Legacy" (1978), and appeared in various television series. His film breakthrough was the drama "Mask" (1985), in which he co-starred with Cher. In 1989, he starred in the Christmas movie "Prancer", playing a widowed apple farmer whose daughter finds an injured reindeer and tends to it in the belief it is one of Santa's.


title: Sam Elliott filmography

text: He would reprise his Western image in 1991's television film "Conagher", for which he earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor, followed by his role portraying Virgil Earp in "Tombstone" (1993). He also appeared in "Gettysburg" (1993), in which he played Brigadier General John Buford. He earned his second Golden Globe nomination for his supporting portrayal of Wild Bill Hickok in the miniseries "Buffalo Girls" (1995). He had a minor role in the comedy "The Big Lebowski" (1998), and later had supporting roles in the fantasy "The Golden Compass" (2007) and the drama "Up in the Air" (2009).


title: Sam Elliott filmography

text: From 2016 until its ending in 2020, Elliott began portraying Beau Bennett on the Netflix series "The Ranch". He subsequently appeared in a supporting role in the musical drama "A Star Is Born" (2018) directed by and co-starring Bradley Cooper, which earned him a National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor and various nominations, including an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor nomination and a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.


title: Stacy Martin

text: Stacy Martin (born 20 March 1990) is a French actress. Her breakthrough role was playing Joe as a young woman in Lars von Trier's 2013 drama film "Nymphomaniac".


title: Stacy Martin

text: Martin was born in Paris, where she spent her early childhood. She moved to Tokyo when she was seven, where she lived with her French father, René Martin, a hairstylist, and her English mother, Annette, until she was thirteen. She then returned to Paris. After finishing school, she moved to London to study Media and Cultural Studies at the University of the Arts London's College of Communication whilst modelling on the side. She studied the Meisner technique of acting at the Actors' Temple.


title: Stacy Martin

text: In 2013, Martin starred as Young Joe aged 15 to 31, in the drama film "Nymphomaniac". For her role in the film, which had real sex scenes and featured hardcore porn in some cases; Martin had a "porn double" and used a prosthetic vagina. The role earned her nominations for Best Actress from two Danish organizations, the Robert Awards and the Bodil Awards. She was also a part of the Breakthrough Brits of 2014 which was organized by BAFTA to recognize emerging talents. She played Faye in the 2015 film "High-Rise" and Young Dora in "Tale of Tales", also in 2015.


title: Stacy Martin

text: As a model, Martin was part of the Rag & Bone Spring 2014 campaign and the Miu Miu 2014 and 2015 Fall/Winter campaigns, and served as the face of Miu Miu's first fragrance.


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: Pedro Rodrigues Filho (born 29 October 1954), also known as (Killer Lil’ Pedro, Killer Killer Petey, or simply Killer Petey), is a Brazilian convicted serial/spree killer known for pursuing and killing exclusively criminals as a teenager, between the age of 14 and 19, in particular an entire gang in response to the murder of his pregnant girlfriend. Officially sentenced for 71 murders but claiming to have killed over 100 drug dealers, rapists, and murderers, he served 34 years in prison before his release in 2007. In 2011, Rodrigues was imprisoned again on charges of inciting riot and deprivation of liberty while initially imprisoned and sentenced for to a further eight years of prison, before being released again in 2018 after seven years on good behavior. His victims included 47 prisoners (primarily rapists) whom he murdered inside the prisons in which he was imprisoned.


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: Since his second release from prison in 2018, after announcing himself to be reformed from his self-declared vigilantism as a youth, and committed to not committing any more crimes, Rodrigues is considered a Brazilian celebrity and YouTuber, maintaining a YouTube channel called Pedrinho EX Matador, commentating on modern crimes while educating the public that criminal acts are not something to be proud of.


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: Following Rodrigues' initial planned 2003 release, author Jeff Lindsay began publishing a novel series about a fictional American serial killer of killers inspired by Rodrigues, named Dexter Morgan. The series' success, along with that of its 2006 television adaptation and 2022 , led to widespread retrospective media attention being brought to Rodrigues, with him becoming internationally known alternately both as the "Brazilian Dexter" and the "South American Punisher" (after the Marvel Comics character of the same name).


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: Rodrigues was born on a farm in Santa Rita do Sapucaí, south of Minas Gerais. His skull had been bruised as a result of his father kicking his pregnant mother's belly during a fight. He claimed he felt the urge to kill for the first time at age 13—when in a fight with an older cousin, he pushed the young man into a sugar cane press, almost killing him, and had considered leaving him there to die before electing to save him.


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: At age 14, Rodrigues shot the deputy mayor of Santa Rita do Sapucaí in front of the city hall for having fired his father, a school guard, over accusations of stealing food from the school kitchen, preventing him from gaining new employment, before shooting the security guard whom he suspected as the actual thief, using his grandfather's shotgun for both. On the run, Rodrigues took refuge in Mogi das Cruzes, Greater São Paulo, where he began robbing drug dens and killing drug traffickers, making him a celebrity in the news media as the vigilante "Pedrinho Matador" (Lil’ Petey Killer).


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: Rodrigues soon met Maria Aparecida Olympia, nicknamed Botinha, and they began living together. Rodrigues took on the duties of the deceased in a local street gang and was soon "forced" to eliminate some rivals, killing three ex-cronies. Botinha became pregnant with his child but was murdered shortly thereafter by a rival gang leader. Still underage, Rodrigues escaped, going on a revenge killing spree by tracking down and butchering every member of the rival gang.


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: At the age of 19, Rodrigues was arrested for the first time on 24 May 1973, and lived in prison most of his adult years. Police records show that he was once transported in a vehicle with another prisoner, both handcuffed. During transport Rodrigues killed the other inmate without the police noticing. When they opened the car door and saw the other prisoner was dead Rodrigues said he did it because the man was a rapist. Although he was sentenced to 126 years' imprisonment, he was to be released in 2003, because Brazilian law at the time (revised to 40 years in 2019) prohibited anyone from spending more than 30 years behind bars, before serving an additional four years for a further 47 murders (of convicted rapists, murderers, and child molesters) committed in prison. After staying in prison for 34 years, Rodrigues was released on 24 April 2007, and he was reported to have moved to Fortaleza in Ceará.


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: On 15 September 2011, local media reported that Rodrigues had been arrested at his rural home, where he worked as a caretaker in Balneário Camboriú. According to news reports, he would serve eight years on charges such as riot and deprivation of liberty, committed while he was detained in São Paulo. Rodrigues was then released again on 10 December 2018, having served seven years of an eight year sentence, released early for good behavior.


