title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Upon the murder of Maurice, Narses, governor of the Byzantine province of Mesopotamia, rebelled against Phocas and seized Edessa, a major city of the province. Emperor Phocas instructed general Germanus to besiege Edessa, prompting Narses to request help from the Persian king Khosrow II. Khosrow, who was only too willing to help avenge Maurice, his "friend and father-[in-law]", used Maurice's death as an excuse to attack the Byzantine Empire, trying to reconquer Armenia and Mesopotamia.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: General Germanus died in battle against the Persians. An army sent by Phocas against Khosrow was defeated near Dara in Upper Mesopotamia, leading to the capture of that important fortress in 605. Narses escaped from Leontius, the eunuch appointed by Phocas to deal with him, but when Narses attempted to return to Constantinople to discuss peace terms, Phocas ordered him seized and burned alive. The death of Narses along with the failure to stop the Persians damaged the prestige of Phocas' military regime.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: In 608, general Heraclius the Elder, Exarch of Africa, revolted, urged on by Priscus, the Count of the Excubitors and son-in-law of Phocas. Heraclius proclaimed himself and his namesake son as consuls—thereby implicitly claiming the imperial title—and minted coins with the two wearing the consular robes.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: At about the same time rebellions began in Roman Syria and Palaestina Prima in the wake of Heraclius' revolt. In 609 or 610 the Patriarch of Antioch, Anastasius II, died. Many sources claim that the Jews were involved in the fighting, though it is unclear where they were members of factions and where they were opponents of Christians. Phocas responded by appointing Bonus as "comes Orientis" (Count of the East) to stop the violence. Bonus punished the Greens, a horse racing party, in Antioch for their role in the violence in 609.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius the Elder sent his nephew Nicetas to attack Egypt. Bonus went to Egypt to try to stop Nicetas, but was defeated by the latter outside Alexandria. In 610, Nicetas succeeded in capturing the province, establishing a power base there with the help of Patriarch John the Almsgiver, who was elected with the help of Nicetas.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The main rebel force was employed in a naval invasion of Constantinople, led by the younger Heraclius, who was to be the new emperor. Organized resistance against Heraclius soon collapsed, and Phocas was handed to him by the patrician Probos (Photius). Phocas was executed, though not before a celebrated exchange of comments between him and his successor:


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The elder Heraclius disappears soon afterward from sources, supposedly dying, though the date is unknown.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: After marrying his niece Martina and being crowned by the Patriarch, the 35-year-old Heraclius set out to perform his work as emperor. Phocas' brother, Comentiolus, commanded a sizable force in central Anatolia but was assassinated by the Armenian commander Justin, removing a major threat to Heraclius' reign. Still, transfer of the forces commanded by Comentiolus had been delayed, allowing the Persians to advance further in Anatolia. Trying to increase revenues and reduce costs, Heraclius limited the number of state-sponsored personnel of the Church in Constantinople by not paying new staff from the imperial fisc. He used ceremonies to legitimize his dynasty, and he secured a reputation for justice to strengthen his grip on power.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The Persians took advantage of this civil war in the Byzantine empire by conquering frontier towns in Armenia and Upper Mesopotamia. Along the Euphrates, in 609, they conquered Mardin and Amida (Diyarbakır). Edessa, which some Christians are said to have believed would be defended by Jesus himself on behalf of King Abgar V of Edessa against all enemies, fell in 610.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: In Armenia, the strategically important city of Theodosiopolis (Erzurum) surrendered in 609 or 610 to Ashtat Yeztayar, because of the persuasion of a man who claimed to be Theodosius, the eldest son and co-emperor of Maurice, who had supposedly fled to the protection of Khosrow. In 608, the Persians launched a raid into Anatolia that reached Chalcedon, across the Bosphorus from Constantinople. The Persian conquest was a gradual process; by the time of Heraclius' accession the Persians had conquered all Roman cities east of the Euphrates and in Armenia before moving on to Cappadocia, where their general Shahin took Caesarea Mazaca. There, Phocas' son-in-law Priscus, who had encouraged Heraclius and his father to rebel, started a year-long siege to trap them inside the city.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius' accession as Emperor did little to reduce the Persian threat. Heraclius began his reign by attempting to make peace with the Persians, since Phocas, whose actions were the original "casus belli", had been overthrown. The Persians rejected these overtures, however, since their armies were widely victorious. According to historian Walter Kaegi, it is conceivable that the Persians' goal was to restore or even surpass the boundaries of the Achaemenid Empire by destroying the Byzantine empire, though because of the loss of Persian archives, no document survives to conclusively prove this.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius joined with his general Priscus' siege of the Persians at Caesarea Mazaca. Priscus pretended to be ill, however, and did not meet the emperor. This was a veiled insult to Heraclius, who hid his dislike of Priscus and returned to Constantinople in 612. Meanwhile, Shahin's troops escaped Priscus' blockade and burned Caesarea, much to Heraclius' displeasure. Priscus was soon removed from command, along with others who served under Phocas. Philippicus, an old general of Maurice's, was appointed as commander-in-chief, but he proved himself incompetent against the Persians, avoiding engagements in battle. Heraclius then appointed himself commander along with his brother Theodore to finally solidify command of the army.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Khosrow took advantage of the incompetence of Heraclius' generals to launch an attack on Byzantine Syria, under the leadership of the Persian general Shahrbaraz. Heraclius attempted to stop the invasion at Antioch, but despite the blessing of Saint Theodore of Sykeon, Byzantine forces under Heraclius and Nicetas suffered a serious defeat at the hands of Shahin. Details of the battle are not known. After this victory the Persians looted the city, slew the Patriarch of Antioch and deported many citizens. Roman forces lost again while attempting to defend the area north of Antioch at the Cilician Gates, despite some initial success. The Persians then captured Tarsus and the Cilician plain. This defeat cut the Byzantine empire in half, severing Constantinople and Anatolia's land link to Syria, Palestine, Egypt, and the Exarchate of Carthage.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Resistance to the Persians in Syria was not strong; although the locals constructed fortifications, they generally tried to negotiate with the Persians. The cities of Damascus, Apamea, and Emesa fell quickly in 613, giving the Sasanian army a chance to strike further south into Palaestina Prima. Nicetas continued to resist the Persians but was defeated at Adhri'at. He managed to win a small victory near Emesa, however, where both sides suffered heavy casualties—the total death count was 20,000. More seriously, the weakness of the resistance enabled the Persians and their Jewish allies to capture Jerusalem following a three weeks siege in 614. Ancient sources claim 57,000 or 66,500 people were slain there; another 35,000 were deported to Persia, including the Patriarch Zacharias.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Many churches in the city (including the Church of the Resurrection or Holy Sepulchre) were burned, and numerous relics, including the True Cross, the Holy Lance, and the Holy Sponge, were carried off to the Persian capital Ctesiphon. The loss of these relics was thought by many Christian Byzantines to be a clear mark of divine displeasure. Some blamed the Jews for this misfortune and for the loss of Syria in general. There were reports that Jews helped the Persians capture certain cities and that the Jews tried to slaughter Christians in cities that the Persians had already conquered but were found and foiled from doing so. These reports are likely to be greatly exaggerated and the result of general hysteria.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: In 618 Shahrbaraz's forces invaded Egypt, a province that had been mostly untouched by war for three centuries. The Monophysites living in Egypt were unhappy with Chalcedonian orthodoxy and were not eager to aid Byzantine imperial forces. Afterward they were supported by Khosrow, but they did not resist imperial forces between 600 and 638, and many saw the Persian occupation in negative terms. Byzantine resistance in Alexandria was led by Nicetas. After a year-long siege, resistance in Alexandria collapsed, supposedly after a traitor told the Persians of an unused canal, allowing them to storm the city. Nicetas fled to Cyprus along with Patriarch John the Almsgiver, who was a major supporter of Nicetas in Egypt. The fate of Nicetas is unclear, since he disappears from records after this, but Heraclius was presumably deprived of a trusted commander. The loss of Egypt was a severe blow to the Byzantine empire, as Constantinople relied on grain shipments from fertile Egypt to feed the multitudes in the capital. The free grain ration in Constantinople, which echoed the earlier grain dole in Rome, was abolished in 618.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: When the Sasanians reached Chalcedon in 615, it was at this point, according to Sebeos, that Heraclius had agreed to stand down and was about ready to allow the Byzantine Empire to become a Persian client state, even permitting Khosrow II to choose the emperor. Things began to look even more grim for the Byzantines when Chalcedon fell in 617 to Shahin, bringing the Persians within sight of Constantinople. Shahin courteously received a peace delegation but claimed that he did not have the authority to engage in peace talks, directing Heraclius to Khosrow, who rejected the peace offer - in retrospect, a major strategic blunder. Still, the Persian forces soon withdrew, probably to focus on their invasion of Egypt. Yet the Persians retained their advantage, capturing Ancyra, an important military base in central Anatolia, in 620 or 622. Rhodes and several other islands in the eastern Aegean fell in 622/3, threatening a naval assault on Constantinople. Such was the despair in Constantinople that Heraclius considered moving the government to Carthage in Africa.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Khosrow's letter did not cow Heraclius but prompted him to try a desperate strike against the Persians. He now reorganized the remainder of his empire to allow his forces to fight on. Already, in 615, a new, lighter (6.82 grams) silver imperial coin appeared with the usual image of Heraclius and his son Heraclius Constantine, but uniquely carried the inscription of "" or "May God help the Romans"; Kaegi believes this shows the desperation of the empire at this time. The copper "follis" also dropped in weight from 11 grams to somewhere between 8 and 9 grams. Heraclius faced severely decreased revenues due to the loss of provinces; furthermore, a plague broke out in 619, which further damaged the tax base and also increased fears of divine retribution. The debasement of the coinage allowed the Byzantines to maintain expenditure in the face of declining revenues.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius now halved the pay of officials, enforced increased taxation, forced loans, and levied extreme fines on corrupt officials in order to finance his counter-offensive. Despite disagreements over the incestuous marriage of Heraclius to his niece Martina, the clergy of the Byzantine Empire strongly backed his efforts against the Persians by proclaiming the duty of all Christian men to fight and by offering to give him a war loan consisting of all the gold and silver-plated objects in Constantinople. Precious metals and bronze were stripped from monuments and even the Hagia Sophia. This military campaign has been seen as the first "crusade", or at least as an antecedent to the Crusades, by many historians, beginning with William of Tyre, but some, like Kaegi, disagree with this moniker because religion was just one component in the war. Thousands of volunteers were gathered and equipped with money from the church. Heraclius himself decided to command the army from the front lines. Thus, the Byzantine troops had been replenished, re-equipped, and were now led by a competent general— while maintaining a full treasury.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Historian George Ostrogorsky believed that volunteers were gathered through the reorganization of Anatolia into four themes, where the volunteers were given inalienable grants of land on the condition of hereditary military service. However, modern scholars generally discredit this theory, placing the creation of the themes later, under Heraclius' successor Constans II.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: By 622, Heraclius was ready to mount a counter-offensive. He left Constantinople the day after celebrating Easter on Sunday, 4 April 622. His young son, Heraclius Constantine, was left behind as regent under the charge of Patriarch Sergius and the patrician Bonus. He spent the summer training to improve the skills of his men and his own generalship. In the autumn, Heraclius threatened Persian communications from the Euphrates valley to Anatolia by marching to Cappadocia. This forced the Persian forces in Anatolia under Shahrbaraz to retreat from the front-lines of Bithynia and Galatia to eastern Anatolia in order to block his access to Iran.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: What followed next is not entirely clear, but Heraclius certainly won a crushing victory over Shahrbaraz in the fall of 622. The key factor was Heraclius' discovery of Persian forces hidden in ambush and responding by feigning retreat during the battle. The Persians left their cover to chase the Byzantines, whereupon Heraclius' elite Optimatoi assaulted the pursuing Persians, causing them to flee. Thus he saved Anatolia from the Persians. Heraclius had to return to Constantinople, however, to deal with the threat posed to his Balkan domains by the Avars, so he left his army to winter in Pontus.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: While the Byzantines were occupied with the Persians, the Avars and Slavs poured into the Balkans, capturing several Byzantine cities, including Singidunum (Belgrade), Viminacium (Kostolac), Naissus (Niš), and Serdica (Sofia), while destroying Salona in 614. Isidore of Seville even claims that the Slavs took "Greece" from the Byzantines. The Avars also began to raid Thrace, threatening commerce and agriculture, even near the gates of Constantinople. However, numerous attempts by the Avars and Slavs to take Thessalonica, the most important Byzantine city in the Balkans after Constantinople, ended in failure, allowing the Empire to hold onto a vital stronghold in the region. Other minor cities on the Adriatic coast like Jadar (Zadar), Tragurium (Trogir), Butua (Budva), Scodra (Shkodër), and Lissus (Lezhë) also survived the invasions.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Because of the need to defend against these incursions, the Byzantines could not afford to use all their forces against the Persians. Heraclius sent an envoy to the Avar Khagan, saying that the Byzantines would pay a tribute in return for the Avars withdrawing north of the Danube. The Khagan replied by asking for a meeting on 5 June 623, at Heraclea in Thrace, where the Avar army was located; Heraclius agreed to this meeting, coming with his royal court. The Khagan, however, put horsemen en route to Heraclea to ambush and capture Heraclius, so they could hold him for ransom.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius was fortunately warned in time and managed to escape, chased by the Avars all the way to Constantinople. However, many members of his court, as well as an alleged 70,000 Thracian peasants who came to see their Emperor, were captured and killed by the Khagan's men. Despite this treachery, Heraclius was forced to give the Avars a subsidy of 200,000 solidi along with his illegitimate son John Athalarichos, his nephew Stephen, and the illegitimate son of the patrician Bonus as hostages in return for peace. This left him more able to focus his war effort completely on the Persians.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius offered peace to Khosrow, presumably in 624, threatening otherwise to invade Iran, but Khosrow rejected the offer. On March 25, 624, Heraclius left Constantinople to attack the Persian heartland. He willingly abandoned any attempt to secure his rear or his communications with the sea, marching through Armenia and modern Azerbaijan to assault the core Persian lands directly. According to Walter Kaegi, Heraclius led an army of no more than 40,000, and most likely between 20,000–24,000. Before journeying to the Caucasus, he recovered Caesarea in Cappadocia, in defiance of the earlier letter that Khosrow had sent him.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius advanced along the Araxes River, destroying Persian-held Dvin, the capital of Armenia, and Nakhchivan. At Ganzaka, Heraclius met Khosrow's army, some 40,000 strong. Using loyal Arabs, he captured and killed some of Khosrow's guards, leading to the disintegration of the Persian army. Heraclius then destroyed Adur Gushnasp, the famous Zoroastrian fire temple at Takht-i-Suleiman. Heraclius' raids went as far as the Gayshawan, a residence of Khosrow in Adurbadagan.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius wintered in Caucasian Albania, gathering forces for the next year. Khosrow was not content to let Heraclius quietly rest in Albania. He sent three armies, commanded by Shahrbaraz, Shahin, and Shahraplakan, to try to trap and destroy Heraclius' forces. Shahraplakan retook lands up as far as Siwnik, aiming to capture the mountain passes. Shahrbaraz was sent to block Heraclius' retreat through Caucasian Iberia, and Shahin was sent to block the Bitlis Pass. Heraclius, planning to engage the Persian armies separately, spoke to his worried Lazic, Abasgian, and Iberian allies and soldiers, saying: "Do not let the number of our enemies disturb us. For, God willing, one will pursue ten thousand."


