title: Flying Tigers

text: AVG fighter aircraft were painted with a large shark face on the front of the aircraft. This was done after pilots saw a photograph of a P-40 of No. 112 Squadron RAF in North Africa, which in turn had adopted the shark face from German pilots of the "Luftwaffe's" ZG 76 heavy fighter wing, flying Messerschmitt Bf 110 fighters in Crete. (The AVG nose-art is variously credited to Charles Bond and Erik Shilling.) About the same time, the AVG was dubbed "The Flying Tigers" by its Washington support group, called China Defense Supplies.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The P-40's good qualities included pilot armor, self-sealing fuel tanks, sturdy construction, heavy armament, and a higher diving speed than most Japanese aircraft – qualities that could be used to advantage in accordance with Chennault's combat tactics. Chennault created an early warning network of spotters that would give his fighters time to take off and climb to a superior altitude where this tactic could be executed.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The port of Rangoon in Burma and the Burma Road leading from there to China were of crucial importance. Eastern China was under Japanese occupation, so all military supplies for China arrived via the Burma route. By November 1941, when the pilots were trained and most of the P-40s had arrived in Asia, the Flying Tigers were divided into three squadrons: 1st Squadron ("Adam & Eves"); 2nd Squadron ("Panda Bears") and 3rd Squadron ("Hell's Angels"). They were assigned to opposite ends of the Burma Road to protect this vital line of communications. Two squadrons were based at Kunming in China, and a third at Mingaladon Airport near Rangoon. When the United States officially entered the war, the AVG had 82 pilots and 79 aircraft, although not all were combat-ready. Tiger Erik Shilling, part of the third squadron commented:. "This was the beginning of the greatest adventure I would ever hope to experience. It wasn't until years later that I fully realized the magnitude and significance of this first step, to be a lifelong adventure in the mystic Far East."


title: Flying Tigers

text: The AVG's first combat mission was on 20 December 1941, when aircraft of the 1st and 2nd squadrons intercepted 10 unescorted Kawasaki Ki-48 "Lily" bombers of the 21st "Hikōtai" attacking Kunming. The bombers jettisoned their loads before reaching Kunming. Three of the Japanese bombers were shot down near Kunming and a fourth was damaged so severely that it crashed before returning to its airfield at Hanoi. Later, Chinese intelligence intercepted Japanese communications indicating that only 1 out of the 10 bombers ultimately returned to base. Furthermore, the Japanese discontinued their raids on Kunming while the AVG was based there. One P-40 crash-landed; it was salvaged for parts. This mission was one of the earliest American aerial victories in the Pacific War.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The first squadron had flown up to Kunming to defend the terminus of the Burma Road and saw some combat action on 20 December 1941 while defending Rangoon from Japanese bombers, taking down four of them and disrupting their attack on the Burma Road.


title: Flying Tigers

text: At this time, the focus of Japan's offensive efforts in the AVG's coverage area was southern Burma. The 3rd Squadron – 18 aircraft strong – defended Rangoon from 23 to 25 December. On 23 December, Mitsubishi Ki-21 "Sally" heavy bombers of the 60th, 62nd and 98th "Sentai", along with single-engined Mitsubishi Ki-30 "Ann" attack bombers of the 31st "Sentai", sortied against Rangoon. They were escorted by Nakajima Ki-27 "Nate" fighters of 77th "Sentai". The Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (JAAF) formation was intercepted by the AVG and RAF Brewster Buffalos of 67 Squadron. Eight Ki-21s were shot down for the loss of three AVG P-40s. The 60th "Sentai" was particularly hard hit – it lost five out of the 15 bombers it had dispatched. Nevertheless, Rangoon and Mingaladon airfield were successfully bombed, with the city suffering more than 1,000 dead. Two Buffalos and two P-40s were destroyed on the ground, and one P-40 crashed when it attempted to land on a bomb-damaged runway.


title: Flying Tigers

text: On 25 December, the JAAF returned, reinforced by Ki-21s of 12th "Sentai" and Nakajima Ki-43 "Hayabusa"s (Oscars) of the 64th "Sentai" (Colonel Tateo Katō's Flying Squadron). A total of 63 bombers escorted by 25 fighters were committed. These were intercepted by 14 P-40s of the AVG's 3rd Squadron and 15 Buffalos of 67 Squadron. In the two encounters, 35 Japanese bombers and fighters were shot down. The Allies lost two pilots and five P-40s. Mingaladon airfield was once again damaged, and eight Buffalos were destroyed on the ground.


title: Flying Tigers

text: After its losses in the 23–25 December battles, the 3rd Squadron was relieved by the 2nd Squadron "Panda Bears", which carried out a series of raids on JAAF airbases in Thailand. The Japanese had moved aircraft to Malaya to finish off Singapore, and its remaining aircraft in the area (the 77th, 31st and 62nd "Sentai") launched fighter sweeps and counter raids on the Allied airfield at Mingaladon.


title: Flying Tigers

text: On 12 January, the Japanese launched their Burma Campaign. Significantly outnumbered, the AVG was gradually reduced through attrition, but often exacted a disproportionate toll of their attackers. On 24 January, six Ki-21s of the 14th Sentai escorted by Ki-27s attacked Mingaladon. All the Ki-21s were shot down by the AVG and RAF defenders. On 28 January, a fighter sweep of 37 Ki-27s was engaged by 16 AVG P-40s and two RAF fighters. Three "Nates" were shot down for the loss of two P-40s. The next day, another sweep of 20 Ki-27s of the 70th "Sentai" was met by 10 Allied fighters (eight P-40s and two Hawker Hurricanes). Four were shot down for the loss of no Allied aircraft.


title: Flying Tigers

text: Despite these minor victories and Chennault's reinforcement of the "Panda Bears" with pilots from the "Adam and Eves", by mid-February, only 10 P-40s were still operational at Mingaladon. Commonwealth troops retreated before the Japanese onslaught, and the AVG was pressed into the ground attack role to support them. One unfortunate result of these missions was a prolonged air attack on a suspected Japanese column on 21 February that turned out to consist of Commonwealth troops. More than 100 Allied people died in this friendly fire incident. On 27 February, after hearing that the RAF was retreating and pulling out its radar equipment, the AVG withdrew to bases in northern Burma.


title: Flying Tigers

text: By 24 January, the Flying Tigers had destroyed 73 Japanese aircraft while losing only five themselves – a notable performance, considering the AVG was outnumbered and faced experienced and fully trained Japanese pilots. The main disadvantage of JAAF fighter pilots of this period was the near-obsolescence of their predominant fighter type in the theater, the Ki-27. Though more maneuverable than the P-40, its armament and performance was inferior. Lightly constructed and armed, it could not withstand frontal attacks nor could it out-dive Allied fighters such as the P-40; if it attempted to, it often came apart in the air. In fact, its cruising speed was less than that of the Ki-21 bombers it was intended to escort.


title: Flying Tigers

text: After Rangoon was lost to the Japanese at the end of February, the AVG relocated to Magwe, a small British airfield more than 300 miles north of Rangoon. Chennault started moving elements of the now reconstituted 3rd Squadron to Magwe as reinforcement to his worn down 1st and 2nd squadrons. Aircraft attrition became so high that at this point, individual squadron distinctions became meaningless, and all three squadrons had elements based there, along with a number of RAF aircraft. In total, the Allies had 38 aircraft, including eight P-40s and 15 Hawker Hurricanes. Opposing them were 271 Japanese aircraft, including 115 fighters. Although the AVG and the RAF scored some successes against the JAAF, Magwe was continuously bombed, including a very heavy raid on 21 March by 151 bombers and fighters. On 23 March with only four aircraft left, the AVG was forced to relocate to Loiwing, just across the Chinese border. The Tigers crossed into China on a rickety suspension bridge over a deep gorge. A few months later, they came back to destroy the bridge so no Japanese soldiers could come across that way into China.


title: Flying Tigers

text: Reinforced by new P-40E "Kittyhawks" and by repaired aircraft from the AVG's excellent maintenance group, 12 P-40s were based at Loiwing on 8 April. Despite the long retreats, their losses and incessant air combat, the AVG still retained their abilities. That day, 12 Oscars from the 64th "Sentai" raided the base. In the ensuing series of dogfights, four Ki-43s were downed in exchange for one P-40E destroyed on the ground. During this period, Chinese and American commanders pressured Chennault to order his pilots to undertake so-called "morale missions". These were overflights and ground attacks intended to raise the morale of hard-pressed Chinese soldiers by showing they were getting air support. The AVG's pilots seethed with resentment at these dangerous missions (which some considered useless), a feeling which culminated in the so-called "Pilot's Revolt" of mid-April. Chennault suppressed the "revolt" and ordered the ground attack missions to continue. But despite their efforts, the Allied situation in Burma continued to deteriorate. On 29 April the AVG was ordered to evacuate Loiwing and relocate to Baoshan in China.


title: Flying Tigers

text: Like the AVG's other bases, Baoshan was repeatedly bombed by the Japanese Army Air Force. Still, the AVG scored against their JAAF tormentors, bringing down four "Nates" of the 11th Sentai on 5 May and two "Anns". By 4 May, the successful Japanese Burma offensive was winding down, except for mopping up actions. One of these was an attempt by a regiment of the Japanese 56th Division to drive for Kunming, an effort that was stopped by the Chinese army operating with strong air support from the AVG. On 7 May the Japanese Army began building a pontoon bridge across the upper Salween River, which would allow them to move troops and supplies into China and drive towards Kunming. To stem this tide, 2nd Squadron Leader David Lee "Tex" Hill led a flight of four new P-40Es bombing and strafing into the mile deep Salween River Gorge. During the next four days, the AVG pilots flew continuous missions into the gorge, effectively neutralizing the Japanese forces. This prevented a Japanese advance on Kunming and Chungking; the Japanese never advanced farther than the west bank of the upper Salween. Claire Chennault later wrote of these critical missions, "The American Volunteer Group had staved off China's collapse on the Salween." Despite being on the defensive thereafter, the AVG continued to harass the JAAF with raids on their Vietnamese bases.