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: Since his second release from prison in 2018, after announcing himself to be retired from his self-declared vigilantism as a youth, and officially committed not to commit any more crimes, Rodrigues is considered a Brazilian celebrity and YouTuber, maintaining a YouTube channel called Pedrinho EX Matador, commentating on modern crimes and campaigning against gang violence, educating the public that criminal acts are not something to be proud of.


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: Following his initial planned 2003 release, Rodrigues was the principal inspiration for Dexter Morgan, the antihero protagonist of the 2004 "Dexter" book series written by Jeff Lindsay, as well as its 2006 television series adaptation of the same name by James Manos Jr., in which he is primarily portrayed by Michael C. Hall, who won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series or Drama and Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Drama and was nominated five times for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his portrayal of the character, before reprising his role as Dexter in the 2022 revival miniseries "" by Clyde Phillips. The success of the novel series and Showtime television franchise additionally led to Rodrigues acquiring the new international media nickname of "'The Brazilian Dexter". Rodrigues was also the basis for the characters of Takumi Hijirihara and Shuji Fujigawa in the 2016 "Danganronpa" manga series "Danganronpa Gaiden: Killer Killer" by series creator Kazutaka Kodaka; originally developed for the anime series "", to which "Killer Killer" was released as a tie-in, the character of Takumi had first been mentioned in Kodaka's 2012 video game "" as "Sparkling Justice".


title: Pedro Rodrigues Filho

text: Because of the list of crimes and his behavior in jail, Rodrigues joined the list of killers quoted by writer Ilana Casoy in the book "Serial Killers – Made in Brazil". The publication tells stories of murderers like Marcelo Costa de Andrade and Francisco da Costa Rocha.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: Lewis is a British television detective drama produced for ITV, first airing in 2006 (pilot) then 2007 (series 1). It is a spin-off from "Inspector Morse" and, like that series, it is set in Oxford. Kevin Whately reprises his character Robert "Robbie" Lewis, who was Morse's sergeant in the original series. Lewis has now been promoted to detective inspector and is assisted by DS James Hathaway, portrayed by Laurence Fox, who was promoted to inspector before the seventh series. The series also stars Clare Holman as forensic pathologist Dr. Laura Hobson, likewise reprising her role from "Inspector Morse"; and, from the seventh season, Angela Griffin as DS Lizzie Maddox.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: On 2 November 2015, ITV announced that the show would end after its ninth series, following the decision made by Kevin Whately and Laurence Fox to retire from their roles in the series. Whately announced that the show had gone on long enough, with his character having done many stories between "Morse" and "Lewis" after he took on the role 30 years earlier.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: Colin Dexter, the author of the Inspector Morse novels, makes a very brief cameo appearance in several episodes, including one as a porter at Wadham College. The episode scripts follow Dexter's approach, but each of them is credited to one of several other writers including, most frequently, Russell Lewis, Alan Plater, and Stephen Churchett.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: The music for the series was composed by Barrington Pheloung, who created the music for the original "Inspector Morse" series.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: Following the broadcast of a pilot in 2006, the show's first series was commissioned by ITV, consisting of three episodes that were broadcast between February and March 2007. Following this, further series were commissioned, each with four episodes—the second series was broadcast in 2008 from 24 February to 16 March, the third series in 2009 from 22 March to 12 April, the fourth series was aired in 2010 throughout May, the fifth series was aired throughout April during 2011, and the sixth series was broadcast in 2012 from 16 May to 6 June. During May of that same year, after the show was renewed for a seventh series, Fox made a statement it would be the show's last, as both he and Whately wished to move on to other things. The seventh series was broadcast during 2013 from 7 January to 11 February, and consisted of three two-part stories.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: On 10 February 2014, an official announcement was made that the show was to return, with all four original main cast members coming back to do another series. The eighth series consisted of three two-part episodes, with shooting beginning in March 2014. It was broadcast that same year, from 10 October to 14 November. Later that year, on 21 November, Whately announced on BBC Radio Oxford that a ninth series would be made, with shooting occurring on 2015 between May and June. This was also confirmed by Griffin on BBC Radio 2, and then by Fox in March 2015 during an interview with the Evening Standard. On 8 April 2015, ITV officially commissioned a ninth series of "Lewis".


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: On 30 September 2014, Whately revealed in an interview with the Radio Times, that the ninth series would be his last, having felt that he had played the character long enough for the past 30 years. His decision to leave, along with Fox's, was officially announced by ITV on 2 November 2015, with the network revealing the ninth series of Lewis would be its last.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: The majority of the series is filmed in and around Oxford. Some scenes are also filmed at Brunel University and parts of Ealing.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: PBS broadcast the series as "Inspector Lewis" in the United States and Canada, as part of its "Masterpiece Mystery" series.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: In the United States, all episodes of "Lewis" were originally shown as "Inspector Lewis" on Masterpiece Mystery! on PBS, except for the pilot, which was shown on the earlier series Mystery! in 2006. The numbering of the episodes on PBS is slightly different from those on ITV. Series 1 was broadcast as Season 1 in 2008. However, all of series 2 and episodes 1–3 of series 3 were broadcast as Season 2 in 2009. Episode 4 of series 3 and all of series 4 were broadcast as Season 3 in 2010. Series 5, 6, 7 and 8 were shown as Seasons 4, 5, 6 and 7 in 2011–2014. Series 9 was broadcast as "Season 8" in August 2016.


title: Lewis (TV series)

text: There were 33 episodes produced and screened, identical in quantity with the preceding "Morse" series.


title: Clea

text: Clea Strange () is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by co-plotters Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, Clea first appeared in the Doctor Strange feature in "Strange Tales" #126 (November 1964). She is a sorceress, the disciple, lover, and eventual wife of Doctor Stephen Strange, and his successor as Sorcerer Supreme.


title: Clea

text: Clea is a human-appearing being and maternally related to the other-dimensional Faltine race of energy beings. The daughter of Umar and the niece of the demonic tyrant Dormammu, the noble Clea has been, sporadically, ruler of the Dark Dimension, the mystical realm to which Dormammu had been banished and that he subsequently conquered.


title: Clea

text: The character was introduced during a story arc in which Doctor Strange confronted Dormammu for the first time. Clea remained nameless for several issues, referred to only as the "captive female" or the "mysterious silver-haired girl". It was later noted that her father is Dormammu's closest disciple. Her name was revealed two years later.


title: Clea

text: Initially, nothing indicates that Clea and Umar are related or even know each other. Dormammu's sister mimics her brother's tactics and goes after Clea as a way of hurting Strange. Later, it was revealed that Umar was her mother and that her father was Orini, a disciple of Dormammu and ruler of the Dark Dimension.