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Two soldiers who feigned desertion were sent to Shahrbaraz, claiming that the Byzantines were fleeing before Shahin. Due to jealousy between the Persian commanders, Shahrbaraz hurried with his army to take part in the glory of the victory. Heraclius met them at Tigranakert and routed the forces of Shahraplakan and Shahin one after the other. Shahin lost his baggage train, and Shahraplakan (according to one source) was killed, though he re-appears later. After this victory, Heraclius crossed the Araxes and camped in the plains on the other side. Shahin, with the remnants of both his and Shahraplakan's armies, joined Shahrbaraz in the pursuit of Heraclius, but marshes slowed them down. At Aliovit, Shahrbaraz split his forces, sending some 6,000 troops to ambush Heraclius while the remainder of the troops stayed at Aliovit. Heraclius instead launched a surprise night attack on the Persian main camp in February 625, destroying it. Shahrbaraz only barely escaped, naked and alone, having lost his harem, baggage, and men.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Heraclius spent the rest of winter to the north of Lake Van. In 625, his forces attempted to push back towards the Euphrates. In a mere seven days, he bypassed Mount Ararat and the 200 miles along the Arsanias River to capture Amida and Martyropolis, important fortresses on the upper Tigris. Heraclius then carried on towards the Euphrates, pursued by Shahrbaraz. According to Arab sources, he was stopped at the Satidama or Batman Su River and defeated; Byzantine sources, however, do not mention this incident. There was then another minor skirmish between Heraclius and Shahrbaraz at the Sarus River near Adana. Shahrbaraz stationed his forces across the river from the Byzantines. A bridge spanned the river, and the Byzantines immediately charged across. Shahrbaraz feigned retreat to lead the Byzantines into an ambush, and the vanguard of Heraclius' army was destroyed within minutes. The Persians, however, had neglected to cover the bridge, and Heraclius charged across with the rearguard, unafraid of the arrows that the Persians fired, turning the tide of battle against the Persians. Shahrbaraz expressed his admiration at Heraclius to a renegade Greek: "See your Emperor! He fears these arrows and spears no more than would an anvil!" The Battle of Sarus was a successful retreat for the Byzantines that panegyrists magnified. In the aftermath of the battle, the Byzantine army wintered at Trebizond.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Khosrow, seeing that a decisive counterattack was needed to defeat the Byzantines, recruited two new armies from all the able men, including foreigners. Shahin was entrusted with 50,000 men and stayed in Mesopotamia and Armenia to prevent Heraclius from invading Iran; a smaller army under Shahrbaraz slipped through Heraclius' flanks and bee-lined for Chalcedon, the Persian base across the Bosphorus from Constantinople. Khosrow also coordinated with the Khagan of the Avars so as to launch a coordinated attack on Constantinople from both European and Asiatic sides. The Persian army stationed themselves at Chalcedon, while the Avars placed themselves on the European side of Constantinople and destroyed the Aqueduct of Valens. Because of the Byzantine navy's control of the Bosphorus strait, however, the Persians could not send troops to the European side to aid their ally. This reduced the effectiveness of the siege, because the Persians were experts in siege warfare. Furthermore, the Persians and Avars had difficulties communicating across the guarded Bosphorus—though undoubtedly, there was some communication between the two forces.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The defense of Constantinople was under the command of Patriarch Sergius and the patrician Bonus. Upon hearing the news, Heraclius split his army into three parts; although he judged that the capital was relatively safe, he still sent some reinforcements to Constantinople to boost the morale of the defenders. Another part of the army was under the command of his brother Theodore and was sent to deal with Shahin, while the third and smallest part would remain under his own control, intending to raid the Persian heartland.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: On 29 June 626, a coordinated assault on the walls began. Inside the walls, some 12,000 well-trained Byzantine cavalry troops (presumably dismounted) defended the city against the forces of some 80,000 Avars and Slavs. Despite continuous bombardment for a month, morale was high inside the walls of Constantinople because of Patriarch Sergius' religious fervor and his processions along the wall with the icon of the Virgin Mary, inspiring the belief that the Byzantines were under divine protection.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: On 7 August, a fleet of Persian rafts ferrying troops across the Bosphorus were surrounded and destroyed by Byzantine ships. The Slavs under the Avars attempted to attack the sea walls from across the Golden Horn, while the main Avar host attacked the land walls. Patrician Bonus' galleys rammed and destroyed the Slavic boats; the Avar land assault from August 6 to the 7th also failed. With the news that Theodore had decisively triumphed over Shahin (supposedly leading Shahin to die from depression), the Avars retreated to the Balkan hinterland within two days, never to seriously threaten Constantinople again. Even though the army of Shahrbaraz was still encamped at Chalcedon, the threat to Constantinople was over. In thanks for the lifting of the siege and the supposed divine protection of the Virgin Mary, the celebrated Akathist Hymn was written by an unknown author, possibly Patriarch Sergius or George of Pisidia.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Furthermore, after the emperor showed Shahrbaraz intercepted letters from Khosrow ordering the Persian general's death, the latter switched to Heraclius' side. Shahrbaraz then moved his army to northern Syria, where he could easily decide to support either Khosrow or Heraclius at a moment's notice. Still, with the neutralization of Khosrow's most skilled general, Heraclius deprived his enemy of some of his best and most experienced troops, while securing his flanks prior to his invasion of Iran.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: During the siege of Constantinople, Heraclius formed an alliance with people Byzantine sources called the "Khazars", under Ziebel, now generally identified as the Western Turkic Khaganate of the Göktürks, led by Tong Yabghu, plying him with wondrous gifts and the promise of marriage to the "porphyrogenita" Eudoxia Epiphania. Earlier, in 568, the Turks under Istämi had turned to Byzantium when their relations with Iran soured over commerce issues. Istämi sent an embassy led by the Sogdian diplomat Maniah directly to Constantinople, which arrived in 568 and offered not only silk as a gift to Justin II, but also proposed an alliance against Sasanian Iran. Justin II agreed and sent an embassy to the Turkic Khaganate, ensuring the direct Chinese silk trade desired by the Sogdians.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: In the East, in 625 CE, the Turks took advantage of the Sasanian weakness to occupy Bactria and Afghanistan as far as the Indus, and establish the Yabghus of Tokharistan.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The Turks, based in the Caucasus, responded to the alliance by sending 40,000 of their men to ravage the Iranian Empire in 626, marking the start of the Third Perso-Turkic War. Joint Byzantine and Göktürk operations were then focused on besieging Tiflis, where the Byzantines used traction trebuchets to breach the walls, one of the first known uses by the Byzantines. Khosrow sent 1,000 cavalry under Shahraplakan to reinforce the city, but it nevertheless fell, probably in late 628. Ziebel died by the end of that year, however, saving Epiphania from marriage to a barbarian. Whilst the siege proceeded, Heraclius worked to secure his base in the upper Tigris.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: In mid-September 627, Heraclius invaded the Iranian heartland in a surprising winter campaign, leaving Ziebel to continue the siege of Tiflis. Edward Luttwak describes the seasonal retreat of Heraclius for the winters of 624–626 followed by a change in 627 to threaten Ctesiphon as a "high-risk, "relational" maneuver on a theater-wide scale" because it habituated the Persians to strategically ineffective raids that caused them to decide not to recall border troops to defend the heartland. His army numbered between 25,000 and 50,000 Byzantine troops and 40,000 Göktürks that quickly deserted him because of the unfamiliar winter conditions and harassment from the Persians. He advanced quickly but was tailed by a Persian army under the Armenian Rhahzadh, who faced difficulties in provisioning his army due to the Byzantines taking most of the provisions as they moved south toward Assyria.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Towards the end of the year, near the ruins of Nineveh, Heraclius engaged Rhahzadh before reinforcements could reach the Persian commander. The Battle of Nineveh took place in the fog, reducing the Persian advantage in missile troops. Heraclius feigned retreat, leading the Persians to the plains, before reversing his troops to the surprise of the Persians. After eight hours of fighting, the Persians suddenly retreated to nearby foothills, but the battle did not become a rout. During the battle, approximately 6,000 Persians were killed. Patriarch Nikephoros' "Brief History" suggests that Rhahzadh challenged Heraclius to personal combat, and that Heraclius accepted and killed Rhahzadh in a single thrust; two other challengers fought against him and also lost. However, he received an injury to his lip.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: With no Persian army left to oppose him, Heraclius' victorious army plundered Dastagird, which was a palace of Khosrow's, and gained tremendous riches while recovering 300 captured Byzantine flags. Khosrow had already fled to the mountains of Susiana to try to rally support for the defense of Ctesiphon. Heraclius then issued an ultimatum to Khosrow:


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: However, Heraclius could not attack Ctesiphon itself, as the Nahrawan Canal was blocked due to the collapse of a bridge leading over it, and he did not attempt to bypass the canal.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Regardless, the Persian army rebelled and overthrew Khosrow II, raising his son Kavadh II, also known as Siroes, in his stead. Khosrow was shut in a dungeon, where he suffered for five days on bare sustenance—he was shot to death slowly with arrows on the fifth day. Kavadh immediately sent peace offers to Heraclius. Heraclius did not impose harsh terms, knowing that his own empire was also near exhaustion. Under the terms of the peace treaty, the Byzantines regained all their lost territories, their captured soldiers, a war indemnity, and most importantly for them, the True Cross and other relics that were lost in Jerusalem in 614.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: After some months of travel, Heraclius entered Constantinople in triumph and was met by the people of the city, his son Heraclius Constantine, and Patriarch Sergius, prostrating themselves in joy. His alliance with the Persians resulted in the recovery of the Holy Sponge which fastened to the True Cross in an elaborate ceremony on 14 September 629. The ceremonial parade went toward the Hagia Sophia. There, the True Cross was slowly raised up until it vertically towered over the high altar. To many, this was a sign that a new golden age was about to begin for the Byzantine Empire.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The conclusion of the war cemented Heraclius' position as one of history's most successful generals. He was hailed as "the new Scipio" for his six years of unbroken victories and for leading the Roman army where no Roman army had ever gone before. The triumphal raising of the True Cross in the Hagia Sophia was a crowning moment in his achievements. Had Heraclius died then, he would have been recorded in history, in the words of the historian Norman Davies, as "the greatest Roman general since Julius Caesar". Instead, he lived through the Arab invasions, losing battle after battle against their onslaught and tarnishing his reputation for victory. Lord Norwich succinctly described Heraclius as having "lived too long".


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: For their part, the Sasanians struggled to establish a stable government. When Kavadh II died only months after coming to the throne, Persia was plunged into several years of dynastic turmoil and civil war. Ardashir III, Heraclius' ally Shahrbaraz, and Khosrow's daughters Purandokht and Azarmidokht all succeeded to the throne within months of each other. Only when Yazdgerd III, a grandson of Khosrow II, succeeded to the throne in 632 was there stability, but by then it was too late to rescue the Sasanian kingdom.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The devastating impact of the war of 602–628, along with the cumulative effects of a century of almost continuous Byzantine-Persian conflict, left both empires crippled. The Sasanians were further weakened by economic decline, heavy taxation to finance Khosrow II's campaigns, religious unrest, and the increasing power of the provincial landholders at the expense of the Shah. According to Howard-Johnston: "[Heraclius'] victories in the field over the following years and their political repercussions ... saved the main bastion of Christianity in the Near East and gravely weakened its old Zoroastrian rival. They may be shadowed by the even more extraordinary military achievements of the Arabs in the following two decades, but hindsight should not be allowed to dim their lustre."


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: However, the Byzantine Empire was also severely affected, with the Balkans now largely in the hands of the Slavs. Additionally, Anatolia had been devastated by repeated Persian invasions, and the empire's hold on its recently regained territories in the Caucasus, Syria, Mesopotamia, Palestine, and Egypt was loosened by years of Persian occupation. With their financial reserves exhausted, the Byzantines found difficulties paying veterans of the war with the Persians and recruiting new troops. Clive Foss called this war the "first stage in the process which marked the end of Antiquity in Asia Minor".