title: Flying Tigers

text: With the Burma campaign over, Chennault redeployed his squadrons to provide air protection for China. The Doolittle Raid had prompted the Japanese to launch an offensive to seize AVG air bases that could be used for attacks on the Japanese homeland. By 1 June, personnel that would form the nucleus of the new USAAF 23rd Fighter Group (the AVG's replacement) were beginning to trickle into the theater. Some of the last missions the AVG flew were defending Guilin against raids by JAAF Nates, Lilys, and new Kawasaki Ki-45 Toryu ("Nick") heavy fighters. The AVG's last combat was over Hengyang on the day it was disbanded, 4 July 1942. In this final action, the AVG shot down four Ki-27s with no AVG losses.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The AVG lacked many resources. Despite its location in areas with malaria and cholera, it had only "four doctors, three nurses and a bottle of iodine." Pilots found the food disgusting, and the slow mail from home and lack of women hurt morale. A squadron had 45 maintenance personnel compared to the normal more than 100, and only one base could perform major repairs. Nonetheless, the AVG was officially credited with 297 enemy aircraft destroyed, including 229 in the air. Fourteen AVG pilots were killed in action, captured, or disappeared on combat missions. Two died of wounds sustained in bombing raids, and six were killed in accidents during the Flying Tigers' existence as a combat force.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The AVG's kill ratio was superior to that of contemporary Allied air groups in Malaya, the Philippines, and elsewhere in the Pacific theater. The AVG's success is all the more remarkable since they were outnumbered by Japanese fighters in almost all their engagements. The AVG's P-40s were superior to the JAAF's Ki-27s, but the group's kill ratio against modern Ki-43s was still in its favor. In "Flying Tigers: Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941–1942", Daniel Ford attributes the AVG's success to morale and group "esprit de corps". He notes that its pilots were "triple volunteers" who had volunteered for service with the U.S. military, the AVG, and brutal fighting in Burma. The result was a corps of experienced and skilled volunteer pilots who wanted to fight.


title: Flying Tigers

text: During their service with the Nationalist Chinese air force, 33 AVG pilots and three ground crew received the Order of the Cloud and Banner, and many AVG pilots received the Chinese Air Force Medal. Each AVG ace and double ace was awarded the Five Star or Ten Star Wing Medal.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The military chaplain of the AVG described the background of the volunteers in his memoir, "Most men were escaping from frustrations or disappointments, as perhaps I was. They hoped an unknown future in unknown places would somehow give them a second chance. One of the oldest was a tough former sergeant major about forty-three, irreconcilably divorced. One of the youngest was a boy of nineteen who had enlisted in the army, then got right out again for this junket; he was longing for adventures with lots of shooting, perhaps because he was small for his age. A majority came from the South and West, and Texans were the largest group from any state."


title: Flying Tigers

text: The success of the AVG led to negotiations in spring 1942 to induct it into the USAAF. Chennault was reinstated as a colonel and immediately promoted to brigadier general commanding U.S. Army air units in China (initially designated China Air Task Force and later the 14th Air Force), while continuing to command the AVG by virtue of his position in the Chinese Air Force. On 4 July 1942, the AVG was replaced by the 23rd Fighter Group. Most AVG pilots refused to remain with the unit as a result of the strong arm tactics by the USAAF general sent to negotiate with them. However, five pilots accepted commissions in China including "Tex" Hill, one of Chennault's most loyal devotees, with others remaining for a two-week transition period. (U.S. airmen and the press continued to use the "Flying Tiger" name to refer to USAAF units in China to the end of the war, and the name continues to be applied to certain air force and army aviation squadrons.) Most AVG pilots became transport pilots in China, went back to America into civilian jobs, or rejoined the military services and fought elsewhere in the war.


title: Flying Tigers

text: One of the pilots drawn to the success of the AVG was Robert Lee Scott, Jr. who was flying supplies into Kunming over the Hump from India. He convinced Chennault to loan him a P-40 which he flew to protect the supply route; his aggressiveness led to Chennault's recruiting him as commander of the 23rd Fighter Group. Scott brought recognition to his exploits and those of the Flying Tigers with his 1943 bestselling autobiography "God is My Co-Pilot" that was then made by Warner Bros. into a popular film in 1945.


title: Flying Tigers

text: There are several museum displays in the United States honoring the Flying Tigers. The National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, has an extensive display dedicated to the AVG, including an A-2 jacket worn by an AVG pilot in China, a banner presented to the AAF by the Chinese government, and a P-40E. The National Museum of Naval Aviation in Pensacola, Florida also has a Flying Tiger display. The Chennault Aviation Museum in Monroe, Louisiana, has an extensive collection of Flying Tigers and AVG memorabilia. The AVG monument in the National Museum of the United States Air Force Memorial Garden features a marble sculpture of a pagoda crowned with a brass model of a P-40; the monument stands nearly 14 feet tall. The Palm Springs Air Museum has a display of memorabilia inside a mockup of AVG ground facilities, with a P-40N painted in AVG markings. Finally, a memorial to the AVG and 14th AF is located at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, depicting a P-40 in AVG markings with a bronze plaque describing the unit's history and Vandenberg's role as headquarters for the 14th AF.


title: Flying Tigers

text: There are also several memorials to the AVG in Asia. In Chiang Mai, Thailand, a marble obelisk was dedicated on 11 November 2003, inscribed to Chennault; to Jack Newkirk, who was killed in North Thailand on 24 March 1942; and to Charles Mott and William McGarry, who were shot down and captured in Thailand. In Taiwan, Madame Chiang Kai-Shek requested a statue of Chennault in the New Park of Taipei to commemorate this wartime friend after his death (the statue has since been relocated to Hualian AFB). A Flying Tigers Memorial is located in the village of Zhijiang, Hunan Province, China and there is a museum dedicated exclusively to the Flying Tigers. The building is a steel and marble structure, with wide sweeping steps leading up to a platform with columns holding up the memorial's sweeping roof; on its back wall, etched in black marble, are the names of all members of the AVG, 75th Fighter Squadron, and 14th Air Force who died in China. In 2005, the city of Kunming held a ceremony memorializing the history of the Flying Tigers in China, and on 20 December 2012, the Flying Tigers Museum opened in Kunming. The date is the 71st anniversary of the first combat from Kunming of the Flying Tigers. The Memorial Cemetery to Anti-Japanese Aviator Martyrs in Nanjing, China features a wall listing the names of Flying Tiger pilots and other pilots who defended China in World War II, and has several unmarked graves for such American pilots.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The largest private museum in China, "Chengdu Jianchuan Museum", devotes a wing in its military section to the history of the Flying Tigers, including a tribute wall featuring a thousand porcelain photos of members of the Flying Tigers as well as many historical artifacts from the era.


title: Flying Tigers

text: In March 2015, the Flying Tiger Heritage Park was opened in Guilin in collaboration with the Flying Tiger Historical Organization. The park is built on the site of Yangtang Airfield and includes a museum, aircraft shelters, and relics of a command post located in a cave.


title: Flying Tigers

text: General Chennault retired to Monroe, Louisiana. The University of Louisiana at Monroe changed its mascots to the "Warhawks" in his honor, and a micro-brewery named Flying Tiger Brewery opened in downtown Monroe in November 2016.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The wreckage of a P-40 with CAF serial number "P-8115" is on display in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The aircraft is believed to be that flown by William "Mac" McGarry when he was hit by anti-aircraft fire while flying top cover over Chiang Mai on 24 March 1942. The aircraft crashed into the rain forest in northern Thailand. McGarry was captured and interrogated, and spent most of the war in a Thai prison. Toward the end of the war the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) arranged for the Free Thai Movement to spirit him out of the prison to a PBY Catalina in the Gulf of Thailand. The wreck of his P-40 was discovered in 1991, and consists of the P-40's Allison engine, Hamilton Standard propeller and parts of the airframe. Today the wreckage is displayed at the Tango Squadron Wing 41 Museum in Chiang Mai, Thailand.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The wreck of another AVG P-40 is believed to be in Lake Dianchi (Lake Kunming). The fighter is believed to be a P-40E piloted by John Blackburn when it crashed into the lake on a gunnery training flight on 28 April 1942, killing the pilot. His body was recovered from the aircraft, which was submerged in 20 feet of water. In 1997 a U.S.-Chinese group called the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation was formed to locate the aircraft and possibly raise and restore it. In March 1998, they contacted the China Expedition Association about conducting the recovery operation. Over 300 aircraft are believed to have crashed into Lake Dianchi (including a second AVG P-40) so locating the aircraft proved difficult. In 2003, an aircraft believed to be Blackburn's was found embedded in nine feet of bottom silt. An effort was made in September 2005 to raise the aircraft, but the recovery was plagued with difficulties and it remains deep under the lake bottom. Since the aircraft was complete and relatively undamaged when John Blackburn's body was removed from it in 1942, it is hoped that the aircraft will be in good condition and capable of being restored, possibly to flying condition.


title: Flying Tigers

text: On 6 October 1944, the Flying Tigers engaged a Japanese squadron over southern Hunan and a P-40N was shot down. The local authorities assembled a rescue team to rush to the spot; upon arrival, the team found that the plane had been torn to pieces and the pilot was dead. A group of locals covered the pilot's body with a red cloth and carried it to the county township. After a mourning ceremony, he was buried and a gravestone erected for the locals to pay respect on Tomb-Sweeping Day. On 25 May 2005, an American organization seeking to document airmen lost in China during the war was warmly welcomed and helped by the local people. After three days work, the remains of the pilot and his aircraft were recovered and transported to Hawaii. DNA testing later confirmed the pilot as Second Lt. Robert Hoyle Upchurch of North Carolina, USA.


title: Flying Tigers

text: Just before their 50th reunion in 1992, the AVG veterans were retroactively recognized as members of the U.S. military services during the seven months the group was in combat against the Japanese. The AVG was then awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for "professionalism, dedication to duty, and extraordinary heroism." In 1996, the U.S. Air Force awarded the pilots the Distinguished Flying Cross and the ground crew were all awarded the Bronze Star Medal.


title: Flying Tigers

text: A number of feature films have referenced the AVG directly or indirectly, the most famous being "Flying Tigers", a 1942 black-and-white film from Republic, starring John Wayne and John Carroll as fighter pilots. Other wartime films with an AVG angle included "The Sky's the Limit" (1943, starring Fred Astaire as a Flying Tiger ace on leave); "Hers to Hold" (1943, with Joseph Cotten); "God is My Co-Pilot", (1945, with Dennis Morgan as Robert Lee Scott, Raymond Massey as Chennault, and John Ridgely as Tex Hill); and "China's Little Devils" (1945).


title: Flying Tigers

text: The two lead characters of the television series Tales of the Gold Monkey, Jake Cutter and Corky, were formerly members of the Flying Tigers, the former a pilot and the latter a mechanic. Several episodes featured flashbacks or characters from their time with the AVG.