title: Clea

text: Brian Michael Bendis has described Clea as: "... the mistress of the Dark Dimension and ... Strange's ex-girlfriend/wife. She was trained by Strange, right there in his home. She was his prized pupil. She was to Strange what he was to the Ancient One [Strange’s instructor in the mystic arts]. But as Mistress of the Dark Dimension, she hasn’t been on this plane of existence a lot lately. And who's going to take her serious in those pants?"


title: Clea

text: Following the 2021 "Death of Doctor Strange" event, Clea becomes the official Sorcerer Supreme in her own solo series, "Strange", written by Jed MacKay.


title: Clea

text: Clea observed Doctor Strange in the Dark Dimension and was impressed by his courage. She warned Strange against facing Dormammu, and Dormammu punished her for her betrayal. Strange forced him to release her. She became Strange's only ally in the Dark Dimension and soon became a captive of her uncle.


title: Clea

text: Umar took Clea hostage and nearly killed her. The Ancient One sent Clea into a pocket dimension to save her from Umar. Clea was found and freed by Doctor Strange, and went to live on Earth with him.


title: Clea

text: Clea was later captured by Silver Dagger. Doctor Strange's spirit cohabited in her body so that they could defeat Silver Dagger. Umar then attacked Clea on Earth, and Clea battled her.


title: Clea

text: Clea helped save herself from being sacrificed by Dormammu and came to believe Morganna Blessing loved Strange more than she did. Clea and Strange later helped lead a rebellion in the Dark Dimension. Clea discovered that Umar was her mother, and Clea defeated Umar in a mystic battle. Clea revealed to the inhabitants of the Dark Dimension that her mother didn't care for her subjects at all and was willing to endanger them to defeat Clea. The population became convinced that Clea should be the ruler and the "Flames of Regency" appeared on Clea's head. The Flames of Regency made Clea powerful enough to defeat and banish Umar and her father Orini from the Dark Dimension, and Clea took the throne of the Dark Dimension.


title: Clea

text: Clea and Strange exchanged vows and became one according to the laws of the Dark Dimension. Several months later, Dormammu returned to the Dark Dimension and claimed the throne again. Clea was held hostage to lure in Doctor Strange, but Strange and Clea managed to escape Dormammu and arrived near Umar. Umar tried to kill Strange but found out that her spells hurt both Clea and Strange. Clea revealed to her mother that she had married Strange. Umar confessed that she didn't want to hurt her daughter and assisted Doctor Strange and Clea in defeating Dormammu. Umar and her new lover Baron Mordo claimed rulership over the Dark Dimension but promised Clea that they would not abuse their powers. Clea reluctantly agreed and returned to Earth with Strange.


title: Clea

text: Sometime later, the Faltinean Flyx appeared to her and told her that Umar and Mordo betrayed her trust. Clea and Flyx gathered an army to defeat Umar and Mordo, but Flyx revealed himself to be Dormammu in disguise. He absorbed the powers of Umar and Mordo and Clea remained in the Dark Dimension as leader of the resistance against Dormammu.


title: Clea

text: Clea returns and it is revealed that she has been hiding out in Odin's hall thanks to Valkyrie, who comes to ask a favor of her to restore the recently deceased Annabelle Riggs to life. After performing a spell to resurrect her, which causes Annabelle and Valkyrie to share a body, Clea leaves with them to possibly join the Defenders team.


title: Clea

text: During the "Death of Doctor Strange" storyline, Clea falls from a portal in the sky and is caught by a temporal remnant of Doctor Strange. Wong briefs her on what happened to Doctor Strange. Clea states that inter-dimensional warlords like Aggamon, Dagoth, Tiboro, and Umar are fleeing from the Three Mothers. When the Three Mothers arrive, Clea witnesses the Avengers' disastrous fight with them before the Three Mothers retreat vowing to come back for them later. Strange, Wong and Clea team up to defeat the Three Mothers, though Strange dies and bequeaths the title of Sorcerer Supreme to Clea. Doctor Doom arrives at the Sanctum and demands to know how Clea has become the Sorcerer Supreme through unconventional means, though Clea refuses to reveal the information. Against Wong's advice, Clea attempts to resurrect Strange.


title: Clea

text: Clea is the Sorceress Supreme of the Dark Dimension, possessing vast powers involving the manipulation of the forces of magic for a variety of effects. She has exhibited such abilities as transmutation, forming and throwing magical bolts of concussive energy, magically constructed animate beings, conjuring objects and energies, teleporting, telekinesis, levitation, mesmerism, thought-casting, controlling others' minds, casting illusions, and the tapping of extra-dimensional energy by invoking entities or objects of power existing in dimensions tangential to Earth's through the recitation of spells. Presumably, she is capable of replicating any spell performed by her former mentor, Doctor Strange. As she is descended from the Faltine race of beings, it is suggested that she can generate her own mystical energy, like Umar and Dormammu, and draw upon it to fuel her magic. She also possesses greater strength and body density than that of a normal Earth human. Her age is indeterminate and the rate at which she ages is unknown since she has lived for centuries but has the form and demeanour of a twenty-year-old woman. Clea has defeated the Enchantress in single magical combat, and armed with the Flames of Regency, at the peak of her magical abilities, even rivalled her mother Umar in raw power.


title: Clea

text: Clea possesses a vast knowledge of magical lore through extensive studies of sorcery under Doctor Strange, who also trained her in hand-to-hand combat.


title: Clea

text: According to Diamond Comic Distributors, "Strange" #1 was the 7th best-selling comic book in March 2022.