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Neither empire was given much chance to recover, as within a few years they were struck by the onslaught of the Arabs, newly united by Islam, which Howard-Johnston likened to "a human tsunami". According to George Liska, the "unnecessarily prolonged Byzantine–Persian conflict opened the way for Islam". The Sasanian Empire rapidly succumbed to these attacks and was completely destroyed. During the Byzantine–Arab Wars, the exhausted Byzantine Empire's recently regained eastern and southern provinces of Syria, Armenia, Egypt, and North Africa were also lost, reducing the empire to a territorial core consisting of Anatolia and a scatter of islands and footholds in the Balkans and Italy. However, unlike Persia, the Byzantine Empire ultimately survived the Arab assault, holding onto its remaining territories and decisively repulsing two Arab sieges of its capital in 674–678 and 717–718. The Byzantine Empire also lost its territories in Crete and southern Italy to the Arabs in later conflicts, though these too were ultimately recovered. However, some losses were permanent, such as the loss of Spania, the remaining Byzantine holdings in Spain, which was conquered by the Visigoths by 629. Similarly, Corsica was taken by the Lombards in the 8th century. The Balearic Islands, Sardinia and Sicily were captured by Arabs in the 10th century.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The elite cavalry corps of the Persians was the Aswaran. The lance (kontos) was probably its preferred weapon, having the power to skewer two men simultaneously. Its horses along with their riders were covered in lamellar armor to protect them from enemy archers.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: According to Emperor Maurice's "Strategikon", a manual of war, the Persians made heavy use of archers that were the most "rapid, although not powerful archery" of all warlike nations, and they avoided weather that hampered their bows. It claims that they deployed so that their formation was equal in strength in the center and the flanks. They also apparently neutralized the charge of Roman lancers by using rough terrain since the latter preferred to avoid hand-to-hand combat. Thus, the "Strategikon" advised fighting on level terrain with rapid charges to avoid the Persian arrows. They were seen as skilled in laying siege and liked to "achieve their results by planning and generalship".


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The most important arm of the Byzantine army was its cataphract cavalry, which became a symbol of Byzantium. They wore chain mail, had heavily armored horses, and used lances as their primary weapon. They had small shields mounted on their arms, could also use bows, and carried a broadsword and an axe. Heavy Byzantine infantry, or "scutati/skoutatoi", carried large oval shields and wore lamellar or mail armor. They carried many weapons against enemy cavalry such as spears to ward off cavalry and axes to cut the legs off of horses. Light Byzantine infantry, or "psiloi", primarily used bows and wore only leather armor. Byzantine infantry played a key role in stabilizing battle lines against enemy cavalry and also as an anchor to launch friendly cavalry attacks. According to Richard A. Gabriel, the Byzantine heavy infantry "combined the best capabilities of the Roman legion with the old Greek phalanx".


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The Avars had mounted archers with composite bows that could double as heavy cavalry with lances. They were skilled in siegecraft and could construct trebuchets and siege towers. In their siege of Constantinople, they constructed walls of circumvallation to prevent easy counterattack and used mantelets or wooden frames covered with animal hides to protect against defending archers. Furthermore, like many nomads, they gathered other warriors such as Gepids and Slavs to assist them. However, since Avars depended on raiding the countryside for supplies, it was difficult for them to maintain long sieges, especially when considering their less mobile gathered allies.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: According to Kaegi, the Byzantines had "an almost compulsive ... preference to avoid changing the essential elements of the status quo". They tried to secure allies and divide their enemies through diplomacy. Although they failed against Khosrow and the Avar Khagan, their ties with the Slavs, who would become the Serbs and Croats, and their decades-long negotiations with the Göktürks resulted in Slavs actively opposing the Avars in addition to a key alliance with the Göktürks.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: As for any army, logistics were always a problem. In his initial campaigns in Byzantine territories, especially in Anatolia, Heraclius likely supplied his troops by requisitioning from his surroundings. During each of Heraclius' offensive raids into Persia, the harsh conditions of winter forced him to desist, partly because both his and the Persian horses needed stored fodder in winter quarters. Forcing his troops to campaign in the winter would have been risky as Maurice had been overthrown due to his poor treatment of his troops in winter. Edward Luttwak believes that the Göktürks with their "hardy horses (or ponies)" that could survive "in almost any terrain that had almost any vegetation" were essential in Heraclius' winter campaign in hilly northeast Iran in 627. During the campaign, they took their provisions from Persian lands. With the victory at Nineveh and the capture of Persian palaces, they no longer had issues with supplying their troops in foreign territory, even in winter conditions.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The sources for this war are mostly of Byzantine origin. Foremost among the contemporary Greek texts is the "Chronicon Paschale" by an unidentified author from around 630. George of Pisidia wrote many poems and other works that were contemporary. Theophylact Simocatta has surviving letters along with a history that gives the political outlook of the Byzantines, but that history only really covers from 582 to 602. Theodore the Synkellos has a surviving speech, which was made during the Siege of Constantinople in 626, that contains useful information for some events. There are some surviving papyri from Egypt from that period.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The Persian archives were lost so there are no contemporary Persian sources of this war. However, al-Tabari's "History of the Prophets and Kings" uses now lost sources and contains a history of the Sasanian dynasty. Non-Greek contemporary sources include the "Chronicle" of John of Nikiu, which was written in Coptic but only survives in Ethiopian translation, and the "History" attributed to Sebeos (there is controversy over the authorship). The latter is an Armenian compilation of various sources, arranged in only rough chronological order. This gives it an uneven coverage of the war. Furthermore, it was put together with the purpose of correlating Biblical prophecy and contemporary times, making it most certainly not objective. There are also some surviving Syriac materials from that period, which Dodgeon, Greatrex, and Lieu believe are the "most important" of the contemporary sources. These include the "Chronicle of 724" by Thomas the Presbyter, composed in 640. The "Chronicle of Guidi" or "Khuzistan Chronicle" gives the perspective of a Nestorian Christian living in Persian territory.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: Later Greek accounts include the "Chronicle" of Theophanes the Confessor and the "Brief History" of Patriarch Nikephoros I. Theophanes' "Chronicle" is very useful in creating a framework of the war. It is usually supplemented by even later Syriac sources like the "Chronicle of 1234" and the Chronicle by Michael the Syrian. However, these sources, excepting the "Brief History" by Nikephoros, and the Christian Arab Agapius of Hierapolis all likely drew their information from a common source, probably the 8th-century historian Theophilos of Edessa.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The 10th-century Armenian "History of the House of Artsrunik" by Thomas Artsruni probably have similar sources to the ones that the compiler of Sebeos used. Movses Kaghankatvatsi wrote the "History of Aluank" in the 10th century and has material from unidentified sources on the 620s. Howard-Johnston considered the histories of Movses and Sebeos as "the most important of extant non-Muslim sources". The history of the Patriarch Eutychius of Alexandria contains many errors, but is a useful source.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The Quran also provides some detail on the matter. The "Ar-Rum" sūrah tells how news of the ongoing war reached Mecca, with Muhammad and the early Muslims siding with the Monotheistic Greeks while the non-Muslim Meccans sided with the non-Monotheist Persians, each side regarding the victories of their favorites as proof of their own religious stance.


title: Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

text: The Byzantine hagiographies (lives of saints) of Saints Theodore of Sykeon and Anastasios the Persian have proven to be helpful in understanding the era of the war. The "Life of George of Khozeba" gives an idea of the panic at the time of the Siege of Jerusalem. However, there are some doubts as to whether hagiographic texts may be corrupted from 8th or 9th century interpolations. Numismatics, the study of coins, has proven useful to dating. Sigillography, the study of seals, is also used for dating. Art and other archaeological findings are also of some use. Epigraphic sources or inscriptions are of limited use. Luttwak called the "Strategikon" of Maurice the "most complete Byzantine field manual"; it provides valuable insight into the military thinking and practices of the time.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: Martha Lane Fox, Baroness Lane-Fox of Soho, (born 10 February 1973) is a British businesswoman, philanthropist, and public servant. She co-founded Last Minute during the dotcom boom of the early 2000s and has subsequently served on public service digital projects. She sits on the boards of WeTransfer and Chanel, as well as being a trustee of The Queen's Commonwealth Trust. She previously served on the board of Channel 4.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: She entered the House of Lords as a crossbencher on 26 March 2013, becoming its youngest female member, and was appointed Chancellor of the Open University on 12 March 2014. In October 2019, she was named by media and marketing publication "The Drum" as the most influential woman in Britain's digital sector from the past quarter of a century.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: Born in London, Lane Fox is the daughter of academic and gardening writer Robin Lane Fox, the scion of an English landed gentry family seated at Bramham Park. She was educated at Oxford High School, an all-girls independent school in Oxford, and at Westminster School, a public school in London with a mixed-sex sixth form. She read Ancient and Modern History at Magdalen College, Oxford, and graduated with a 2:2 BA degree, advancing MA.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: Lane Fox showed interest in acting and prison governorship but instead joined information technology and media consulting firm Spectrum, where she met Brent Hoberman. In 1998, Lane Fox and Hoberman founded Last Minute, an online travel and gift business. She stepped down as managing director in 2003. Meanwhile, the company survived the dot-com crash to be bought out by Sabre Holdings in 2005 for £577m.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: Following her departure from Last Minute, Lane Fox was tipped to take over day-to-day operations at Selfridges but was involved in an auto accident before she could assume that role. At the suggestion of advertising executive Julian Douglas, Fox teamed up with Nick Thistleton to launch karaoke company Lucky Voice. In 2007, Lane Fox joined the board of Marks & Spencer.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: From 2009 to 2013 she was the Digital Champion for the UK and helped to create the Government Digital Service – this team launched gov.uk, and was given the task of spearheading a two-year campaign to improve computer literacy.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: The following year she was assigned to establish the Digital Public Services Unit within the Cabinet Office.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: She entered the House of Lords as a crossbencher on 26 March 2013, becoming its youngest female member. In her maiden speech, she addressed the need for digital literacy in all sectors of the economy. That same year the Open University appointed her Chancellor. In the run-up to the Scottish independence referendum of 2014, Lane Fox signed an open letter opposing Scottish independence.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: In 2017, Lady Lane-Fox was appointed a member of the Joint Committee on National Security Strategy. In 2018, she was appointed Non-Executive Director of Chanel as well as Donmar Warehouse and a Trustee of the Queen's Commonwealth Trust. Lane Fox continues to be a Patron of AbilityNet, Reprieve, Camfed and Just for Kids Law. She joined the board of social network Twitter in June 2016.In 2020, Lane Fox was appointed to the board of directors of the company WeTransfer.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: Lady Lane-Fox is an advocate for such causes as human rights, women's rights, and social justice. In 2007, she founded Antigone, a grant-making trust to support charities based in the United Kingdom. She is a patron of Reprieve, a legal action charity, and CAMFED, an organization dedicated to fighting poverty, HIV, and AIDS in rural Africa through an emphasis on education of young women. She is also patron of the charity Just for Kids Law, which supports children and young people in London, as well as fighting for wider reform on behalf of young people across the UK.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: When the telecommunications company Orange withdrew its longstanding support for the Orange Prize, Lane Fox was one of several benefactors, along with Cherie Blair and Joanna Trollope, who offered to sustain the contest until another major sponsor could be found.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: Lane Fox was appointed Commander of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for "services to the digital economy and charity". In February 2013 she was assessed to be one of the 100 most powerful women in the United Kingdom by Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4. In the same month it was announced that she was to be created a life peer to sit as a crossbencher in the House of Lords. An she was also recognized as one of the BBC's 100 women of 2013.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: On 25 March 2013, she was created a Life Peer as Baroness Lane-Fox of Soho, "of Soho in the City of Westminster", and was introduced in the House of Lords the next day. On 29 October 2015, Lane Fox was ranked 15th on the Richtopia list of 100 Most Influential British Entrepreneurs. In February 2016, Lane Fox was elected a Distinguished Fellow of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, after being nominated by The Duke of Kent.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: In October 2019, Lane Fox was named by media and marketing publication "The Drum", in association with the Futures Network, Innovate Her and WACL, as the most influential woman in Britain's digital sector from the past quarter of a century.