title: Flying Tigers

text: Similarly, the Flying Tigers have been the focus of several novels, including "Tonya", by Pappy Boyington; "Remains", by Daniel Ford; "Spies in the Garden", by Bob Bergin, "Tiger Ten" by William D. Blankenship, "Wings of a Flying Tiger" and "Will of a Tiger", both written by Dr. Iris Yang. "Tiger, Lion, Hawk", a novel for younger readers, was written by Earle Rice Jr. The "Star Wars" reference book "The Essential Guide to Warfare" features an X-wing starfighter squadron named the "Lightspeed Panthers". Co-author Paul R. Urquhart confirmed in the book's endnotes that the squadron was intended to be a direct reference to the Flying Tigers. "", a 2017 video game developed and published by Ace Maddox, is based on the Flying Tigers.


title: Flying Tigers

text: The Air Force Falcons football team saluted the Chinese military and the United States Navy and Marine Corps by wearing special Flying Tigers uniforms, including sharktooth designs on the helmets, for two games during the 2016 college football season. The team first wore the uniform for its 10 September game against Georgia State, and again for the Arizona Bowl against South Alabama.


title: Flying Tigers

text: In the movie Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow the "Sky Captain" Joe Sullivan mentioned that he flew with the Flying Tigers.


title: Flying Tigers

text: A couple of months before the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine, founder of Blackwater USA, Erik Prince, suggested to the Biden administration on sending the Ukraine surplus military aircraft piloted by former U.S. servicemen, similar to what the U.S. did with the Flying Tigers, as a deterrent. But the proposal was flat-out rejected by the administration.


title: Aharen-san wa Hakarenai

text: In his first year of high school, making friends is not so easy for Raido Matsuboshi. One day in class, Raido tries to talk to his classmate next to him and thinks she is ignoring him, but later realizes she was shunned by her previous classmates for being clingy, awkward, and timid. Raido decides to help said classmate, Reina Aharen, to come out of her shell and befriend her for whatever it takes, and in turn coming out of his own rather odd shell.


title: Aharen-san wa Hakarenai

text: An anime television series adaptation was announced on July 31, 2021. The series was produced by Felix Film and was directed by Tomoe Makino, with Yasutaka Yamamoto serving as chief director, Takao Yoshioka overseeing the scripts, Yūko Yahiro designing the characters, and Satoru Kōsaki and MONACA composing the music. It aired from April 2 to June 18, 2022, on the Animeism programming block on MBS, TBS, and BS-TBS. The opening theme song is by TrySail, while the ending theme song is by HaKoniwalily. Crunchyroll has licensed the series.


title: Aharen-san wa Hakarenai

text: On April 11, 2022, Crunchyroll announced that the series would receive an English dub, which premiered on April 15.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Jacques Romain Georges Brel (, ; 8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and actor who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following—initially in Belgium and France, later throughout the world. He is considered a master of the modern chanson.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Although he recorded most of his songs in French and occasionally in Dutch, he became an influence on English-speaking songwriters and performers, such as Scott Walker, David Bowie, Alex Harvey, Marc Almond, Neil Hannon, and Rod McKuen. English translations of his songs were recorded by many performers, including Bowie, Walker, Ray Charles, Judy Collins, John Denver, The Kingston Trio, Nina Simone, Shirley Bassey, James Dean Bradfield, Frank Sinatra, and Andy Williams.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Brel was a successful actor, appearing in 10 films. He directed two films, one of which, "Le Far West", was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1973. Having sold over 25 million records worldwide, Brel is the third-best-selling Belgian recording artist of all time. Brel married Thérèse "Miche" Michielsen in 1950, and the couple had three children. He also had a romantic relationship with actress and dancer Maddly Bamy from 1972 until his death in 1978.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Jacques Romain Georges Brel was born on 8 April 1929 in Schaerbeek, Brussels, to Élisabeth Lambertine "Lisette" ("née" Van Adorp) and Romain Brel. He came from a family of Flemish descent (who had adopted the French language); part of his family originated in Zandvoorde, near Ypres. His father worked for Cominex, an import–export firm, and later became co-director of a company that manufactured cardboard. Jacques and his older brother Pierre grew up in an austere household, and attended a Catholic primary school, École Saint-Viateur, run by the order of Saint Viator. Remembered as a courteous and manageable pupil, Brel did well in reading and writing, but struggled through arithmetic and Dutch. The boys were also members of the local Boy Scout troop, and enjoyed their time at summer camp and on family outings to the North Sea coast. In Brussels, the family lived at 138 Avenue du Diamant in Schaerbeek, then moved to 26 Boulevard Belgica in Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, and finally settled at 7 Rue Jacques-Manne in Anderlecht. Brel was close to his mother, fascinated by her generosity and sense of humour, which he inherited.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In September 1941, his parents enrolled Brel at the Institut Saint-Louis at rue du Marais near the Botanical Garden of Brussels. Although he did poorly in many subjects, he did well in History and French, and showed a talent for writing. He helped set up the school's drama club, taking on his first stage roles with great enthusiasm. He wrote short stories, poems, and essays. In 1944, at the age of 15, Brel began playing the guitar. The following year he formed his own theatre group with friends and began writing plays. In the spring of 1947, during his final year at Saint-Louis, Brel wrote a short story titled "Frédéric" for a school magazine "Le Grand Feu" ("The Great Fire"). Published pseudonymously, the story is about a man on his deathbed who encourages his grandson to run away while the rest of the family makes arrangements for his funeral. Despite his growing talent for writing, Brel was not a good student, and failed many of his exams.


title: Jacques Brel

text: With an academic career not in his future, the 18-year-old Brel went to work at his father's cardboard factory in August 1947. His job at Vanneste and Brel was predictable and uninspiring—a routine that involved fixing prices and meeting customers. Apart from joining the company football team, he showed little interest in the company's social activities and events. Perhaps to offset the boredom of his daily office routine, he joined a local Catholic youth organisation, La Franche Cordée (FC), which had as its motto, "More is within you." Dedicated to philanthropic work, the group organised religious retreats, fundraising events, and food and clothing deliveries to orphanages and old people's homes. Brel supported these activities with great enthusiasm and believed strongly in FC's mission. His parents were pleased with their son's dedication, and provided him with the company van and family car to support his FC activities.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In June 1948, Brel enlisted for military service, did his basic training in Limbourg, and served as a corporal in the Belgian air force stationed at Groenveld barracks in Zellik near Brussels. Throughout his military service, Brel was still able to attend FC meetings. While working at FC, Brel met his future wife, Thérèse Michielsen, known to her friends as "Miche". On 1 June 1950, Jacques and Miche were married at Laeken, a suburb of the City of Brussels. On 6 December 1951, Miche gave birth to their first daughter, Chantal.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1952 Brel began writing songs and performing them at family gatherings and on Brussels' cabaret circuit. His family and friends were not supportive of his stark lyrics and violent, emotional performances. That year he performed on a local radio station for the first time.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In January 1953, Brel performed at the cabaret La Rose Noire in Brussels. In February he signed a contract with Philips Records and recorded his first 78 rpm record, "Il Y A", which was released in March. The talent scout and artistic director at the record company, Jacques Canetti, invited him to move to Paris. Despite his family's objections and the added pressure of raising a second daughter, France, born on 12 July, he left Brussels for Paris in the autumn of 1953. In Paris Brel worked hard to get his career off the ground. He stayed at the Hotel Stevens and gave guitar lessons to artist-dancer Francesco Frediani to pay his rent. He found work on the cabaret circuit at venues such as L'Écluse, L'Échelle de Jacob, and in Jacques Canetti's cabaret Les Trois Baudets.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1954 Brel participated in the music contest Grand Prix de la Chanson in Knokke-le-Zoute, finishing a disappointing 27th out of 28 participants. One positive result of the experience was that the French star Juliette Gréco requested to sing one of Brel's songs, "Le diable (Ça va)" (The devil (It's OK)), at her up-and-coming concert at the prestigious Olympia music-hall. She went on to record the song that spring. In July 1954, Brel made his first appearance at the prestigious Olympia Theatre in Paris. Later that summer, he embarked on his first French tour, appearing on the bill with French singers Dario Moreno, Philippe Clay, and Catherine Sauvage. By the end of the year, Philips released his debut album, a nine-song, 10-inch LP called "Jacques Brel et ses Chansons" ("Jacques Brel and His Songs").


title: Jacques Brel

text: In February 1955, Brel met Georges "Jojo" Pasquier, who would become the singer's closest friend, manager, and personal chauffeur. He began singing with a number of Christian associations, which later led to his nickname of Abbé ("Abbot") Brel. In March Brel's wife and children joined him in France and the family settled in the Paris suburb of Montreuil-sous-Bois at the rue du Moulin à vent. In June he toured France again with Canetti's show "Les Filles de Papa", which included Françoise Dorin, Perrette Souplex, and Suzanne Gabriello.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In March 1956, Brel performed in North Africa, Amsterdam, Lausanne, and throughout Belgium. In July, while visiting Grenoble, he met François Rauber, a classical pianist who would become his accompanist on future recordings. Rauber played a major role in providing Brel with the formal musical training he was lacking and was responsible for Brel's musical arrangements. In September Brel recorded "Quand on n'a que l'amour" ("When You Only Have Love"), which would prove to be his commercial breakthrough. The song was released in November on a Philips 7-inch EP "Quand on n'a que l'amour". The song reached number three on the French music charts.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In February 1957, Brel performed at the Alhambra Theatre with Maurice Chevalier, Michel Legrand, and ballet dancer Zizi Jeanmaire. In April he released his second studio album, "Quand on n'a que l'amour", which contained the popular title song. The album was recorded at the Théâtre de l'Apollo in Paris, with André Popp and Michel Legrand conducting. In June he won the prestigious Grand Prix du Disque from the Académie Charles Cros. In September he appeared on the bill in the Discorama programme "Au Palace d'Avignon" with Raymond Devos, Pierre-Jean Vaillard, and Les Trois Ménestrels. In November he met Gérard Jouannest, another talented pianist, who would accompany the singer on his many concert tours. Brel and Jouannest would also collaborate on many of Brel's future classic songs, such as "Madeleine", "La Chanson des vieux amants" ("Song of the old lovers"), and "Les Vieux" ("The old folks").