title: Clea

text: Bishop V Navarro of "WomenWriteAboutComics" stated, ""Strange" #1 is an excellent start to a highly-promising title. Clea is a compelling character that doesn’t feel one-dimensional–her near-arrogance is infectious and it’s exciting to see her shut down Doctor Doom and leap into action. Near the end, she narrates her feelings about the loss of Stephen and how her origins as a Faltine from the Dark Dimension affect her desires to get him back. Although narration is no rare thing in comics, this one feels especially emphatic. This speech is her thesis statement and her oath, and her strong voice helps make her a stand-out character for Marvel." Hannah Rose of "CBR.com" wrote, "Grief and death are big topics in this issue, for both the protagonist and antagonist. While the big overarching threat is the survival of the world in the wake of the loss of their magical hero, both the hero and the villain are using Doctor Strange's role to cope with or deny his death. Under the veneer of gratuitous gore, explosions, and brutal spells, "Strange" #1 sets up a story arc with a surprisingly mature take on death and acceptance. Although it can careen straight into edge-lord territory, "Strange" #1 is an otherwise strong start to a far darker take on the Sorcerer Supreme and the power of love in the face of grief." Spencer Perry of "Comicbook.com" gave "Strange" #1 a grade of 4 out of 5, writing, "Jed MacKay and Marcelo Ferreira's new "Strange" series begins with a bang, literally, at least one on the door. The surprise that this creative team brings to the threshold of the Sanctum Sanctorum in these first pages cements this new series' place quite firmly in the Marvel Universe while also ensuring that we readers realize, "well, anything goes here, huh?". Readers that might not have dug into the "Death of Doctor Strange" event need not worry though as every piece of context you'll need is here, and it seems like there's a lot of unique decisions at play in Marvel Comics' "Strange"." Darby Harn of "Screen Rant" included the "Strange" comic book series in their "10 Best Clea Comics To Read After Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness" list, asserting, "Doctor Strange's death left a major void in the Marvel Universe. "Strange" #1 ranks as one of Clea's best comics as she completes her journey as the disciple of Strange and becomes Sorcerer Supreme. She wields all the power, knowledge, and experience of her realm and Earth-616. Clea's immediate future remains unclear in the comics as she navigates a strange new world. This ascension for Clea potentially manifests in the MCU down the road, though the MCU Clea already seems to possess great power and skill."


title: Clea

text: In the alternate-reality miniseries "1602" (set in American colonial days), the Clea of the Earth-311 is married to English court physician Dr Stephen Strange. When Strange dies, she opens a portal and goes back to her own world.


title: Clea

text: In the alternate-reality series "Earth X", Clea is revealed to have betrayed Doctor Strange and to have killed him at the behest of her lover Loki, becoming the Sorceress Supreme of that reality. Bruce Banner discovers her treason, and she is quickly taken away by Thor and imprisoned in Asgard.


title: Clea

text: Eventually, Doctor Strange (feeling regret at his apparent emotional neglect of her) travels to Asgard with Xen (an Asian team of super-beings), to free her. He succeeds and attempts to rekindle the love between them, but Clea rejects him saying that he still does not understand her.


title: Clea

text: Clea is introduced as somewhat of a guardian figure, who spends all her time playing babysitter for Doctor Strange and giving him a lot of "tough love".


title: Clea

text: In "Ultimate Marvel", Clea appears as the former wife of Stephen Strange who tried to raise their son Stephen Strange Jr. away from magic, blaming it for the loss of her husband. This Clea appears to have no magical background or be related to any magical beings.


title: Marvel Ultimate Collection, Complete Epic and Epic Collection lines

text: Marvel Ultimate Collections/Complete Collections, Complete Epics and Epic Collections are large, full-color trade paperback collections of previously published Marvel comics, typically containing 300–500 pages. The "Ultimate Collection"/"Complete Collection" lines collect entire runs of one title, or related titles by one creator. The "Complete Epic" line collects large crossovers spanning several titles. The "Epic Collection" line is a numbered collection of sequential issues of one title, sometimes including crossovers from related titles, starting from the beginning of a character. This collection is not released sequentially, as the priority is to fill in periods not covered by previous collections.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre () in 1572 was a targeted group of assassinations and a wave of Catholic mob violence, directed against the Huguenots (French Calvinist Protestants) during the French Wars of Religion. Traditionally believed to have been instigated by Queen Catherine de' Medici, the mother of King Charles IX, the massacre started a few days after the marriage on 18 August of the king's sister Margaret to the Protestant Henry of Navarre (the future Henry IV of France). Many of the wealthiest and most prominent Huguenots had gathered in largely Catholic Paris to attend the wedding.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The massacre began in the night of 23–24 August 1572, the eve of the feast of Bartholomew the Apostle, two days after the attempted assassination of Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, the military and political leader of the Huguenots. King Charles IX ordered the killing of a group of Huguenot leaders, including Coligny, and the slaughter spread throughout Paris. Lasting several weeks in all, the massacre expanded outward to the countryside and other urban centres. Modern estimates for the number of dead across France vary widely, from 5,000 to 30,000.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The massacre marked a turning point in the French Wars of Religion. The Huguenot political movement was crippled by the loss of many of its prominent aristocratic leaders, and many rank-and-file members subsequently converted. Those who remained became increasingly radicalized. Though by no means unique, the blood-letting "was the worst of the century's religious massacres". Throughout Europe, it "printed on Protestant minds the indelible conviction that Catholicism was a bloody and treacherous religion".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The Peace of Saint-Germain put an end to three years of civil war between Catholics and Protestants. This peace, however, was precarious since the more intransigent Catholics refused to accept it. The Guise family (strongly Catholic) was out of favour at the French court; the Huguenot leader, Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, was readmitted into the king's council in September 1571. Staunch Catholics were shocked by the return of Protestants to the court, but the queen mother, Catherine de' Medici, and her son, Charles IX, were practical in their support of peace and Coligny, as they were conscious of the kingdom's financial difficulties and the Huguenots' strong defensive position: they controlled the fortified towns of La Rochelle, La Charité-sur-Loire, Cognac, and Montauban.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: To cement the peace between the two religious parties, Catherine planned to marry her daughter Margaret to the Protestant, Henry of Navarre (the future King Henry IV), son of the Huguenot leader Queen Jeanne d'Albret. The royal marriage was arranged for 18 August 1572. It was not accepted by traditionalist Catholics or by the Pope. Both the Pope and King Philip II of Spain strongly condemned Catherine's Huguenot policy as well.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The impending marriage led to the gathering of a large number of well-born Protestants in Paris. But Paris was a violently anti-Huguenot city, and Parisians, who tended to be extreme Catholics, found their presence unacceptable. Encouraged by Catholic preachers, they were horrified at the marriage of a princess of France to a Protestant. The Parlement's opposition and the court's absence from the wedding led to increased political tension.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Compounding this bad feeling was the fact that the harvests had been poor and taxes had risen. The rise in food prices and the luxury displayed on the occasion of the royal wedding increased tensions among the common people. A particular point of tension was an open-air cross erected on the site of the house of Philippe de Gastines, a Huguenot who had been executed in 1569. The mob had torn down his house and erected a large wooden cross on a stone base. Under the terms of the peace, and after considerable popular resistance, this had been removed in December 1571 (and re-erected in a cemetery), which had already led to about 50 deaths in riots, as well as mob destruction of property. In the massacres of August, the relatives of the Gastines family were among the first to be killed by the mob.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The court itself was extremely divided. Catherine had not obtained Pope Gregory XIII's permission to celebrate this irregular marriage; consequently, the French prelates hesitated over which attitude to adopt. It took all the queen mother's skill to convince the Cardinal de Bourbon (paternal uncle of the Protestant groom, but himself a Catholic clergyman) to marry the couple. Beside this, the rivalries between the leading families re-emerged. The Guises were not prepared to make way for their rivals, the House of Montmorency. François, Duke of Montmorency and governor of Paris, was unable to control the disturbances in the city. On August 20, he left the capital and retired to Chantilly.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: In the years preceding the massacre, Huguenot political rhetoric had for the first time taken a tone against not just the policies of a particular monarch of France, but monarchy in general. In part this was led by an apparent change in stance by John Calvin in his "Readings on the Prophet Daniel", a book of 1561, in which he had argued that when kings disobey God, they "automatically abdicate their worldly power" – a change from his views in earlier works that even ungodly kings should be obeyed. This change was soon picked up by Huguenot writers, who began to expand on Calvin and promote the idea of the sovereignty of the people, ideas to which Catholic writers and preachers responded fiercely.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Nevertheless, it was only in the aftermath of the massacre that anti-monarchical ideas found widespread support from Huguenots, among the "Monarchomachs" and others. "Huguenot writers, who had previously, for the most part, paraded their loyalty to the Crown, now called for the deposition or assassination of a Godless king who had either authorised or permitted the slaughter". Thus, the massacre "marked the beginning of a new form of French Protestantism: one that was openly at war with the crown. This was much more than a war against the policies of the crown, as in the first three civil wars; it was a campaign against the very existence of the Gallican monarchy itself".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Tensions were further raised when in May 1572 the news reached Paris that a French Huguenot army under Louis of Nassau had crossed from France to the Netherlandish province of Hainaut and captured the Catholic strongholds of Mons and Valenciennes (now in Belgium and France, respectively). Louis governed the Principality of Orange around Avignon in southern France for his brother William the Silent, who was leading the Dutch Revolt against the Spanish. This intervention threatened to involve France in that war; many Catholics believed that Coligny had again persuaded the king to intervene on the side of the Dutch, as he had managed to do the previous October, before Catherine had got the decision reversed.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: After the wedding of Catholic Marguerite de Valois and Huguenot Henry de Navarre on August 18 of 1572, Coligny and the leading Huguenots remained in Paris to discuss some outstanding grievances about the Peace of St. Germain with the king. An attempt was made on Coligny's life a few days later on August 22 as he made his way back to his house from the Louvre. He was shot from an upstairs window, and seriously wounded. The would-be assassin, most likely Charles de Louviers, Lord of Maurevert(c. 1505–1583), escaped in the ensuing confusion. Other theories about who was ultimately responsible for the attack centre on three candidates:


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The attempted assassination of Coligny triggered the crisis that led to the massacre. Admiral de Coligny was the most respected Huguenot leader and enjoyed a close relationship with the king, although he was distrusted by the king's mother. Aware of the danger of reprisals from the Protestants, the king and his court visited Coligny on his sickbed and promised him that the culprits would be punished. While the Queen Mother was eating dinner, Protestants burst in to demand justice, some talking in menacing terms. Fears of Huguenot reprisals grew. Coligny's brother-in-law led a 4,000-strong army camped just outside Paris and, although there is no evidence it was planning to attack, Catholics in the city feared it might take revenge on the Guises or the city populace itself.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: That evening, Catherine held a meeting at the Tuileries Palace with her Italian advisers, including Albert de Gondi, Comte de Retz. On the evening of 23 August, Catherine went to see the king to discuss the crisis. Though no details of the meeting survive, Charles IX and his mother apparently made the decision to eliminate the Protestant leaders. Holt speculated this entailed "between two and three dozen noblemen" who were still in Paris. Other historians are reluctant to speculate on the composition or size of the group of leaders targeted at this point, beyond the few obvious heads. Like Coligny, most potential candidates for elimination were accompanied by groups of gentlemen who served as staff and bodyguards, so murdering them would also have involved killing their retainers as a necessity.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Shortly after this decision, the municipal authorities of Paris were summoned. They were ordered to shut the city gates and arm the citizenry to prevent any attempt at a Protestant uprising. The king's Swiss mercenaries were given the task of killing a list of leading Protestants. It is difficult today to determine the exact chronology of events, or to know the precise moment the killing began. It seems probable that a signal was given by ringing bells for matins (between midnight and dawn) at the church of Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois, near the Louvre, which was the parish church of the kings of France. The Swiss mercenaries expelled the Protestant nobles from the Louvre castle and then slaughtered them in the streets.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: A group led by Guise in person dragged Admiral Coligny from his bed, killed him, and threw his body out of a window. The terrified Huguenot nobles in the building initially put up a fight, hoping to save the life of their leader, but Coligny himself seemed unperturbed. According to the contemporary French historian Jacques Auguste de Thou, one of Coligny's murderers was struck by how calmly he accepted his fate, and remarked that "he never saw anyone less afraid in so great a peril, nor die more steadfastly". The tension that had been building since the Peace of St. Germain now exploded in a wave of popular violence. The common people began to hunt Protestants throughout the city, including women and children. Chains were used to block streets so that Protestants could not escape from their houses. The bodies of the dead were collected in carts and thrown into the Seine. The massacre in Paris lasted three days despite the king's attempts to stop it. Holt concludes that "while the general massacre might have been prevented, there is no evidence that it was intended by any of the elites at court", listing a number of cases where Catholic courtiers intervened to save individual Protestants who were not in the leadership. Recent research by Jérémie Foa, investigating the prosopography suggests that the massacres were carried by a group of militants who had already made out lists of Protestants deserving extermination, and the mass of the population, whether approving or disapproving, were not directly involved.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The two leading Huguenots, Henry of Navarre and his cousin the Prince of Condé (respectively aged 19 and 20), were spared as they pledged to convert to Catholicism; both would eventually renounce their conversions when they managed to escape Paris. According to some interpretations, the survival of these Huguenots was a key point in Catherine's overall scheme, to prevent the House of Guise from becoming too powerful.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: On August 26, the king and court established the official version of events by going to the Paris Parlement. "Holding a lit de justice, Charles declared that he had ordered the massacre in order to thwart a Huguenot plot against the royal family." A jubilee celebration, including a procession, was then held, while the killings continued in parts of the city.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Although Charles had dispatched orders to his provincial governors on August 24 to prevent violence and maintain the terms of the 1570 edict, from August to October, similar massacres of Huguenots took place in a total of twelve other cities: Toulouse, Bordeaux, Lyon, Bourges, Rouen,


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Orléans, Meaux, Angers, La Charité, Saumur, Gaillac and Troyes. In most of them, the killings swiftly followed the arrival of the news of the Paris massacre, but in some places there was a delay of more than a month. According to Mack P. Holt: "All twelve cities where provincial massacres occurred had one striking feature in common; they were all cities with Catholic majorities where there had once been "significant" Protestant minorities... All of them had also experienced serious religious division... during the first three civil wars... Moreover seven of them shared a previous experience ... [they] had actually been taken over by Protestant minorities during the first civil war..."