title: Martha Lane Fox

text: Lady Lane-Fox lives in Marylebone, London, with her partner Chris Gorell Barnes. Their identical twin sons, Milo and Felix, were born in 2016. In May 2004, she was severely injured in a car accident in the tourist resort of Essaouira in Morocco and was flown to England for treatment at John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, and later Wellington Hospital in London. She was discharged from hospital in December 2005.


title: Barrett Doss

text: Barrett Doss (born March 20, 1989) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her role as Victoria Hughes in the ABC action drama series "Station 19".


title: Barrett Doss

text: Doss was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Doss's parents divorced when she was a child, and she lived with her mother, Kelly Skalicky, who later married her partner, Veronica, who shared parenting responsibilities. Her family first lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico, for two years, and later she spent most of her childhood in Chicago, and then moved to New York City. She graduated from the Professional Children's School in Manhattan. Doss attended New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. In New York, she began performing on off-Broadway stage, and later on regional stage. In 2013, she made her television debut, appearing in an episode of NBC comedy series "30 Rock". She has appeared in series including "Person of Interest", "Bull" and "Girls". In 2014, She made her Broadway debut in the comedic play "You Can't Take It with You" appearing opposite James Earl Jones and Rose Byrne.


title: Barrett Doss

text: In 2017, Doss starred as Rita Hanson, a female lead, in the Broadway musical comedy "Groundhog Day" opposite Andy Karl. She received a 2017 Theatre World Award for an Outstanding Broadway Debut Performance. Later that year, she was cast in a recurring role on the Netflix superhero series "Iron Fist" and has made her film debut appearing in an supporting role in the biographical drama "Marshall" starring Chadwick Boseman. Later in 2017, she was cast in a series regular role on the ABC action drama series "Station 19", spin-off to "Grey's Anatomy". The series debuted in 2018. In 2019, Doss also began appearing on a recurring basis on the sixteenth season of "Grey's Anatomy".


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, of which it is the county seat. The city had a population of 66,816 in 2020, making it the ninth-largest city in Wisconsin. It is also adjacent to the Town of Oshkosh.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh was named for Menominee Chief Oshkosh, whose name meant "claw" (cf. Ojibwe "oshkanzh", "the claw").


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Although the fur trade attracted the first European settlers to the area as early as 1818, it never became a major player in the fur trade. The 1820s mining boom in southwest Wisconsin along with the opening of the Erie Canal shifted commercial activity away from the Fox River Valley and Green Bay. Soon after 1830, much of the trade moved west, as there had been over-trapping in the region.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Following the publicity caused by the Black Hawk War in 1832, there was increased interest in settling Wisconsin by whites from the East Coast, especially New York, Indiana, and Virginia, and by 1836 the cities of Milwaukee, Madison, Janesville, Beloit, and Fond du Lac were founded, with Madison the capital of a new territorial government, setting the stage for the economic and political importance of the southern part of the state. However, Oshkosh would continue to be one of Wisconsin's top five largest cities into the twentieth century.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The establishment and growth of the wood industry in the area spurred development of Oshkosh. Already designated as the county seat, Oshkosh was incorporated as a city in 1853. It had a population of nearly 2,800.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The lumber industry became well established as businessmen took advantage of navigable waterways to provide access to both markets and northern pineries. The 1859 arrival of rail transportation expanded the industry's ability to meet the demands of a rapidly growing construction market. At one time, Oshkosh was known as the "Sawdust Capital of the World" due to the number of lumber mills in the city, 11 by 1860.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: During the Civil War, the 21st Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, of the Union Wisconsin Volunteers was organized at Oshkosh, taking in many new recruits. This was one of two units organized in the state; the other was the 6th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, organized at Camp Randall, Madison. The 21st mustered on September 5, 1862, marching to Ohio and Louisville, Kentucky, where it participated in the fortification of Louisville later that year. It was attached to the Army of the Ohio and later to the Army of the Cumberland.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: By 1870, Oshkosh had become the third-largest city in Wisconsin, with a population of more than 12,000. The community attracted a range of professional teachers, attorneys, doctors, businessmen, and others who helped it flourish. The "Oshkosh Daily Northwestern" newspaper (now the "Oshkosh Northwestern") was founded around this time, as was the Oshkosh State Normal School (now the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh). Lumber continued as the mainstay of the city. By 1874, it had 47 sawmills and 15 shingle mills.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: On April 28, 1875, Oshkosh had a "Great Fire" that consumed homes and businesses along Main Street north of the Fox River. The fire engulfed 70 stores, 40 factories, and 500 homes, costing nearly $2.5 million (or $67.3 million in 2022 money) in damage.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Around 1900 Oshkosh was home of the Oshkosh Brewing Company, which coined the marketing slogan "By Gosh It's Good." Its Chief Oshkosh brand became a nationally distributed beer.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The population of the city in 1910 was 33,062, making it the state's fourth largest city, ahead of Madison and Green Bay.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The Oshkosh All-Stars played in the National Basketball League from 1937 to 1949, before the NBL and the Basketball Association of America merged to become the NBA. Oshkosh reached the NBL's championship finals five times.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The city has a total of 33 listings on the National Register of Historic Places. Some area entrepreneurs and businessmen made their fortunes in the lumber industry. Many made significant contributions to the community, in both politics and supporting philanthropic organizations. Following devastating fires in the mid-1870s, new buildings were commissioned in Oshkosh that expressed a range of good design: for residential, commercial, civic and religious use.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The many structures which make up the city's historic areas are largely a result of the capital and materials generated by the lumber and associated wood manufacturing industries. Oshkosh had six historic districts as of October 2011. They include the Algoma Boulevard, Irving/Church, North Main Street, Oshkosh State Normal School on the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh campus, Paine Lumber Company, and Washington Avenue historic districts.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The city had 27 historic buildings and sites individually listed on the NRHP as of October 2011. Eleven are houses, four are churches, and the remainder include schools, colleges, a bank, a fire house, an observatory, the Winnebago County Courthouse, and a cemetery where many of the entrepreneurs are buried.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which, is land and is water.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: In the most recent climatological normal has a hot-summer humid continental climate (Köppen: "Dfa") near the 22 °C threshold (the average of the hottest month is 22.2 °C). Summer days are warm to hot with cool to mild nights. Winters are cold and long with moderate snowfall. Precipitation peaks from late spring to early fall.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: As of the census of 2020, the population was 66,816. The population density was . There were 29,222 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 83.0% White, 5.3% Black or African American, 4.4% Asian, 0.8% Native American, 1.3% from other races, and 5.0% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 4.4% Hispanic or Latino of any race.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The 2020 census population of the city included 3,045 people incarcerated in adult correctional facilities and 2,767 people in student housing.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: According to the American Community Survey estimates for 2016–2020, the median income for a household in the city was $51,282, and the median income for a family was $70,534. Male full-time workers had a median income of $47,470 versus $37,319 for female workers. The per capita income for the city was $25,625. About 8.0% of families and 17.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.3% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over. Of the population age 25 and over, 91.3% were high school graduates or higher and 26.4% had a bachelor's degree or higher.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: As of the census of 2010, there were 66,083 people, 26,138 households, and 13,836 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 28,179 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 90.5% White, 3.1% African American, 0.8% Native American, 3.2% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.7% of the population.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: There were 26,138 households, of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.7% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 47.1% were non-families. Of all households, 34.4% were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.90.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The median age in the city was 33.5 years. 18.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 18.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.7% were from 25 to 44; 23% were from 45 to 64; and 12.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 51.2% male and 48.8% female.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: As of the census of 2000, there were 62,916 people, 24,082 households, and 13,654 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,662.2 people per square mile (1,028.0/km). There were 25,420 housing units at an average density of 1,075.6 per square mile (415.3/km). The racial makeup of the city was 92.73% White, 2.19% Black or African American, 0.52% Native American, 3.03% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.53% from other races, and 0.98% from two or more races. 1.69% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 52.2% were of German and 6.3% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: There were 24,082 households, out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.3% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.3% were non-families. Of all households, 32.4% were made up of individuals, and 11.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.95.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: In the city, the population was spread out, with 20.7% under the age of 18, 18.1% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 18.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.7 males.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh is also served by the GO Transit (formerly Oshkosh Transit System), which runs nine fixed-route bus routes throughout the city from 6:15 am until 6:45 pm Monday through Saturday. One of these routes also connects Oshkosh with Neenah, Wisconsin, and the Fox Cities' transit system, Valley Transit.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh's airport, Wittman Field or Wittman Regional Airport (KOSH), opened in 1927 as Oshkosh Airport Inc. The airport had commercial traffic starting in 1928 when Northwest Airways delivered mail to Oshkosh and the Fox Cities. In 1972, the airport was renamed after race pilot Steve Wittman, who was the airport manager for 38 years.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Wittman Field had commercial service on a number of airlines until 2003. Wittman was served at various times by Wisconsin Central Airlines, North Central, Republic, Air Wisconsin, American Central, Midstate Airlines, Northwest Airlink, United Express, Midway Connection, Skyway, and Great Lakes. Service on the final carrier, Great Lakes, was terminated in 2003 following the FAA's termination of a federal subsidy.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: In the 21st century, Wittman Field continues to host the EAA AirVenture Air Show and Expo (formerly the EAA Annual Convention and Fly-In up to 1998). The EAA was founded in 1953 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, by Paul Poberezny. The event was first held at Timmerman Field. In 1959, it was moved to Rockford, Illinois. By 1969, the EAA had grown too big for Rockford Municipal Airport, and the convention voted on moving to Oshkosh. During the Airshow, Wittman Regional Airport becomes the busiest airport in the world: more than 500,000 people and 10,000 airplanes attend AirVenture each year.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The closest airport with commercial service is Appleton International Airport in Appleton, Wisconsin.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh had a mayor-alderman form of government from it's charter in 1853. It abolished the position of mayor and implemented the council-manager form of government in 1957. The city-wide elected office of "mayor" was subsequently restored in 2005, but is more akin to president of the city council. Executive power in the city still resides with the city manager.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The current city manager is Mark Rohloff, who was selected by the city council in 2008. The mayor is Lori Palmeri, elected in 2019 and re-elected in 2021.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: For representation in the state legislature, Oshkosh has been primarily represented by the 54th Assembly district since the 1983 redistricting law. Since 1992, the 53rd district has also represented parts of the city of Oshkosh, but the bulk of that district is rural and suburban areas of Winnebago and counties.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The current Assembly representatives are Michael Schraa (R–53rd district) and Gordon Hintz (D–54th district).