title: Jacques Brel

text: In February 1958, Brel's wife Miche and their two children returned to live in Belgium, while Brel rented a room near Place de Clichy in Paris—a place to stay on those rare occasions when he was not touring. In March and April, he recorded his third album, "Au Printemps" ("In the spring"), which would be released later that year. In May, while touring Canada for the first time, he met Félix Leclerc. On 23 August, his third daughter, Isabelle, was born back in Belgium. In November he gave a recital at the Halles d'Arlon in Belgian Luxembourg with Stéphane Steeman. In December Brel appeared at the Olympia in Paris as the supporting act to Philippe Clay. The pianist Gérard Jouannest and François Rauber joined Brel on stage for this performance. Brel's incredibly emotional performance brought the house down.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In January 1959, Brel signed a new recording contract with Philips Records. He continued to tour extensively throughout the year. On 22 February, he performed at the Bolivie Gala in the Solvay Casino in Couillet. In March he starred at the Trois Baudets with Serge Gainsbourg. In September he recorded his fourth album, "La Valse à Mille Temps" (The thousand-beat waltz), with François Rauber and his orchestra. On 14 October, he appeared at the Eden in Mouscron with Raymond Devos. On 20 November, he sang with Charles Aznavour at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels. By the end of the decade, he had gained an impressive and enthusiastic following across France. He was so popular that he was invited to headline the end-of-year concert at the renowned Bobino in Paris. The concert was an enormous success. During these appearances, he stopped accompanying himself on the guitar to concentrate entirely on his increasingly theatrical vocal performances.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In January 1960, Brel's new impresario, Charles Marouani, organised a series of international concert tours for the singer that would take him from the French provinces to the then Soviet Union, the Middle East, Canada, and the United States. From 19 to 24 March, he appeared at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels. On 19 October, he performed at Shepheard's Hotel in Cairo. The year's concert tours brought him international recognition and popularity. His appearances initiated the first United States release of a Jacques Brel recording, "American Début", released on Columbia Records. It was a compilation of previously released Philips tracks.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In January 1961, Brel made a triumphant return to the Bobino. By now, the accordionist Jean Corti had joined his touring group. Between 22 February and 12 April, he recorded his fifth album for Philips simply titled "No. 5", which introduced the future Brel classics "Marieke" and "Le Moribond" (The dying man). In March he toured Canada again. In Montreal he met French actress and singer Clairette Oddera at her club on the rue Saint-Jacques. They would become good friends. While in Montreal, he appeared with Raymond Devos at La Comédie Canadienne. In May Brel performed at the Kurhaus of Scheveningen in The Hague in the Netherlands. From 12 to 29 October, he returned to the Olympia music hall in Paris with star billing, after Marlene Dietrich cancelled at the last minute. Many critics point to these inspired performances as the turning point in his career. The audiences responded with rapturous applause and the critics proclaimed him as the new star of French chanson.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In March 1962, Brel left Philips Records and signed a five-year contract with Barclay Records. The contract was to be renewed in 1967 for another six years. His first album release for his new label was a live album, "Enregistrement Public à l'Olympia 1961", recorded the previous year. On 6 March, he recorded his first song for Barclay, "Le plat Pays" (The flat country). During the second week of March, he recorded the remaining tracks for his sixth studio album, "Les Bourgeois" (The bourgeois). In addition to the title song and "Le plat Pays", the new album contained the future Brel classics "Madeleine", "Les Biches" (The does), and "La Statue" (The statue). In October, Brel set up his own music publishing company, Arlequin, which was soon renamed Éditions Musicales Pouchenel. Brel's wife Miche was appointed company director. In November he recorded "Les Bigotes", "Quand Maman reviendra" (When mother returns), "Les Filles et les chiens" (Girls and dogs), and "La Parlote" (The gossip) as singles.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In April 1963, Brel performed again at the Bobino in Paris. In July he headlined at the Casino in Knokke for the fifth Coupe d'Europe de Tour de Chant. During this engagement, he performed the classic "Mathilde" for the first time. He also returned for another triumphant engagement at the Olympia in Paris, performing with Isabelle Aubret, who was the support act. Once again, his performance was a critical and artistic success, with the audience leaping up from their seats in a standing ovation following his emotional rendering of "Amsterdam".


title: Jacques Brel

text: The year 1964 brought a mix of personal tragedies and professional triumphs. On 8 January, Brel's father, Romain, died of bronchial pneumonia. Only two months later, on 7 March, his mother, Élisabeth (nicknamed Mouky), also died. At the same time, he was given the Gold Medal of Brussels from the Tourist Information Bureau and won a prize from the Société d'Auteurs Belge/Belgische Auteurs Maatschappij (SABAM). He was also awarded the French Academy's Grand Prix du Disque. He continued his ambitious touring schedule. By the end of the year, he released a new live album, "Enregistrement Public à l'Olympia 1964". That year, he discovered a new passion, aviation. After taking flying lessons with Paul Lepanse, he purchased a small plane. In the United States, his audience was growing. American poet and singer Rod McKuen began translating Brel's songs into English, and the Kingston Trio recorded one of his English versions on their "Time to Think" album, "Seasons in the Sun", based on Brel's "Le Moribond" (The dying man).


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1965 Reprise Records licensed tracks from Barclay for a United States album titled "Jacques Brel". On 25 March, he performed at the Kurhaus of Scheveningen in the Netherlands. In October he completed a successful five-week tour of the Soviet Union, which included a week's engagement at the Estrada Theatre in Moscow. On 6 November, he was back in France, recording the songs "Fernand", "Les Désespérés" (The despaired), and "Ces gens-là" (These people) for Barclay. On 4 December, he appeared at the prestigious Carnegie Hall in New York City. His performance was received with high public and critical acclaim.


title: Jacques Brel

text: By 1966 Brel had grown increasingly weary of his grueling concert schedules. In April he toured Djibouti, Madagascar, Reunion Island, and Mauritius. On 21 August, while on tour in Vittel, he revealed to his musicians his decision to retire from touring. In subsequent public statements, Brel stated that he had nothing more to give to the music world and that he wanted to devote more time to other projects. In October 1966, he gave a series of farewell concerts at the Olympia in Paris. Thousands of devoted fans flocked to see these final performances, which took place over the course of three weeks. On 1 November, he gave his final concert at the Olympia. After a highly emotional and stunning performance, the audience's standing ovations prompted him to return to the stage seven times for his final bows. He spent the next six months fulfilling his concert commitments. On 15 November, he gave his farewell performance at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. Later that month, he gave his final UK performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London. During these last months of his world tour, many of his close friends, including Charles Aznavour, urged him to reconsider his decision to retire from singing, but he was adamant about his decision. On 4 December, he returned to Carnegie Hall in New York City and gave inspired performances before enthusiastic fans. By then, several English recordings of his songs were on the charts, including Damita Jo's "If You Go Away" (based on "Ne me quitte pas"), Judy Collins' "The Dove" (based on "La Colombe"), and Glenn Yarbrough's "The Women" (based on "Les Biches").