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: In several cases the Catholic party in the city believed they had received orders from the king to begin the massacre, some conveyed by visitors to the city, and in other cases apparently coming from a local nobleman or his agent. It seems unlikely any such orders came from the king, although the Guise faction may have desired the massacres. Apparently genuine letters from the Duke of Anjou, the king's younger brother, did urge massacres in the king's name; in Nantes the mayor fortunately held on to his without publicising it until a week later when contrary orders from the king had arrived. In some cities the massacres were led by the mob, while the city authorities tried to suppress them, and in others small groups of soldiers and officials began rounding up Protestants with little mob involvement. In Bordeaux the inflammatory sermon on September 29 of a Jesuit, Edmond Auger, encouraged the massacre that was to occur a few days later.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: In the cities affected, the loss to the Huguenot communities after the massacres was numerically far larger than those actually killed; in the following weeks there were mass conversions to Catholicism, apparently in response to the threatening atmosphere for Huguenots in these cities. In Rouen, where some hundreds were killed, the Huguenot community shrank from 16,500 to fewer than 3,000 mainly as a result of conversions and emigration to safer cities or countries. Some cities unaffected by the violence nevertheless witnessed a sharp decline in their Huguenot population. It has been claimed that the Huguenot community represented as much as 10% of the French population on the eve of the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre, declining to 7–8% by the end of the 16th century, and further after heavy persecution began once again during the reign of Louis XIV, culminating with the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Estimates of the number that perished in the massacres have varied from 2,000 by a Roman Catholic apologist to 70,000 by the contemporary Huguenot Maximilien de Béthune, who himself barely escaped death. Accurate figures for casualties have never been compiled, and even in writings by modern historians there is a considerable range, though the more specialised the historian, the lower they tend to be. At the low end are figures of about 2,000 in Paris and 3,000 in the provinces, the latter figure an estimate by Philip Benedict in 1978. Other estimates are about 10,000 in total, with about 3,000 in Paris and 7,000 in the provinces. At the higher end are total figures of up to 20,000, or 30,000 in total, from "a contemporary, non-partisan guesstimate" quoted by the historians Felipe Fernández-Armesto and D. Wilson. For Paris, the only hard figure is a payment by the city to workmen for collecting and burying 1,100 bodies washed up on the banks of the Seine downstream from the city in one week. Body counts relating to other payments are computed from this.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Among the slain were the philosopher Petrus Ramus, and in Lyon the composer Claude Goudimel. The corpses floating down the Rhône from Lyon are said to have put the people of Arles off drinking the water for three months.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The Politiques, those Catholics who placed national unity above sectarian interests, were horrified, but many Catholics inside and outside France initially regarded the massacres as deliverance from an imminent Huguenot coup d'etat. The severed head of Coligny was apparently dispatched to Pope Gregory XIII, though it got no further than Lyon, and the pope sent the king a Golden Rose. The pope ordered a Te Deum to be sung as a special thanksgiving (a practice continued for many years after) and had a medal struck with the motto "Ugonottorum strages 1572" (Latin: "Overthrow (or slaughter) of the Huguenots 1572") showing an angel bearing a cross and a sword before which are the felled Protestants.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Although these formal acts of rejoicing in Rome were not repudiated publicly, misgivings in the papal curia grew as the true story of the killings gradually became known. Pope Gregory XIII himself refused to receive Charles de Maurevert, said to be the killer of Coligny, on the ground that he was a murderer.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: On hearing of the slaughter, Philip II of Spain supposedly "laughed, for almost the only time on record". In Paris, the poet Jean-Antoine de Baïf, founder of the "Academie de Musique et de Poésie", wrote a sonnet extravagantly praising the killings. On the other hand, the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximilian II, King Charles's father-in-law, was sickened, describing the massacre as a "shameful bloodbath". Moderate French Catholics also began to wonder whether religious uniformity was worth the price of such bloodshed and the ranks of the Politiques began to swell.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The massacre caused a "major international crisis". Protestant countries were horrified at the events, and only the concentrated efforts of Catherine's ambassadors, including a special mission by Gondi, prevented the collapse of her policy of remaining on good terms with them. Elizabeth I of England's ambassador to France at that time, Sir Francis Walsingham, barely escaped with his life. Even Tsar Ivan the Terrible expressed horror at the carnage in a letter to the Emperor.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The massacre "spawned a pullulating mass of polemical literature, bubbling with theories, prejudices and phobias". Many Catholic authors were exultant in their praise of the king for his bold and decisive action (after regretfully abandoning a policy of meeting Huguenot demands as far as he could) against the supposed Huguenot coup, whose details were now fleshed out in officially sponsored works, though the larger mob massacres were somewhat deprecated: "[one] must excuse the people's fury moved by a laudable zeal which is difficult to restrain once it has been stirred up". Huguenot works understandably dwelt on the harrowing details of violence, expounded various conspiracy theories that the royal court had long planned the massacres, and often showed extravagant anti-Italian feelings directed at Catherine, Gondi, and other Italians at court.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Diplomatic correspondence was readier than published polemics to recognise the unplanned and chaotic nature of the events, which also emerged from several accounts in memoirs published over the following years by witnesses to the events at court, including the famous "Memoirs" of Margaret of Valois, the only eye-witness account of the massacre from a member of the royal family. There are also a dramatic and influential account by Henry, duke of Anjou that was not recognised as fake until the 19th century. Anjou's supposed account was the source of the quotation attributed to Charles IX: "Well then, so be it! Kill them! But kill them all! Don't leave a single one alive to reproach me!"