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Federally, Oshkosh falls within Wisconsin's 6th congressional district, which is represented by Glenn Grothman (R) since 2015. Wisconsin's United States senators are Ron Johnson (R) and Tammy Baldwin (D).


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The Oshkosh Correctional Institution, a Wisconsin Department of Corrections prison, is located in Oshkosh.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh Corporation is headquartered in Oshkosh. Oshkosh Corporation, formerly Oshkosh Truck, is the leading manufacturer and marketer of specialty vehicles and bodies in four primary business groups: Access Equipment, Defense, Fire & Emergency, and Commercial. Plastic packaging is also a major industry, with Amcor, formerly Bemis, as a major employer. There are two well known chocolate companies located in Oshkosh, Hughes and Oaks.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh is known for OshKosh B'Gosh, a manufacturer of overalls and children's clothing founded in the city in 1895. Originally a small-town manufacturer of adult work clothing, it became best known for its children's lines. The original children's overalls, dating from the early twentieth century, were intended to help children dress like their fathers. According to the company, sales increased dramatically when Miles Kimball, an Oshkosh-based mail-order catalog, featured a pair of the overalls in its national catalog. As a result, OshKosh B'Gosh began to sell their products through department stores and expanded their children's line. Their office is now based in Atlanta, Georgia.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh is the home of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, "The World's Greatest Aviation Celebration" held by the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. ("EAA"). AirVenture is the world's largest airshow. During AirVenture, air traffic at Wittman Regional Airport exceeds that of any other airport in the world. EAA is a non-profit member organization, dedicated to home-built aircraft, restored aircraft, and Light-sport Aircraft, and fostering an interest in flying in children 8–18 years old through its Young Eagles program.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Tourism and events are part of the local economy. Recreational fishing and boating on Lake Winnebago includes many active fishing tournaments, an annual sturgeon spearing season, and frequent yacht and boat races. Music festivals include the summer-long WaterFest downtown and major summer music festivals for country, Christian, and rock music. December features a drive-through lights show that brings in visitors from the surrounding area.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh is also home to two regional hospitals and the Winnebago Mental Health Institute located in nearby Winnebago, Wisconsin.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Oshkosh has 14 public elementary schools, five public middle schools, and two high schools operated by the Oshkosh Area School District. The high schools in the Oshkosh Area School District are Oshkosh North High School and Oshkosh West High School.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Private schools in the city include Grace Lutheran School (Pre-K to 8th grade) and Martin Luther School (Pre-K to 8th grade) of the WELS, Lourdes High School, and Valley Christian School (Pre-K to 12)


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh, the third-largest university in the state, is located in Oshkosh. The downtown campus serves approximately 15,000 students and employs 1,700 staff. Higher education is also served by a campus of the Fox Valley Technical College.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: A downtown redevelopment plan led to the construction of the outdoor Leach Amphitheater on the Fox River. It hosts the weekly Waterfest concert series during the summer, as well as national touring musical acts and local community events. Also in downtown Oshkosh is the Grand Opera House, a performing arts center. Downtown Oshkosh has a farmers Market on Saturdays in the summer.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The Downtown Oshkosh Gallery Walk, held every first Saturday of the month year-round, surged in attendance through the warmer months of 2006. A number of downtown Oshkosh music venues have opened, and existing venues have tended to expand their schedules, following the trend of the area at large. The Jambalaya Art Cooperative and Art Space Collective have been long standing anchors of the Gallery Walk. In 2010, "Chicago Magazine" said The Jambalaya Cooperative, 413 N. Main St., was a "must see" destination when visiting Oshkosh.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Long-running community festivals, such as Sawdust Days in Menominee Park, was a popular event but discontinued in 2019. Menominee Park is also the site of the Menominee Park Zoo. "Country USA" is an annual three-day festival in June that features entertainment from dozens of country music acts. "Rock USA" features many rock music acts as well.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: Pub Crawl is an unsanctioned, unofficial event that happens twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring on the second weekend of April and October. Supposedly, according to the organizers, it was the largest and longest running college pub crawl. It is not officially sanctioned by the city, but it used to attract students across the state to the university area. Many area bars and restaurants reported an uptick in sales, though with the raised revenue also came higher incident rates for local police. The local university put in measures to keep students safe and control how people move throughout the campus.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: From 1999 to 2019, the Seventh-day Adventist-hosted International Pathfinder Camporee was held in Oshkosh, gathering tens of thousands youth and adults from all over the world every 5 years. The most recent Camporee in 2019 gathered over 56,000 Pathfinders, and is considered the largest Adventist youth event in history, with over 1,000 people being baptized. One of the main highlights of the camporees were the evening programs, specifically the plays which reenacted the stories of famous characters and stories from the Bible onstage. They were held in campgrounds close to the EAA Aviation Museum, with some of the hangars being renovated to make room for booths where Pathfinders would get multiple honors. In 2021, it was announced that the International Pathfinder Camporee would be hosted in Gillette, Wyoming, in 2024.


title: Oshkosh, Wisconsin

text: The Milwaukee Bucks NBA basketball team placed their development team, the Wisconsin Herd, in Oshkosh beginning with the 2017–2018 season. The team plays basketball at Oshkosh Arena.


title: Maiara Walsh

text: Maiara Kylior Walsh (born February 18, 1988) is a Brazilian-American actress and singer. She played Ana Solis on the sixth season of the ABC show "Desperate Housewives", Meena Paroom on the Disney Channel sitcom "Cory in the House" and Simone Sinclair on the ABC Family series "Switched at Birth".


title: Maiara Walsh

text: Walsh was born in Seattle, Washington, to a Brazilian mother and an American father. Her family moved to São Paulo, Brazil when she was one year old where Portuguese became her first language. After a few years, they moved back to Seattle where Maiara took an interest in music and the arts, diving into every musical and play offered by her school. At 11, she moved to Simi Valley, California to pursue her acting career and graduated from Royal High School.


title: Maiara Walsh

text: In 2010, Walsh guest-starred on CW's "The Vampire Diaries" as Sarah. In 2011 she co-starred in "Mean Girls 2" as Mandi Weatherly, an A-list cliché girl also known as a "Plastic". Walsh was also on the "Dr. Phil Show".


title: Maiara Walsh

text: Walsh was the female lead in the television series "Zombieland" as Wichita, taking over the role from Emma Stone. After the pilot episode, the series was not picked up.