title: Jacques Brel

text: In January 1967, Brel finished recording songs for a new studio album, "Jacques Brel 67", which was released later in the year. The album included "Mon Enfance" (My childhood), "Fils de..." (Sons of...), "Les bonbons 67" (The candies 67), and "La Chanson des vieux amants" (Song of the old lovers). In late January, he returned to Carnegie Hall and gave one final performance. While in New York, he went to see "Man of La Mancha", a musical based on Miguel de Cervantes' novel "Don Quixote", at the ANTA Washington Square Theatre in Greenwich Village. Moved by the experience, he began planning a French language production of the musical for Europe. He returned to France in the spring and, on 16 May 1967, he gave his final concert performance in Roubaix in northern France. Toward the end of the year, with vague plans of sailing around the world, Brel purchased a yacht.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Following his retirement from the concert stage, Brel's professional life focused on film. He would record only four more studio albums in the last decade of his life. In September 1968, he recorded the songs for the album, "J'arrive" (I'm coming), which was released later in the year. In addition to the title song, the album included "Vesoul", "Je suis un soir d'été" (I am a summer's evening), and "Un Enfant" (A child). In October 1968, his musical "L'Homme de La Mancha" ("Man of La Mancha") premièred in Brussels, with Brel playing Don Quixote and Dario Moreno playing Sancho Panza. Moreno would die tragically only ten days before the musical's Paris première. From 23 to 27 November, Brel and his fellow cast-members recorded the studio album "L'Homme de la Mancha". He adapted the book, translated the lyrics, directed the production, and played the lead role. This was the only time he ever adapted songs by other writers or appeared in a stage musical. The album contains his classic performance of "La Quête" (The quest). Moreno was replaced by Robert Manuel, and the first performance at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris went ahead as planned on 11 December 1968. Brel's performance received unanimous praise. After 150 performances of "L'Homme de La Mancha", he gave his final performance in the role of Don Quixote on 17 May 1969. He was never replaced.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In March 1970 Brel gave a one-off performance at the Salle Pleyel in Paris. Unusually this did not involve singing but instead recitation. In the first half of the performance he recited Sergei Prokoviev's famous story, 'Peter and the Wolf'. In the second half he told the tale of Jean de Brunhoff's 'Babar the Elephant'.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1972 Brel signed a special 30-year contract with Barclay Records. Although there were no new songs to record, Barclay persuaded him to return to the studio to re-record 11 of the better-known songs he cut for Philips Records during the early years of his music career. The result was the album "Ne me quitte pas" (Don't leave me), which contained the title track, "Marieke", "Les Flamandes" (Flemish women), "Quand on n'a que l'amour" (When you only have love), "Les Biches" (The does), "Le Moribond" (The dying man), "La Valse à mille temps" (The waltz in thousand time), and "Je ne sais pas" (I don't know). His earlier youthful energy was now lovingly harnessed by his longtime colleagues, arranger François Rauber and pianist Gerard Jouannest.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1967 Brel began his film career, appearing in André Cayatte's "Les risques du métier" (Risky business), co-starring Emmanuelle Riva, Jacques Harden, and Nadine Alari. Brel also produced the soundtrack with François Rauber. The film tells the story of a teenage girl who accuses her primary schoolteacher, Jean Doucet (Brel), of trying to rape her. The police and the mayor investigate, but Doucet denies the charges. Two other students come forward to reveal more of Doucet's misconduct—one confessing to be his mistress. Doucet faces trial and hard labour if convicted. The film was released on 21 December 1967. Film critics praised Brel's performance.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1968 Brel appeared in his second film, "La Bande à Bonnot" (The Bonnot gang), directed by Philippe Fourastié and co-starring Annie Girardot and Bruno Cremer. Once again, Brel produced the soundtrack with François Rauber. The story is set in 1911 Paris. Raymond-la-science (Brel), an anarchist, is released from prison after serving a sentence for spreading agitation among his co-workers. He meets up with his friends who live together with their families in the villa of their political leader. They get involved with the notorious Bonnot gang—gangsters who revolt against society by robbing, stealing, and killing. The film was released on 30 October 1968.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1969 Brel appeared in his third film, "Mon oncle Benjamin" (My uncle Benjamin), directed by Édouard Molinaro and co-starring Claude Jade and Bernard Blier. He also produced the soundtrack. The film is a period piece, set in 1750 during the reign of Louis XV. Benjamin (Brel) is a country doctor in love with the beautiful innkeeper's daughter, Manette, but she refuses his advances until he produces a marriage contract. After suffering a humiliating practical joke and being condemned to prison, Benjamin escapes with Manette, who realises she prefers happiness to a marriage contract after all. The film was released on 28 November 1969.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1970 Brel appeared in his fourth feature film, "Mont-Dragon", directed by Jean Valère and co-starring François Prévost, Paul le Person, and Catherine Rouvel, with a screen play by Robert Margerit. The story involves a soldier, Georges Dormond (Brel), who seduces Germaine de Boismesnil and is subsequently driven out of the army by one of Germaine's friends who is a colonel. After Germaine's husband dies, Dormond returns to the widow's castle seeking revenge. After seducing Pierrette the maid, he reminds Germaine of their past love affair and arranges a meeting with the widow, during which he undresses her, humiliates her, and then leaves. The orphan Marthe, who witnesses the scene, throws herself at Gaston, the colonel's orderly, to avenge her mother. Georges ridicules their feelings and forces Germaine to reveal her attachment to Pierrette, thereby causing a scandal. The film was released on 16 December 1970.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1971 Brel appeared in his fifth feature film, "Franz", the first film he directed. Brel also co-wrote the screenplay with Paul Andréota and produced the soundtrack with François Rauber. The film co-starred Barbara, Danièle Evenou, Fernand Fabre, Serge Sauvions, Louis Navarre, Jacques Provins, and François Cadet. The film is about Léon (Brel) and Léonie (Barbara), who meet in a convalescent home for state employees in Blankenberge: Catherine (Danièle Evenou) is Léonie's friend. Léonie is shy and reserved while Catherine is loose and flirtatious. Most men are attracted to her vitality, but Léon is the exception. Léonie is intrigued by Léon's secretive personality. She gradually becomes attracted to his clumsy behaviour and they fall in love. The other residents, amused by this unlikely love affair, decide to obstruct their relationship, which drives Léon to suicide. The film was released on 2 February 1972, and although praised by the critics, it was not a commercial success.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1971 Brel appeared in his sixth feature film, "Les Assassins de l'ordre" (Law breakers), directed by Marcel Carné and co-starring Paola Pitagora, Catherine Rouvel, and Charles Denner. Brel plays Bernard Level, a provincial judge, who presides over a delicate case. A man who was arrested for a minor crime died during police questioning. When Level decides to prosecute the policemen and initiates an investigation, he receives threats and intimidation from those wanting to stop the investigation. The film was released on 7 May 1971.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1972 Brel appeared in his seventh feature film, "L'aventure, c'est l'aventure" (The adventure is the adventure), directed by Claude Lelouch. The story follows five crooks who decide to switch from bank robbery to political kidnapping. Among their first hostages is singer Johnny Hallyday. The film was released 4 May 1972, and became a huge box-office smash. While filming "L'aventure, c'est l'aventure" on location in the Caribbean, Brel met and fell in love with a young actress and dancer by the name of Maddly Bamy. Brel would spend the final years of his life with her.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1972 Brel appeared in his eighth feature film, "Le Bar de la fourche" (The bar at the crossing), directed by Alain Levent and co-starring Rosy Varte and Isabelle Huppert. Brel plays Vincent Van Horst, a hard-drinking "bon vivant" who loves his freedom and his women. In 1916 he leaves Europe, which is torn apart by the war, and moves to Canada, intending to meet up with Maria, the only woman he ever loved. On the way to Canada, he meets a young boy who dreams about fighting in the European war. When Vincent arrives at the Bar de la Fourche, managed by Maria, he finds her looking older. He finds consolation in another woman, Annie, who looks down on him and drives Vincent and Olivier to fight a duel against each other. The film was released on 23 August 1972.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1973 Brel appeared in his ninth feature film, "Le Far West", his second directorial effort. The film co-starred Gabriel Jabbour, Danielle Evenou, and Arlette Lindon. The story is about Jacques, a 40-year-old citizen of Brussels, who meets the fakir Abracadabra who, before dying, gives him a special power. Jacques meets Gabriel, a generous man, who dresses up as Davy Crockett, and who follows Jacques without asking questions. The two companions and other new friends set out to conquer the Far West, their childhood—just as Voltaire sought El Dorado, and Saint-Exupéry the unknown planet. The Far West they seek cannot be found, because it is an imaginary place, a piece of happiness buried in our hearts. The film was released on 15 May 1973.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1973 Brel appeared in his tenth and final feature film, "L'emmerdeur" (The troublemaker), directed by Édouard Molinaro and co-starred Lino Ventura, Caroline Cellier, and Jean-Pierre Darras. Jacques Brel and François Rauber produced the soundtrack. The story is about a contract killer, Ralph Milan, who works for the Mafia. He is paid to kill Louis Randoni, whose testimony in various trials could harm the organisation. Ralph waits for his prey in his hotel room, but is interrupted by his comical neighbour, François Pignon (Brel). The film was released on 20 September 1973.


title: Jacques Brel

text: By early 1973, Brel knew that he was ill. He prepared his will, leaving everything to his wife Miche. In the spring he recorded a new single, "L'Enfance" (Childhood), the proceeds of which he donated to La Fondation Perce Neige, an association set up to help disabled children. After completing his last film "L'emmerdeur", he took his daughters on a cruise. In November, he embarked on a two-month cruise across the Atlantic with five of his closest friends on the training ship "Le Korrig".


title: Jacques Brel

text: Brel devoted the final years of his life to his passion for sailing. On 28 February 1974, he purchased the "Askoy II", a , 42-tonne steel-hulled yawl built in Belgium in 1960. He began planning a three-year voyage to circumnavigate the world. In July, he set off on his world trip with Maddly Bamy and his daughter, France, aboard his new yacht. In August, while sailing around the Azores, he learned of the death of his old friend Jojo. He returned to France for his friend's funeral and stayed on to attend the September wedding of his daughter, Chantal. In October, following medical tests in the Canary Islands, Brel learned that he had a small tumour on his left lung. In November, he was rushed to a hospital in Brussels, where he underwent an operation. He was suffering from an advanced stage of lung cancer. Knowing his days were numbered, Brel issued a statement indicating that he wished to die alone in peace.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In January 1975, after 27 days at sea, the "Askoy II" anchored in the Fort-de-France Bay. From February to July, Brel cruised around the West Indies before going through the Panama Canal. In November, the "Askoy II" reached Atuona Bay at Hiva-Oa in the Marquesas Islands archipelago after spending 59 days crossing the Pacific Ocean. Jacques and Maddly decided to live in the Marquesas Islands, living on the "Askoy II" off the island of Hiva-Oa.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1976, Brel returned to Brussels twice for medical examinations. Against the advice of his doctors, he returned to the Marquesas, where the tropical climate was particularly unsuitable for his lungs. In June, after selling the "Askoy II", he rented a small house in Atuona on the island of Hiva-Oa. In July, he renewed his pilot's licence and took advanced flying lessons with his friend Michel Gauthier. He purchased a twin-engine plane, which he named "Jojo" in memory of his lost friend. This enabled him to travel more easily from Hiva-Oa to Tahiti. He also used the private plane to transport food and other supplies to the inhabitants of the neighbouring islands.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1977, Brel decided to record one final album. Despite his recent years away from the continent, his legend lived on in Europe and his records still sold millions of copies each year. In August, Brel returned to Paris and moved into a small hotel. He had quit smoking and, despite his poor health, was enthusiastic about working again with his faithful collaborators François Rauber and Gérard Jouannest. In September and October, Brel recorded 12 of the 17 new songs he had written in the Marquesas. The result was his final album, "Les Marquises", which included "Jaures", "Vieillir" (To grow old), "Le Bon Dieu" (The good Lord), "Orly", "Voir un Ami pleurer" (To see a friend in tears), "Jojo", and "Les Marquises". The new album was released on 17 November and was received as an historic national event in France. At Brel's request, Barclay did not run a huge promotional campaign for the album, and still, by word of mouth alone, over a million fans placed advance orders. The day the album was released, Jacques and Maddly returned to their home in the Marquesas Islands.


title: Jacques Brel

text: From January to June 1978, Jacques and Maddly lived quietly at their home on Atuona Bay on Hiva-Oa island. In July, after his health began to fail, Brel was flown back to France and rushed to a hospital in Neuilly-sur-Seine, where doctors discovered a cancerous tumour. He remained in the hospital for six weeks and then spent the rest of the summer in Southern France. On 7 October, he was rushed to hospital Avicenne in Bobigny near Paris. He died of a pulmonary embolism at 4.10 am on 9 October 1978 at the age of 49. On 12 October, his body was flown back to the Marquesas Islands, where he was buried in Calvary Cemetery in Atuona on the southern side of Hiva Oa island in the Marquesas, French Polynesia—a few yards away from the grave of artist Paul Gauguin. His widow Miche died on 31 March 2020 at the age of 93.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In the Francophone world, Brel left an enduring influence on music and culture. Further afield his influence has been somewhat tempered by differences in language, though he has influenced many artists globally. International artists (listed alphabetically below by last name) who have covered his songs include:


title: Jacques Brel

text: Brel himself occasionally included parts of his songs in Dutch, one of the three official languages of Belgium, as in "Marieke". He also recorded eight other Dutch versions of songs, such as "Mijn vlakke land" ("Le plat pays"), "Laat me niet alleen" ("Ne me quitte pas"), "Rosa", "De Burgerij" ("Les Bourgeois"), and "De Nuttelozen van de Nacht" ("Les paumés du petit matin"). Brel also recorded two obscure singles in Dutch, "De apen" ("Les Singes") and "Men vergeet niets" ("On n'oublie rien"), which were included in the 16-CD box set "Boîte à Bonbons" by Barclay. So far unreleased is the song "Als men niets dan liefde heeft" ("Quand on n'a que l'amour"). "Marieke" was translated by Brel himself. Since his own command of Dutch was poor, most of Brel's later Dutch interpretations were translated by Ernst van Altena, with Brel's cooperation, and are generally considered to be relatively true to the original French and poetic. "De Apen" was translated by Eric Franssen. "Men vergeet niets" was translated by well known Flemish artist Will Ferdy. Popular singers from the Netherlands singing Brel's songs in Dutch have been Liesbeth List, Jan Mesdag and Jeroen Willems.