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The author of the "Lettre de Pierre Charpentier" (1572) was not only "a Protestant of sorts, and thus, apparently, writing with inside knowledge", but also "an extreme apologist for the massacre ... in his view ... a well-merited punishment for years of civil disobedience [and] secret sedition..." A strand of Catholic writing, especially by Italian authors, broke from the official French line to applaud the massacre as precisely a brilliant stratagem, deliberately planned from various points beforehand. The most extreme of these writers was Camilo Capilupi, a papal secretary, whose work insisted that the whole series of events since 1570 had been a masterly plan conceived by Charles IX, and carried through by frequently misleading his mother and ministers as to his true intentions. The Venetian government refused to allow the work to be printed there, and it was eventually published in Rome in 1574, and in the same year quickly reprinted in Geneva in the original Italian and a French translation.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: It was in this context that the massacre came to be seen as a product of Machiavellianism, a view greatly influenced by the Huguenot , who published his "Discours contre Machievel" in 1576, which was printed in ten editions in three languages over the next four years. Gentillet held, quite wrongly according to Sydney Anglo, that Machiavelli's "books [were] held most dear and precious by our Italian and Italionized courtiers" (in the words of his first English translation), and so (in Anglo's paraphrase) "at the root of France's present degradation, which has culminated not only in the St Bartholemew massacre but the glee of its perverted admirers". In fact there is little trace of Machiavelli in French writings before the massacre, and not very much after, until Gentillet's own book, but this concept was seized upon by many contemporaries, and played a crucial part in setting the long-lasting popular concept of Machiavellianism. It also gave added impetus to the strong anti-Italian feelings already present in Huguenot polemic.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Christopher Marlowe was one of many Elizabethan writers who were enthusiastic proponents of these ideas. In the "Jew of Malta" (1589–90) "Machievel" in person speaks the Prologue, claiming to not be dead, but to have possessed the soul of the Duke of Guise, "And, now the Guise is dead, is come from France/ To view this land, and frolic with his friends" (Prologue, lines 3–4) His last play, "The Massacre at Paris" (1593) takes the massacre, and the following years, as its subject, with Guise and Catherine both depicted as Machiavellian plotters, bent on evil from the start. The Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913 was still ready to endorse a version of this view, describing the massacres as "an entirely political act committed in the name of the immoral principles of Machiavellianism" and blaming "the pagan theories of a certain raison d'état according to which the end justified the means".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The French 18th-century historian Louis-Pierre Anquetil, in his "Esprit de la Ligue" of 1767, was among the first to begin impartial historical investigation, emphasizing the lack of premeditation (before the attempt on Coligny) in the massacre and that Catholic mob violence had a history of uncontrollable escalation. By this period the Massacre was being widely used by Voltaire (in his "Henriade") and other Enlightenment writers in polemics against organized religion in general. The question of whether the massacre had long been premeditated was not entirely settled until the late 19th century; Lord Acton changed his mind on the matter twice, finally concluding that it was not.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Over the centuries, the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre has aroused a great deal of controversy. Modern historians are still divided over the responsibility of the royal family:


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The traditional interpretation makes Catherine de' Medici and her Catholic advisers the principal culprits in the execution of the principal military leaders. They forced the hand of a hesitant and weak-willed king in the decision of that particular execution. This traditional interpretation has been largely abandoned by some modern historians including, among others, Janine Garrisson. However, in a more recent work than his history of the period, Holt concludes: "The ringleaders of the conspiracy appear to have been a group of four men: Henry, duke of Anjou; Chancellor Birague; the duke of Nevers, and the comte de Retz" (Gondi). Apart from Anjou, the others were all Italian advisors at the French court.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: According to Denis Crouzet, Charles IX feared a Protestant uprising, and chose to strangle it at birth to protect his power. The execution decision was therefore his own, and not Catherine de' Medici's.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: According to , the violently anti-Huguenot city of Paris was really responsible. He stresses that the city was on the verge of revolt. The Guises, who were highly popular, exploited this situation to put pressure on the King and the Queen Mother. Charles IX was thus forced to head off the potential riot, which was the work of the Guises, the city militia and the common people.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: According to , the member of the royal family with the most responsibility in this affair is Henry, Duke of Anjou, the king's ambitious younger brother. Following the failed assassination attack against the Admiral de Coligny (which Wanegffelen attributes to the Guise family and Spain), the Italian advisers of Catherine de' Medici undoubtedly recommended in the royal Council the execution of about fifty Protestant leaders. These Italians stood to benefit from the occasion by eliminating the Huguenot danger. Despite the firm opposition of the Queen Mother and the King, Anjou, Lieutenant General of the Kingdom, present at this meeting of the Council, could see a good occasion to make a name for himself with the government. He contacted the Parisian authorities and another ambitious young man, running out of authority and power, Duke Henri de Guise (whose uncle, the clear-sighted Charles, cardinal of Lorraine, was then detained in Rome).


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The Parisian St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre resulted from this conjunction of interests, and this offers a much better explanation as to why the men of the Duke of Anjou acted in the name of the Lieutenant General of the Kingdom, consistent with the thinking of the time, rather than in the name of the King. One can also understand why, the day after the start of the massacre, Catherine de' Medici, through royal declaration of Charles IX, condemned the crimes, and threatened the Guise family with royal justice. But when Charles IX and his mother learned of the involvement of the duke of Anjou, and being so dependent on his support, they issued a second royal declaration, which while asking for an end to the massacres, credited the initiative with the desire of Charles IX to prevent a Protestant plot. Initially the "coup d'état" of the duke of Anjou was a success, but Catherine de' Medici went out of her way to deprive him from any power in France: she sent him with the royal army to remain in front of La Rochelle and then had him elected King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Traditional histories have tended to focus more on the roles of the political notables whose machinations began the massacre than the mindset of those who actually did the killing. Ordinary lay Catholics were involved in the mass killings; they believed they were executing the wishes of the king and of God. At this time, in an age before mass media, "the pulpit remained probably the most effective means of mass communication".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Despite the large numbers of pamphlets and broadsheets in circulation, literacy rates were still poor. Thus, some modern historians have stressed the critical and incendiary role that militant preachers played in shaping ordinary lay beliefs, both Catholic and Protestant.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Historian Barbara B. Diefendorf, Professor of History at Boston University, wrote that Simon Vigor had "said if the King ordered the Admiral (Coligny) killed, 'it would be wicked not to kill him'. With these words, the most popular preacher in Paris legitimised in advance the events of St. Bartholomew's Day". Diefendorf says that when the head of the murdered Coligny was shown to the Paris mob by a member of the nobility, with the claim that it was the King's will, the die was cast. Another historian Mack P. Holt, Professor at George Mason University, agrees that Vigor, "the best known preacher in Paris", preached sermons that were full of references to the evils that would befall the capital should the Protestants seize control. This view is also partly supported by Cunningham and Grell (2000) who explained that "militant sermons by priests such as Simon Vigor served to raise the religious and eschatological temperature on the eve of the Massacre".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Historians cite the extreme tension and bitterness that led to the powder-keg atmosphere of Paris in August 1572. In the previous ten years there had already been three outbreaks of civil war, and attempts by Protestant nobles to seize power in France. Some blame the complete esteem with which the sovereign's office was held, justified by prominent French Roman Catholic theologians, and that the special powers of French Kings "...were accompanied by explicit responsibilities, the foremost of which was combating heresy".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Holt, notable for re-emphasising the importance of religious issues, as opposed to political/dynastic power struggles or socio-economic tensions, in explaining the French Wars of Religion, also re-emphasised the role of religion in the St Bartholomew's Day Massacre. He noted that the extra violence inflicted on many of the corpses "was not random at all, but patterned after the rites of the Catholic culture that had given birth to it". "Many Protestant houses were burned, invoking the traditional purification by fire of all heretics. Many victims were also thrown into the Seine, invoking the purification by water of Catholic baptism". Viewed as a threat to the social and political order, Holt argues that "Huguenots not only had to be exterminated – that is, killed – they also had to be humiliated, dishonoured, and shamed as the inhuman beasts they were perceived to be."