title: Maiara Walsh

text: Walsh had a recurring part starting in 2012 as Simone Sinclair, a former friend of Bay Kennish, a one-night stand with Emmett Bledsoe, friend / ex-girlfriend of Toby Kennish, and ex-girlfriend of Wilkie, in "Switched at Birth".


title: Maiara Walsh

text: In 2019, Walsh starred in the Lifetime film "Identity Theft of a Cheerleader" (which was inspired by the identity theft committed by Wendy Brown) as Vicky Patterson who was modeled after Brown.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: George Lester Jackson (September 23, 1941 – August 21, 1971) was an American author, activist and prisoner. While serving an indeterminate sentence for the armed robbery of a gas station in 1961, Jackson became involved in revolutionary activity and co-founded the prison gang Black Guerrilla Family.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: In 1970, he was charged, along with two other Soledad Brothers, with the murder of Correctional Officer John Vincent Mills in the aftermath of a prison fight. The same year, he published "Soledad Brother: The Prison Letters of George Jackson", a combination of autobiography and manifesto addressed to an African-American audience. The book became a bestseller and earned Jackson personal fame.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Jackson was killed during an attempted prison escape in 1971. Jackson and other prisoners took hostages during the attempt and five hostages were found dead in Jackson's cell after the incident.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Born in Chicago, Illinois, Jackson was the second son of Lester and Georgia Bea Jackson's five children. He spent time in the California Youth Authority Corrections facility in Paso Robles due to several juvenile convictions including armed robbery, assault, and burglary.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: ($ in current dollar terms) at gunpoint from a gas station – and sentenced to one year to life in prison.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: During his first years at San Quentin State Prison, Jackson became involved in revolutionary activity. He was described by prison officials as egocentric and anti-social. In 1966, Jackson met and befriended W. L. Nolen, who introduced him to Marxist and Maoist ideology. The two founded the Black Guerrilla Family in 1966 based on Marxist and Maoist political thought. In speaking of his ideological transformation, Jackson remarked: "I met Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Engels, and Mao when I entered prison and they redeemed me."


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: As Jackson's disciplinary infractions grew he spent more time in solitary confinement, where he studied political economy and radical theory. He also wrote many letters to friends and supporters, which would later be edited and compiled into the books "Soledad Brother" and "Blood in My Eye", bestsellers that brought him a great deal of attention from leftist organizers and intellectuals in the U.S. and Western Europe. He amassed a following of inmates, including whites and Latinos, and most enthusiastically with other black inmates.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: In January 1969, Jackson and Nolen were transferred from San Quentin to Soledad Prison. On January 13, 1970, corrections officer Opie G. Miller shot Nolen and two other black prisoners (Cleveland Edwards and Alvin Miller) during a yard riot with members of the Aryan Brotherhood, killing all three. Following Nolen's death, Jackson became increasingly confrontational with corrections officials and spoke often about the need to protect fellow inmates and take revenge on correction officers, employing what Jackson called "selective retaliatory violence".


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: On January 17, 1970, Jackson, Fleeta Drumgo and John Clutchette were charged with murdering a corrections officer, John V. Mills, who was beaten and thrown from the third floor of Soledad's Y wing. This was a capital offense and a successful conviction would have put Jackson in the gas chamber. Mills was purportedly killed in retaliation for the shooting deaths of three inmates by Miller the previous year. Miller had not been charged with any crime, as a grand jury ruled his actions during the prison fight justifiable homicide.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: On August 7, 1970, George Jackson's 17-year-old brother Jonathan P. Jackson burst into a Marin County courtroom with an automatic weapon, freed prisoners James McClain, William A. Christmas and Ruchell Magee, and took Judge Harold Haley, Deputy District Attorney Gary Thomas, and three jurors hostage to demand the release of the "Soledad Brothers". Police killed Haley, Jackson, Christmas and McClain as they attempted to drive away from the courthouse. Eyewitness testimony suggests Haley was hit by fire discharged from a sawed-off shotgun that had been fastened to his neck with adhesive tape by the abductors. Thomas, Magee and one of the jurors were wounded. The case made national headlines.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Angela Davis, who owned the weapons used in the hostage taking, was later acquitted of conspiracy, kidnapping, and murder. A possible explanation for the gun connection is that Jonathan Jackson was her bodyguard. Magee, the sole survivor among the attackers, eventually pleaded guilty to aggravated kidnapping and was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1975. Magee is currently imprisoned in Corcoran State Prison and has lost numerous bids for parole.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: On August 21, 1971, Jackson met with attorney Stephen Bingham at San Quentin prison to discuss a civil lawsuit that Jackson had filed against the California Department of Corrections. After the meeting, Jackson was being escorted by officer Urbano Rubiaco back to his cell when Rubiaco noticed a metallic object in Jackson's hair, later revealed to be a wig, and ordered him to remove it. Jackson then pulled a Spanish Astra 9 mm pistol from beneath the wig and said: "Gentlemen, the dragon has come"—a reference to Ho Chi Minh. It is not clear how Jackson obtained the gun. Bingham, who lived for 13 years as a fugitive before returning to the United States to face trial, was acquitted of charges that he smuggled a gun to Jackson.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Jackson ordered Rubiaco to open all the cells and along with several other inmates, he overpowered the remaining correction officers and took them, along with two inmates, hostage. Five other hostages, officers Jere Graham, Frank DeLeon and Paul Krasnes, along with two white prisoners, were killed and found in Jackson's cell. Three other officers, Rubiaco, Kenneth McCray, and Charles Breckenridge, were also shot and stabbed, but survived. After finding the keys for the Adjustment Center's exit, Jackson along with fellow inmate and close friend Johnny Spain escaped to the yard where Jackson was shot dead from a tower and Spain surrendered.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Three inmates were acquitted and three (David Johnson, Johnny Spain and Hugo Pinell) were convicted for the murders. The six became known as the "San Quentin Six".


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: There is some evidence that Jackson and his supporters on the outside had planned the escape for several weeks. Three days before the escape attempt, Jackson rewrote his will, leaving all royalties as well as control of his legal defense fund to the Black Panther Party.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Jackson's funeral was held at St. Augustine's Episcopal Church in Oakland, California, on August 28, 1971.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Several notable artists and entertainers have dedicated their work to Jackson's memory or created works based on his life. The avant-garde jazz group Art Ensemble of Chicago, affiliates of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, recorded and released the album "A Jackson in Your House" in Paris, France, in 1969. A non-album single was released by Bob Dylan, "George Jackson", about the life and death of Jackson. The song made the American charts peaking at No. 33 in January 1972. The ninth track of the 2011 Blue Scholars album "Cinemetropolis" is named for Jackson and references the Soledad Brothers.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Jackson and his attempted prison escape are the subjects of the first verse of the Joan Baez parody song, "Pull the Tregroes," on National Lampoon's 1972 album, "Radio Dinner".


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Steel Pulse, an English reggae band from Birmingham wrote a song named "Uncle George" that contains a chorus of "Soledad Brother". The song comes from the band's album "Tribute To The Martyrs", which also honours other black civil rights activists including Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr. and Steve Biko.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Ja Rule named his 2003 album after Jackson's book "Blood in My Eye". Saxophone player Archie Shepp dedicated most of his album "Attica Blues" (1972) to the story of George Jackson ("Blues for Brother George Jackson") and the Attica prison riots that followed. Stephen Jay Gould wrote, in his 1981 book "The Mismeasure of Man", of George Jackson's death in context of "statistically supported" social Darwinism. Quoting Gould about the legacy of failed science which supported racial bigotry and physiognomy, "George Jackson ... died under Lombroso's legacy, trying to escape after eleven years (eight and a half in solitary) of an indeterminate one-year-to-life sentence for stealing seventy dollars from a gas station."


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Jackson's life, beliefs and ultimate fate were the topic of one of the many audio tapes recorded at the Jonestown commune in Guyana during 1978. In the tape in question, Jim Jones touches on several issues relating to Jackson, most notably Jones' firm belief that Jackson's death was a racist assassination. His admiration for the Black Panther activist on the tape is as clear as his disgust that one of his followers, Willie Malone, could think he was remotely in the same league as Jackson, and that "punks" like Malone had sold him out. Jim Jones could later be heard beating Willie Malone, who was 15 years old at the time.