title: Jacques Brel

text: English versions of Jacques Brel songs have been recorded by a wide variety of artists. Rod McKuen was one of the first American artists to discover and translate Brel's songs. Canadian Terry Jacks' version of "Seasons in the Sun" (based on Brel's "Le Moribond") became a global pop hit in 1974, topping the charts internationally. "Seasons in the Sun" has seen its own renditions recorded by artists ranging from the Beach Boys to Nirvana. McKuen and Brel formed a close friendship. McKuen later wrote, "When news of Jacques' death came, I stayed locked in my bedroom and drank for a week."


title: Jacques Brel

text: During the 1960s, other English translations emerged on the folk music scene, including "The Dove" ("La colombe"), an anti-war lament recorded both by Joan Baez and Judy Collins. This was the only translation of a Brel song written by Alasdair Clayre, an Oxford-educated Englishman who had a brief career as a singer-songwriter before becoming an author, academic, and sometime producer of BBC documentaries.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1968 an American experimental musical "Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris" made its debut. Consisting of 25 songs, the revue was performed by four vocalists, two males and two females. Jacques Brel contributed most of the music and French lyrics. English translations were provided by Eric Blau and Mort Shuman, a Brill Building songwriter responsible for such hits as "This Magic Moment", "Viva Las Vegas", "Teenager in Love", and others. The production enjoyed considerable international success, and has since played throughout the world in various productions.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Scott Walker's first three solo albums, titled "Scott", "Scott 2", and "Scott 3", released between 1967 and 1969. each contains three of the Blau–Shuman translations. The songs on the first of these, and Walker's single release of "Jackie", were the earliest releases of the Blau-Shuman translations. Several of the original songs on these albums, and on the later "Scott 4", can be seen as heavily influenced by Brel. The compilation "Scott Walker Sings Jacques Brel" contains all the Brel material that Walker covered on record. Walker also performed five Brel songs on his television series.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In the 1970s, David Bowie began singing Brel's "Amsterdam" at a BBC session with John Peel and Evilan Tom. This version was released as the B-side to "Sorrow" in 1973, and was released as a bonus track on the 1990 reissue of "Pin Ups". Dave Van Ronk also recorded this song, earlier, on "Van Ronk". Bowie also sang "My Death" during his Ziggy Stardust period. This popular concert piece was never recorded in the studio. It appears on two of David Bowie's live albums: "Live Santa Monica '72" and "Ziggy Stardust - The Motion Picture". A similar version of this song was also recorded by Show of Hands.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Alex Harvey recorded "Next" ("Au suivant"), giving a on the "Old Grey Whistle Test" in December 1973.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In the early 1980s, a second Brel revue, "Encore Brel", was produced in Canada, a performance of which was aired on CBC Radio. In addition to Alasdair Clayre's "The Dove", the revue used mostly Brel's later songs, including "Friend, Don't Let Me See You Cry" ("Voir un Ami pleurer") and "To Grow Old" ("Vieillir").


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1986 Momus and more recently Barb Jungr recorded new English translations of "Ne me quitte pas" which are much nearer to the original. Jungr used a translation titled "Don't leave me now" by Des de Moor. Momus translated and recorded "Don't Leave Me" because he was dissatisfied with the dominant English translations to date. "People always sing the versions by Rod McKuen, which are highly sentimentalised, or the versions by Mort Shuman which are better but still really Americanised. To me the strength of Brel is that he doesn't come from the American tradition of songwriting, it's a strongly European thing."


title: Jacques Brel

text: In 1989, Marc Almond, who had performed Brel songs on his early albums with Marc and the Mambas, released his successful "Jacques", an album composed solely of Jacques Brel songs. In 1991 he released "Jacky", which became a successful hit single. During his concerts, Almond nearly always plays at least one Brel song.


title: Jacques Brel

text: In the 1990s, Brel's widow said that Arnold Johnston, a professor at Western Michigan University, translated Brel's work more accurately than Blau and Shuman, and eventually gave Dr. Johnston exclusive rights to translate Brel's work into English. Dr. Johnston recorded the album "I'm Here!", a collection of twenty songs, using a grant from the university. In 1991, the American band Vambo Marble Eye recorded a version of "Next" for their album "Two Trick Pony", 18 years after an English-language version of the song by the Sensational Alex Harvey Band in 1973, from their "Next" album.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Actor / singer Peter Straker debuted his tribute show to Brel in 1997 at the Edinburgh Fringe, and subsequently in a new version at the King's Head Theatre, London in 2004. In 2013 Straker released both a studio album and live DVD under the title "Peter Straker's Brel".


title: Jacques Brel

text: Belgian-German singer Dieter Kaiser has translated 30 of Brel's songs and has gathered them in a booklet with over 100 other French chansons in German. Kaiser also issued a CD in German and a CD in French with various chansons of Brel. Klaus Hoffmann is another important German interpreter of Brel's songs, as is the Austrian actor Michael Heltau, who was asked by Brel himself to record his songs, using the translation of Werner Schneyder.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Other language versions of Jacques Brel songs have been recorded by a wide variety of artists throughout the world. The most frequently recorded song in other languages is "Ne me quitte pas" (Don't leave me), with at least 1400 different recorded versions in 52 different languages. Most English versions use the freely translated "If You Go Away" by Rod McKuen, sung by Frank Sinatra and Barbra Streisand. Marlene Dietrich recorded the German version "Bitte geh' nicht fort" in 1963. At least 26 songs by Brel were translated to Hebrew (according to the Shironet website), and many of these translated versions were recorded by prominent singers, among them the famous Yossi Banai. Paris-based Colombian salsa singer Yuri Buenaventura performed the Spanish version, "No me dejes mas". Slovak chanteuse Hana Hegerová made the Czech version "Lásko prokletá" one of the pillars of her repertoire. Russian rock group Mumiy Troll recorded the Russian version, "Когда ты уйдёшь". Slovenian actor and songwriter Jure Ivanušič released the CD "Srce v kovčku" with his 16 authorial translations of Brel's songs into Slovenian in 2011. Armenian poet Slavik Chiloyan, who met Brel in Yerevan in 1968, translated a number of Brel's songs into Armenian. In 1968 singer Salome recorded the Catalan version "No em deixis mai". In 1970 Patty Pravo published the Italian version, "Non andare via", as a single, Gino Paoli had published the same version in 1962 as the B-side of his "Devi sapere" single. In 1968, English star Matt Monro and Mexican singer Angelica Maria recorded Spanish versions titled "No me dejes." In 2012, Mashrou' Leila , an indie band from Lebanon sang "ما تتركني هيك - ne me quitte pas". They performed the cover-version at Paleo Festival Nyon – (Chapiteau / Switzerland) in 2012.


title: Jacques Brel

text: Assembling a comprehensive Jacques Brel discography is difficult, because his recordings have been released in so many different permutations, in different countries and in different formats. Furthermore, releases of Brel's recordings are sometimes known by different titles. This discography is restricted to Brel's original albums, as collected and reissued on 23 September 2003 in the sixteen-CD box set of his work "Boîte à Bonbons", plus the additional album "Chansons ou Versions Inédites de Jeunesse", which was released for the first time as part of this box set. The titles listed here are the titles used in the box set. To mark the 25th anniversary of Brel's death, Barclay Records issued "Comme quand on était beau" (2003), a 3-volume DVD collection of Brel interviews and live performances as well as the compilation album "Infiniment" (2004). Both releases include five previously unpublished songs that Brel wrote in 1977: "La Cathédrale", "L'Amour est mort", "Mai 40", "Avec Élégance", and "Sans Exigences".


title: Black Wednesday

text: Black Wednesday (or the 1992 Sterling crisis) occurred on 16 September 1992 when the UK Government was forced to withdraw sterling from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM), after a failed attempt to keep its exchange rate above the lower limit required for the ERM participation. At that time, the United Kingdom held the Presidency of the Council of the European Union.


title: Black Wednesday

text: The crisis damaged the credibility of the second Major ministry in handling of economic matters. The ruling Conservative Party suffered a landslide defeat five years later at the 1997 United Kingdom general election and did not return to power until 2010. The rebounding of the UK economy in the years after Black Wednesday has been attributed to the fall in the value of sterling and the replacement of the ERM with an inflation targeting monetary stability policy.


title: Black Wednesday

text: When the ERM was set up in 1979, the United Kingdom declined to join. This was a controversial decision, as the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Geoffrey Howe, was staunchly pro-European. His successor, Nigel Lawson, whilst not at all advocating a fixed exchange rate system, nevertheless so admired the low inflationary record of West Germany as to become, by the mid-eighties, a self-styled 'exchange-rate monetarist', one viewing the Sterling-Deutschmark exchange rate as at least as reliable a guide to domestic inflation and hence to the setting of interest rates as any of the various M0-M3 measures beloved of those he labelled as "Simon Pure" monetarists. He justified this by pointing to the dependable strength of the Deutsche Mark and the reliably anti-inflationary management of the Mark by the Bundesbank, both of which he explained by citing the lasting impact in Germany of the disastrous hyperinflation of the inter-war Weimar Republic. Thus, although the UK had not joined the ERM, at Lawson's direction (and with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's reluctant acquiescence), from early-1987 to March 1988 the Treasury followed a semi-official policy of 'shadowing' the Deutsche Mark. Matters came to a head in a clash between Lawson and Thatcher's economic adviser Alan Walters, when Walters claimed that the Exchange Rate Mechanism was "half baked".


title: Black Wednesday

text: This led to Lawson's resignation as Chancellor; he was replaced by former Treasury Chief Secretary John Major who, with Douglas Hurd, the then Foreign Secretary, convinced the Cabinet to sign Britain up to the ERM in October 1990, effectively guaranteeing that the UK Government would follow an economic and monetary policy preventing the exchange rate between the pound and other member currencies from fluctuating by more than 6%. On 8 October 1990, Thatcher entered the pound into the ERM at DM 2.95 to £1. Hence, if the exchange rate ever neared the bottom of its permitted range, DM 2.773 (€1.4178 at the DM/Euro conversion rate), the government would be obliged to intervene. In 1989, the UK had inflation three times the rate of Germany, higher interest rates at 15%, and much lower labour productivity than France and Germany, which indicated the UK's different economic state in comparison to other ERM countries.