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: However Raymond Mentzer points out that Protestants "could be as bloodthirsty as Catholics. Earlier Huguenot rage at Nimes (in 1567) led to... the massacre of twenty-four Catholics, mostly priests and prominent laymen, at the hands of their Protestant neighbours. Few towns escaped the episodic violence and some suffered repeatedly from both sides. Neither faith had a monopoly on cruelty and misguided fervour".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Some, like Leonie Frieda, emphasise the element within the mob violence of the "haves" being "killed by the 'have-nots'". Many Protestants were nobles or bourgeois and Frieda adds that "a number of bourgeois Catholic Parisians had suffered the same fate as the Protestants; many financial debts were wiped clean with the death of creditors and moneylenders that night". At least one Huguenot was able to buy off his would-be murderers.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The historian H.G. Koenigsberger (who until his retirement in 1984 was Professor of History at King's College, University of London) wrote that the Massacre was deeply disturbing because "it was Christians massacring other Christians who were not foreign enemies but their neighbours with which they and their forebears had lived in a Christian community, and under the same ruler, for a thousand years". He concludes that the historical importance of the Massacre "lies not so much in the appalling tragedies involved as their demonstration of the power of sectarian passion to break down the barriers of civilisation, community and accepted morality".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: One historian puts forward an analysis of the massacre in terms of social anthropology – the religious historian Bruce Lincoln. He describes how the religious divide, which gave the Huguenots different patterns of dress, eating and pastimes, as well as the obvious differences of religion and (very often) class, had become a social schism or cleavage. The rituals around the royal marriage had only intensified this cleavage, contrary to its intentions, and the "sentiments of estrangement – radical otherness – [had come] to prevail over sentiments of affinity between Catholics and Protestants".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: On 23 August 1997, Pope John Paul II, who was in Paris for the 12th World Youth Day, issued a statement on the Massacre. He stayed in Paris for three days and made eleven speeches. According to Reuters and the Associated Press, at a late-night vigil, with the hundreds of thousands of young people who were in Paris for the celebrations, he made the following comments: "On the eve of Aug. 24, we cannot forget the sad massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day, an event of very obscure causes in the political and religious history of France. ... Christians did things which the Gospel condemns. I am convinced that only forgiveness, offered and received, leads little by little to a fruitful dialogue, which will in turn ensure a fully Christian reconciliation. ... Belonging to different religious traditions must not constitute today a source of opposition and tension. On the contrary, our common love for Christ impels us to seek tirelessly the path of full unity."


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The Elizabethan dramatist Christopher Marlowe knew the story well from the Huguenot literature translated into English, and probably from French refugees who had sought refuge in his native Canterbury. He wrote a strongly anti-Catholic and anti-French play based on the events entitled "The Massacre at Paris". Also, in his biography "The World of Christopher Marlowe", David Riggs claims the incident remained with the playwright, and massacres are incorporated into the final acts of three of his early plays, "1" and "2 Tamburlaine" and "The Jew of Malta" – see above for Marlowe and Machiavellism.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The story was also taken up in 1772 by Louis-Sébastien Mercier in his play "Jean Hennuyer, Bishop of Lizieux", unperformed until the French Revolution. This play was translated into English, with some adaptations, as "The Massacre" by the actress and playwright Elizabeth Inchbald in 1792. Inchbald kept the historical setting, but "The Massacre", completed by February 1792, also reflected events in the recent French Revolution, though not the September Massacres of 1792, which coincided with its printing.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Joseph Chénier's play "Charles IX" was a huge success during the French Revolution, drawing strongly anti-monarchical and anti-religious lessons from the massacre. Chénier was able to put his principles into practice as a politician, voting for the execution of Louis XVI and many others, perhaps including his brother André Chénier. However, before the collapse of the Revolution he became suspected of moderation, and in some danger himself.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The story was fictionalised by Prosper Mérimée in his "Chronique du règne de Charles IX" (1829), and by Alexandre Dumas, père in "La Reine Margot", an 1845 novel that fills in the history as it was then seen with romance and adventure. That novel has been translated into English and was made first into a commercially successful French film in 1954, "La reine Margot" (US title "A Woman of Evil"), starring Jeanne Moreau. It was remade in 1994 as "La Reine Margot" (later as "Queen Margot", and subtitled, in English-language markets), starring Isabelle Adjani.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Giacomo Meyerbeer's opera "Les Huguenots" (1836), very loosely based on the events of the massacre, was one of the most popular and spectacular examples of French grand opera.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The Pre-Raphaelite painter John Everett Millais managed to create a sentimental moment in the massacre in his painting "A Huguenot, on St. Bartholomew's Day" (1852), which depicts a Catholic woman attempting to convince her Huguenot lover to wear the white scarf badge of the Catholics and protect himself. The man, true to his beliefs, gently refuses her. Millais was inspired to create the painting after seeing Meyerbeer's "Les Huguenots".


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Mark Twain described the massacre in "From the Manuscript of 'A Tramp Abroad' (1879): The French and the Comanches", an essay about "partly civilized races". He wrote in part, "St. Bartholomew's was unquestionably the finest thing of the kind ever devised and accomplished in the world. All the best people took a hand in it, the King and the Queen Mother included."


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre and the events surrounding it were incorporated into D.W. Griffith's film "Intolerance" (1916). The film follows Catherine de' Medici (Josephine Crowell) plotting the massacre, coercing her son King Charles IX (Frank Bennett) to sanction it. Incidental characters include Henri of Navarre, Marguerite de Valois (Constance Talmadge), Admiral Coligny (Joseph Henabery), and the Duke of Anjou, who is portrayed as homosexual. These historic scenes are depicted alongside a fictional plot in which a Huguenot family is caught among the events.


title: St. Bartholomew's Day massacre

text: Another novel depicting this massacre is "Queen Jezebel", by Jean Plaidy (1953). In the third episode of the BBC miniseries "Elizabeth R" (1971), starring Glenda Jackson as Queen Elizabeth I of England, the English court's reaction to the massacre and its effect on England's relations with France is addressed in depth.