title: Black Wednesday

text: From the beginning of the 1990s, high German interest rates, set by the Bundesbank to counteract inflationary effects related to excess expenditure on German reunification, caused significant stress across the whole of the ERM. The UK and Italy had additional difficulties with their double deficits, while the UK was also hurt by the rapid depreciation of the United States dollar – a currency in which many British exports were priced – that summer. Issues of national prestige and the commitment to a doctrine that the fixing of exchange rates within the ERM was a pathway to a single European currency inhibited the adjustment of exchange rates. In the wake of the rejection of the Maastricht Treaty by the Danish electorate in a referendum in the spring of 1992, and an announcement that there would be a referendum in France as well, those ERM currencies that were trading close to the bottom of their ERM bands came under pressure from foreign exchange traders.


title: Black Wednesday

text: In the months leading up to Black Wednesday, among many other currency traders, George Soros had been building a huge short position in sterling that would become immensely profitable if the currency fell below the lower band of the ERM. Soros believed the rate at which the United Kingdom was brought into the Exchange Rate Mechanism was too high, inflation was too high (triple the German rate), and British interest rates were hurting their asset prices.


title: Black Wednesday

text: The UK government attempted to prop up the depreciating pound to avoid withdrawal from the monetary system the country had joined only two years earlier. John Major authorised the spending of billions of pounds worth of foreign currency reserves to buy up sterling being sold on the currency markets. These measures failed to prevent the pound falling below its minimum level in the ERM. The Treasury took the decision to defend sterling's position, believing that to devalue would promote inflation.


title: Black Wednesday

text: Remarks by Bundesbank President Helmut Schlesinger triggered the attack on the pound. An interview of Schlesinger by the Wall Street Journal was reported by the German financial paper Handelsblatt. In the evening of the 15 September 1992, the headline was already circulating. Schlesinger said he thought he was speaking off the record. He told the journalist that "a more comprehensive realignment" of currencies would be needed, following a recent devaluation of the Italian lira. Schlesinger later wrote that he stated a fact and this could not have triggered the crisis. This remark hugely increased pressure on the pound leading to large sterling sales.


title: Black Wednesday

text: Currency traders began a massive sell-off of pounds on Tuesday 16 September 1992. The Exchange Rate Mechanism required the Bank of England to accept any offers to sell pounds. However, the Bank of England only accepted orders during the trading day. When the markets opened in London the next morning, the Bank of England began their attempt to prop up their currency, as decided by Norman Lamont (Chancellor of the Exchequer) and Robin Leigh-Pemberton (Governor of the Bank of England). They began accepting orders of £300 million twice before 8:30 am, but to little effect. The Bank of England's intervention was ineffective because traders were dumping pounds far faster. The Bank of England continued to buy, and traders continued to sell, until Lamont told Prime Minister John Major that their pound purchasing was failing to produce results.


title: Black Wednesday

text: At 10:30 am on 16 September, the British government announced an increase in the base interest rate, from an already high 10%, to 12% to tempt speculators to buy pounds. Despite this and a promise later the same day to raise base rates again to 15%, dealers kept selling pounds, convinced that the government would not keep its promise. By 7:00 pm that evening, Lamont announced Britain would leave the ERM and rates would remain at the new level of 12%; however, on the next day the interest rate was back to 10%.


title: Black Wednesday

text: It was later revealed that the decision to withdraw had been agreed at an emergency meeting during the day between Lamont, Major, Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd, President of the Board of Trade Michael Heseltine, and Home Secretary Kenneth Clarke (the latter three all being staunch pro-Europeans as well as senior Cabinet Ministers), and that the interest rate hike to 15% had only been a temporary measure to prevent a rout in the pound that afternoon.


title: Black Wednesday

text: Other ERM countries such as Italy, whose currencies had breached their bands during the day, returned to the system with broadened bands or with adjusted central parities.


title: Black Wednesday

text: The effect of the low German interest rates, and high British interest rates, had arguably put Britain into recession as large numbers of businesses failed and the housing market crashed. Some commentators, following Norman Tebbit, took to referring to ERM as an "Eternal Recession Mechanism" after the UK fell into recession during the early 1990s. While many people in the UK recall Black Wednesday as a national disaster that permanently affected the country's international prestige, some Conservatives claim that the forced ejection from the ERM was a "Golden Wednesday" or "White Wednesday", the day that paved the way for an economic revival, with the Conservatives handing Tony Blair's New Labour a much stronger economy in 1997 than had existed in 1992 as the new economic policy swiftly devised in the aftermath of Black Wednesday led to re-establishment of economic growth with falling unemployment and inflation. Monetary policy switched to inflation targeting.


title: Black Wednesday

text: The Conservative Party government's reputation for economic excellence had been damaged to the extent that the electorate was more inclined to support a claim of the opposition of the time – that the economic recovery ought to be credited to external factors, as opposed to government policies implemented by the Conservatives. The Conservatives had recently won the 1992 general election, and the Gallup poll for September showed a small lead of 2.5% for the Conservative Party. By the October poll, following Black Wednesday, their share of the intended vote in the poll had plunged from 43% to 29%. The Conservative government then suffered a string of by-election defeats which saw its 21-seat majority eroded by December 1996. The party's performances in local government elections were similarly dismal during this time, while Labour made huge gains.


title: Black Wednesday

text: Black Wednesday was a major factor in the Conservatives finally losing the 1997 general election to Labour, who won by a landslide under the leadership of Tony Blair. The Conservatives failed to gain significant ground at the 2001 general election under the leadership of William Hague, with Labour winning another landslide majority. The Conservatives did not take Government again until David Cameron led them to victory in the 2010 general election, 13 years later. Five years later in 2015, the party won its first overall majority 23 years after its last in 1992, five months before the crisis.


title: Black Wednesday

text: In 1997, the UK Treasury estimated the cost of Black Wednesday at £3.14 billion, which was revised to £3.3 billion in 2005, following documents released under the Freedom of Information Act (earlier estimates placed losses at a much higher range of £13–27 billion). Trading losses in August and September made up a minority of the losses (estimated at £800 million) and the majority of the loss to the central bank arose from non-realised profits of a potential devaluation. Treasury papers suggested that, had the government maintained $24 billion foreign currency reserves and the pound had fallen by the same amount, the UK might have made a £2.4 billion profit on sterling's devaluation.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Hans Moke Niemann (born June 20, 2003) is an American chess grandmaster and Twitch streamer. He was awarded the Grandmaster title by FIDE on January 22, 2021. In July 2021, he won the World Open chess tournament in Philadelphia. Niemann first entered the Top 100 Junior players list at position 88 on March 1, 2019. As of September 2022, he is the sixth-highest-rated Junior in the world and 45th overall.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann is currently embroiled in an ongoing cheating controversy that began after he defeated world champion Magnus Carlsen in the third round of the 2022 Sinquefield Cup. Carlsen initially made no direct accusation, but did post a cryptic tweet, which together with ramped-up security measures in the fourth round implied an accusation of cheating. Niemann admitted to cheating in online chess twice, when he was 12 and 16 years old, but denied cheating over the board. Carlsen eventually accused Niemann of cheating in a statement on September 26. In response, Niemann filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit against Magnus Carlsen, Chess.com and Hikaru Nakamura.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann was born in San Francisco, California, and is of mixed Hawaiian and Danish ancestry. Before moving to the Netherlands at the age of 7, he attended Top of the World Elementary School in Laguna Beach, California. While attending a gifted school in Utrecht, the Netherlands, Niemann began playing chess at 8 years old. After moving back to California at 10 years old, he finished his elementary school education at Del Rey Elementary School in Orinda.


title: Hans Niemann

text: He graduated from Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School, which is known for its chess culture, in New York City after moving there in 2019. He previously lived in Weston, Connecticut, where he attended Weston High School.


title: Hans Niemann

text: A self-taught player, Niemann rose from an Elo rating of around 2450 to 2650 in just over three years after returning to the US. Niemann first competed in a rated US tournament in December 2012. Just under four months later he participated in the 2013 SuperNationals V in Nashville with a rating of 2486, scoring 4/7.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In March 2014, Niemann's rating was just under 2000 at 10 years old, which allowed him to get an invitation to his first U.S. Chess School camp in St. Louis with coaches Greg Shahade and John Bartholomew.


title: Hans Niemann

text: On December 16, 2014, Niemann became the youngest-ever winner of the Mechanics’ Institute Chess Club Tuesday Night Marathon, the oldest chess club in the United States, earning him the title of USCF Master.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann competed at the 2014 World Youth Chess Championships held in Durban, South Africa, in the U12 category, winning 6 of his 11 games. Earlier that year he lost against Annie Wang at the National Junior Chess Congress in Irvine, which made Wang at the time the youngest FIDE Master, breaking an 18-year-old record.


title: Hans Niemann

text: At the 2015 National Open of the Las Vegas International Chess Festival, then 11-year-old Niemann became the last person to play a rated game against GM Walter Browne, who died shortly after competing in the tournament. Browne won the game after 35 moves.


title: Hans Niemann

text: After becoming an FM in early 2016, he competed at the 2016 Saint Louis Invitational IM Norm, Niemann was among the youngest players competing along with Carissa Yip.


title: Hans Niemann

text: At the 2016 North American Youth Championship, Niemann tied for first place in the U18 category and earned his first IM norm.


title: Hans Niemann

text: At the 2017 SuperNationals VI, Niemann, with a rating of 2412, entered the tournament as the top seed and finished 1st in his K–8 category.


title: Hans Niemann

text: After initially winning his first six consecutive games, Niemann finished in third place at the 2018 U16 Olympiad in Konya, Turkey.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In August 2018, Niemann competed at the 2018 U.S. Masters Championship, earning his second IM norm and also his first GM norm.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Later in August 2018, Niemann earned his 3rd and final IM norm at the Cambridge IM Norm Invitational and met all the requirements for the title of International Master.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In December 2018, he won the National K–12 Blitz Championships undefeated, finishing 12–0. Three days later, he went on to tie for 1st in his grade in the overall K–12 Grade Championships, while also tying for first in the bughouse duo, achieving a perfect win.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In June 2019, Niemann won the inaugural ChessKid Games hosted by Chess.com, accruing 20 straight victories and qualifying for the 2020 Junior Speed Chess Championship.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann won the 2019 Foxwoods Open Blitz tournament with a perfect "10-0" score. Later at the 2019 US Junior Championships Niemann, then Connecticut's top junior player, tied for sixth place.


title: Hans Niemann

text: During the 2019 World Youth Championships Niemann occupied first place for the first 8 out of 11 rounds in the U16 Open with a performance rating of nearly 2600, ending up finishing 9th in a field of 78.


title: Hans Niemann

text: At the 2019 Grade Nationals, Niemann achieved a perfect 29–0 victory, achieving 12–0 in the Blitz Championship, 10–0 in the Bughouse Duo competition and finally 7–0 in the 11th Grade Championship.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In November 2019, Niemann competed in the 103rd Edward Lasker Memorial, tying for 1st place and achieving his second GM norm.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann placed sixth at the American Continental Selection Open of the 2020 FIDE World Youth Championship.


title: Hans Niemann

text: He achieved his third and final GM norm at the Charlotte Chess Center & Scholastic Academy (CCCSA GM Norm Invitational) in October 2020, placing first. Originally, his third norm was meant to be achieved in the GM Berger Tournament during the 3rd Summer Chess Festival 2020 in Belgrade, which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In November 2020, he won the 75th Annual Texas State and Amateur Championship, held in Fort Worth, Texas.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In December 2020, Niemann won the blitz competition at the VII Sunway Sitges International Chess Festival, and then surpassed the 2500 Elo threshold required to become a grandmaster.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In January 2021, he placed third at the Vergani Cap, held in Bassano del Grappa, Italy. In February, he won both the classical round robin (7/10) and blitz (10½/11) tournaments at the Winter Chess Festival "Paraćin 2021" in Serbia.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In April 2021, Niemann was featured on the front cover of Chess Life magazine, with the cover story documenting Niemann's journey to becoming a Grandmaster. He talked extensively about his journey to achieve the title in the "Cover Stories with Chess Life" Podcast released alongside the issue.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In July 2021, Niemann won the World Open held in Philadelphia after beating John Burke in tiebreaks. It was also in this tournament that Niemann surpassed the 2600 threshold with a draw against Ukrainian grandmaster Illia Nyzhnyk. Later that same month, he won the U.S. Junior Championship hosted by the Saint Louis Chess Club, which entitles him to compete in the 2022 U.S. Chess Championship.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In August 2021, Niemann finished second (8/9) behind GM Aleksandr Lenderman (8½/9) at the 121st U.S. Open Chess Championship in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.


title: Hans Niemann

text: At the FIDE Grand Swiss Tournament 2021 held in Latvia in October and November 2021, Niemann finished 52nd out of 108 players.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In March 2022, for the classical time control, Niemann broke into the chess top 100, ranked in 98th position. He was also the 12th ranked American.


title: Hans Niemann

text: In the FTX Crypto Cup, Niemann and his opponent Jan-Krzysztof Duda encountered technological problems involving the laptop Duda was using during the first round. Niemann later won with the black pieces in his second round game against reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsen. In the post-game interview after defeating Carlsen, Niemann said, "Chess speaks for itself" before walking off. Niemann didn't win another match in the FTX Crypto tournament and finished last out of a field of eight.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann has competed in the PRO Chess League since 2017, competing for the Las Vegas Desert Rats (2017), Saint Louis Arch Bishops (2019, winning team) and Norway Gnomes (2020).


title: Hans Niemann

text: In the third round of the 2022 Sinquefield Cup, Niemann defeated Carlsen again with the black pieces, playing the Nimzo-Indian Defence. Niemann's live rating surpassed 2700 for the first time with this win. Carlsen withdrew from the Cup the next day, announcing his decision in a cryptic tweet containing a video of Portuguese football manager José Mourinho saying: "If I speak I'm in big trouble, and I don't want to be in big trouble." While Carlsen himself made no direct claims, his tweet along with the ramped up security measures at the tournament the day after his loss implied there was an accusation that Niemann was cheating , an accusation denied by Niemann and several commentators. Niemann didn't win another game in the Sinquefield Cup tournament and finished seventh out of a field of ten.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann faced Carlsen again in a much-anticipated game during the Julius Baer Generation Cup. Carlsen resigned the game after one move, further fueling the controversy. It has been characterized as the most serious cheating controversy for international chess since the Toiletgate incident in the World Chess Championship 2006. Many chess players and public figures have commented on the controversy, from former world champion Garry Kasparov to business magnate Elon Musk.


title: Hans Niemann

text: On September 26, Carlsen accused Niemann of cheating in a statement posted on Twitter. Carlsen confirmed that he had considered withdrawing from the Sinquefield Cup due to Niemann's last-minute inclusion. Carlsen stated that he believed that Niemann cheated more often and recently than he had publicly admitted, and that Niemann's behaviour during their Sinquefield Cup game had convinced him to withdraw from the tournament. He stated that he was limited in what he could say openly without "explicit permission from Niemann", and that he would not play chess with Niemann in the future.


title: Hans Niemann

text: The executive director of the St. Louis Chess Club, Tony Rich, said in a statement, "A player's decision to withdraw from a tournament is a personal decision, and we respect Magnus' choice." Rich later elaborated that no formal complaint was made in writing. Chief Arbiter Chris Bird published a statement affirming that there was "no indication that any player has been playing unfairly" during the tournament. Bird's statement did not address the reason to add additional security measures after Magnus' withdrawal.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura accused Niemann of previously being suspended from Chess.com, the world's most popular chess platform, for cheating in online tournaments. Niemann later admitted, in a post-game interview, to having cheated in online games when he was 12 and 16 years old, but strongly denied ever cheating in an over-the-board game. Niemann revealed that Chess.com had suspended him again from the site and their events in light of the controversy. Chess.com's chief chess officer, Daniel Rensch, confirmed in a statement on Twitter that Niemann would remain suspended pending an explanation of his past cheating on the platform.


title: Hans Niemann

text: A statistical analysis of Niemann's games since 2020, including the Sinquefield Cup game between Carlsen and Niemann, by anti-cheating expert Ken Regan, found no evidence of cheating. In early October 2022, Chess.com released a report saying that he had likely cheated online more than 100 times, some as recently as 2020, at the age of 17.


title: Hans Niemann

text: On October 20, Niemann filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit against Carlsen, Chess.com, Hikaru Nakamura and others, regarding claims of his cheating. The case was filed in the District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri in St. Louis, where the Sinquefield Cup event took place. Yale Law Professor and Bloomberg columnist Stephen L. Carter wrote that the case would be "tough to win", based on legal precedents and the difficulty of proving actual malice under US law. As of December 7, all defendants except Play Magnus Group have filed motions to dismiss on various grounds including lack of jurisdiction and the State of Connecticut's anti-SLAPP laws.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann streams both online and over-the-board chess on Twitch, competing against fellow chess streamers such as GMs Andrew Tang, Daniel Naroditsky, and Hikaru Nakamura, WFM Alexandra Botez and world chess champion Magnus Carlsen. In his streaming career, Niemann served as a coach and co-commentator for the second PogChamps online chess tournament, coaching participating Twitch streamers like xQc, Ludwig, Forsen and Hafu, as well as strongman and actor Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson.


title: Hans Niemann

text: Niemann first started streaming occasionally in the summer of 2018. He began streaming more regularly in the spring of 2019. After achieving moderate growth, his viewership skyrocketed in early 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Streaming chess almost daily, Niemann's audience grew more than tenfold, coinciding with an overall boom in the chess category on Twitch.


title: Hans Niemann

text: While attending U.S. Chess School with fellow streamer and GM Andrew Tang, Niemann received training from GMs Joshua Friedel, Ben Finegold and Jacob Aagaard.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: Jagdeep Dhankhar (born 18 May 1951) is an Indian politician and lawyer, who is serving as the 14th and current vice president of India, since 11 August 2022. Prior to serving in this position, he served as the Governor of West Bengal. He also held office as the Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs under the Chandra Shekhar ministry in 1990. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He has also been a member of Janata Dal and Indian National Congress in the past.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: Dhankhar the current vice president of india was born on 18 May 1951, in Kithana, a small village in the Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan, India into a Hindu Jat family to parents Gokal Chand and Kesari Devi. He completed his school education from Sainik School, Chittorgarh and then graduated in B.Sc and LLB from the University of Rajasthan, Jaipur. Dhankhar completed his primary and middle school education from Kithana Government School and Ghardhana Government School respectively.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: Dhankhar enrolled with the Bar Council of Rajasthan as an Advocate in 1979. He was designated as Senior Advocate by the High Court of Judicature for Rajasthan in 1990, and was the senior-most designated Senior Advocate of the state till taking the oath as Governor on 30 July 2019.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: Since 1990, Dhankhar had been practicing primarily in the Supreme Court of India. He has appeared in various High Courts of India. He is a former President of Rajasthan High Court Bar Association, Jaipur.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: Dhankhar had appeared in the Sutlej River water dispute in 2016, he argued on behalf of the state of Haryana in the Supreme Court of India.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: He was a member of parliament of Janata Dal representing Jhunjhunu Lok Sabha constituency in Rajasthan during 1989–91 in the 9th Lok Sabha.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: He joined Congress in 1991. He lost the 1991 Indian general election from Ajmer Lok Sabha constituency. He was elected as a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Kishangarh, Rajasthan during 1993–98 in the 10th Legislative Assembly Rajasthan.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: He lost the 1998 Indian general election from Jhunjhunu Lok Sabha constituency and came on third position.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: He joined the BJP in 2003. He was a member of 2008 assembly election campaign committee of BJP. In 2016, he headed the BJP's law and legal affairs department.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: On 20 July 2019, Second Modi ministry through, President Ram Nath Kovind appointed him as Governor of West Bengal. T. B. Radhakrishnan, Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court administered the Oath of Office to Jagdeep Dhankhar on 30 July 2019 at the Raj Bhavan, Kolkata


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: After becoming the governor of West Bengal, Dhankhar had frequent public confrontations with the state government and chief minister of the state Mamata Banerjee throughout his tenure. Dhankhar had been a vocal critic of the Third Banerjee ministry, and frequently used Twitter and media to attack the West Bengal government over political issues. In response the ruling party in Bengal All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) referred Dhankhar as the 'real leader of the opposition'. In January 2022, CM Banerjee blocked Dhankhar on Twitter and accused him of mentioning her in his tweets daily and speaking in an unethical and abusive way.


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: "The Hindu", newspaper in its editorial noted that it appeared on several occasions that "Dhankhar was playing a partisan role in State politics, in tandem with the BJP".


title: Jagdeep Dhankhar

text: On 13 July 2022, Dhankar met with Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee and Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sharma. Later on 15 July 2022, Dhankar visited Delhi and met Union Home Minister Amit Shah there. He resigned as Governor on 17 July 2022, after being nominated as the vice-presidential candidate of the National Democratic Alliance. Reacting to the nomination, AITC Lok Sabha MP Sougata Roy, said that Dhankhar was "being rewarded for harassing the AITC".