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: Stanley Williams dedicated his 1998 book "Life in Prison" in part to George Jackson. In Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's response to Williams' appeal for clemency, the governor claimed that this dedication was "a significant indicator that Williams is not reformed and that he still sees violence and lawlessness as a legitimate means to address societal problems."


title: George Jackson (activist)

text: "Soulja's Story" is a song by rapper 2pac, released on the 1991 album "2pacalypse Now", which makes reference to the Marin County Civic Center attacks.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Joplin is a city in Jasper and Newton counties in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bulk of the city is in Jasper County, while the southern portion is in Newton County. Joplin is the largest city located within both Jasper and Newton Counties - even though it is not the county seat of either county (Carthage is the seat of Jasper County while Neosho is the seat of Newton County). With a population of 51,762 as of the 2020 census, Joplin is the 13th most-populous city in the state. The city covers an area of 35.69 square miles (92.41 km) on the outer edge of the Ozark Mountains. Joplin is the main hub of the three-county Joplin-Miami, Missouri-Oklahoma Metro area, which is home to 210,077 people making it the 5th largest metropolitan area in Missouri. In May 2011, the city was hit by a violent EF5 tornado which destroyed one-third of the city.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Lead was discovered in the Joplin Creek Valley before the Civil War, but only after the war did significant development take place. By 1871, numerous mining camps sprang up in the valley and resident John C. Cox filed a plan for a city on the east side of the valley. Cox named his village Joplin City after the spring and creek nearby, which had been named for the Reverend Harris G. Joplin, who settled upon its banks circa 1840.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Carthage resident Patrick Murphy filed a plan for a city on the opposite side of the valley and named it Murphysburg. As the nearest sheriff was in Carthage, frontier lawlessness abounded in Joplin. The historic period was referred to as the "Reign of Terror". The cities eventually merged into Union City, but when the merger was found illegal, the cities split. Murphy suggested that a combined city be named Joplin. The cities merged again on March 23, 1873, this time permanently, as the City of Joplin.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: While Joplin was first settled for lead mining, zinc, often referred to as "jack", was the most important mineral resource. As railroads were built to connect Joplin to major markets in other cities, it was on the verge of dramatic growth. By the start of the 20th century, the city was becoming a regional metropolis. Construction centered around Main Street, with many bars, hotels, and fine homes nearby. Joplin's three-story "House of Lords" was its most famous saloon, with a bar and restaurant on the first floor, gambling on the second, and a brothel on the third. Trolley and rail lines made Joplin the hub of southwest Missouri. As the center of the "Tri-state district", it soon became the lead- and zinc-mining capital of the world.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: As a result of extensive surface and deep mining, Joplin is dotted with open-pit mines and mineshafts. Mining left many tailings piles (small hills of ground rock), which are considered unsightly locally. The main part of Joplin is nearly 75% undermined, with some mine shafts well over 100 ft (30 m) deep. These shafts have occasionally caved in, creating sinkholes.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Joplin began to add cultural amenities; in 1902, residents passed a tax to create a public library, and gained matching funds that enabled them to build the Carnegie Library. It was seen as the symbol of a thriving city. In 1930, the grand commercial Electric Theater was built, one of the many movie palaces of the time. It was later purchased and renamed the Fox by Fox Theatres corporation. With the Depression and post-World War II suburban development, moviegoing declined at such large venues.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: On April 15, 1903, Joplin police officers, including Theodore Leslie, 36, were searching nearby rail yards for a Black man who had allegedly stolen pistols from a hardware store when Leslie noticed a man in one of the rail cars. Shots were fired, and Leslie, a father of four, was mortally wounded. Hundreds of men launched a search using bloodhounds. On April 16, a Black man with a weapon, Thomas Gilyard, was arrested, and while he told one of the men involved in the arrest that he had been in the box car, he said several others had been there and that one of them fired the fatal shot.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Joplin City Attorney Perl Decker pleaded with the growing mob to break up, according to newspaper and other historical accounts, as did Mayor Thomas Cunningham, but the crowd soon stormed the jail and took Gilyard from his cell. He was lynched soon afterward.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: In 1933 during the Great Depression, the notorious criminals Bonnie and Clyde spent some weeks in Joplin, where they robbed several area businesses. Tipped off by a neighbor, the Joplin Police Department attempted to apprehend the pair. Bonnie and Clyde escaped after killing Newton County Constable John Wesley Harryman and Joplin Police Detective Harry McGinnis; however, they were forced to leave most of their possessions behind, including a camera. The "Joplin Globe" developed and printed the film, which showed now-legendary photos of Bonnie holding Clyde at mock gunpoint, and of Bonnie with her foot on a car fender, posed with a pistol in her hand and cigar in her mouth. The Missouri Advisory Council on Historic Preservation nominated the house where the couple stayed, at 34th Street and Oak Ridge Drive, for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places on February 13, 2009.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: After World War II, most of the mines were closed, and population growth leveled off. The main road through Joplin running east and west was designated as part of U.S. Route 66, which became famous as more Americans took to newly constructed highways. The roads provided improved access between cities, but they also drew off population to newer housing and eventually retail centers.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: In the 1960s and 1970s, nearly 40 acres (16 ha) of the city's downtown were razed in an attempt at urban renewal, as population and businesses had moved to a suburban fringe along newly constructed highways. The Keystone Hotel and Worth Block (former home of the House of Lords) were notable historic structures that were demolished. Christman's Department Store stands (converted into loft apartments), as does the Joplin Union Depot, since railroad restructuring and the decline in passenger traffic led to its closure. Other notable historic structures in Joplin include the Carnegie Library, Fred and Red's Diner, the Frisco Depot, the Scottish Rite Cathedral, and the Crystal Cave (filled in and used for a parking lot). The Newman Mercantile Store has been adapted for use as City Hall. The Fox Theatre has been adapted for use as the Central Christian Center.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: On May 5, 1971, Joplin was struck by a severe tornado, resulting in one death and 50 injuries, along with major damage to many houses and businesses.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: On November 11, 1978, Joplin's once-stately Connor Hotel, which was slated for implosion to make way for a new public library, collapsed suddenly and prematurely. Two demolition workers were killed instantly. A third, Alfred Sommers, was trapped for four days, yet survived.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: The city has two major hospitals which serve the Four States region, Freeman Health System and Mercy Hospital Joplin, the latter replacing St. John's Regional Medical Center which was destroyed in the May 22, 2011, tornado. Freeman Hospital East and Landmark Hospital serve more specialized community health needs. The city's park system has nearly and includes a golf course, three swimming pools, of walking/biking trails, the world's largest remaining globally unique Chert Glades and the Shoal Creek Nature Center located in Wildcat Park. A waterfall, Grand Falls, the highest continuously flowing in the state, is on Shoal Creek on the southern end of the city. Included in Schifferdecker Park is the Everett J. Ritchie Tri-State Mineral Museum and Dorothea B. Hoover Historical Museum, which holds a significant collection of minerals from the era of lead and zinc mining in the region.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Numerous buildings in Joplin have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places for their historic and architectural significance. The city has undertaken Agenda 21; a major project to revitalize its Main Street downtown district, which lies on the historic Route 66. It has refurbished building facades, sidewalks, and added old-styled lamp posts, flower baskets, and benches to highlight the historic center of the city. A gasoline-powered citywide trolley system evokes images of the city's vibrant past.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Numerous trucking lines such as CFI are headquartered in town, as the city is situated near the geographic and population centers of the nation. Eagle-Picher Industries, Tamko Building Products, AT&T Communications, and FAG Bearings are noted employers in Joplin, and Leggett & Platt (a Fortune 500) is located in nearby Carthage. The city is served by the Joplin Regional Airport located north of town near Webb City.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Since the 2011 tornado, the city continued to expand eastward toward I-44. Large-scale development occurred along Range Line Road, particularly around Northpark Mall. Numerous suburbs adjacent to the city include Carl Junction, Webb City, Duenweg, Duquesne, Airport Drive, Oronogo, Carterville, Redings Mill, Shoal Creek Drive, Leawood, and Saginaw.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Due to its location near two major highways and its few event and sports facilities, Joplin attracts travelers and is a destination for conferences and group events. Joplin offers nearly 500 hotel rooms, the majority located within a 1/4-mile area of Range Line Road and I-44. It has the John Q. Hammons Convention and Trade Center, which serves as the primary event facility for conventions, associations, and large events.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: Each June, Joplin hosts the Boomtown Run, a half marathon, 5K, and children's run. The event attracts runners from across the country, and features USTA certified courses which start and end in the historic downtown area. Celebrity runners featured at the prerace banquet have included Bart Yasso, Sarah Reinerston, Suzy Favor-Hamilton, and Jeff Galloway. In 2011, due to the devastating EF5 tornado that struck Joplin on May 22, just three weeks before the run, the event was transformed in the Boomtown Run Day of Service. About 270 individuals registered for the race after the tornado struck, knowing their proceeds would benefit tornado recovery. On June 11, about 270 registered runners and volunteers turned out to help clean debris and sort donations, contributing more than 1,200 hours of service. On August 7, 2012, the Village of Silver Creek and the City of Joplin voted to have Silver Creek annexed into Joplin City limits.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: On May 22, 2011, an EF5 tornado touched down near the western edge of the city among large, newer homes, about 5:21 pm CDT (22:34 UTC) and tracked eastward across the city and across Interstate 44 into rural portions of Newton County. Its track was reported to have been about in width and long. About 2,400 houses, 1,000 cars, and businesses were flattened or blown away in Joplin, particularly in the section between 13th and 32nd Streets across the southern part of the city. The tornado narrowly missed the downtown area.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: St. John's Regional Medical Center was damaged, and demolished in 2012. The Missouri Disaster Medical Assistance Team temporarily replaced the demolished St. John's Regional Medical Center with a mobile hospital until the permanent hospital was rebuilt. The local high school, Joplin High School, was totally destroyed, as well. A total of 161 people died from tornado-related injuries as of the end of July 2011. Communications were lost and power was knocked out to many areas. An official statement from the National Weather Service has categorized the tornado as an EF5. On Sunday, May 29, President Barack Obama, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon, and Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Craig Fugate visited and toured Joplin to see what the damage looked like and attended a memorial service for the deceased. Later that day, the city held a moment of silence at 5:41 pm, to mark the time the tornado struck. The area was declared a federal disaster area.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: In July 2011, the City of Joplin entered into a contractual agreement with a master developer company, hired to assist in nearly $3 Billion in reconstruction efforts. Priority construction projects included residential districts and senior and assisted-living facilities; 7,500 residential dwellings in the city were damaged or destroyed by storm. The city council began receiving government funds for additional recovery projects intended to spur expansion and economic growth included the construction of a new and expanded public library and a senior center, among other city amenities of trails, sidewalks, transportation, and park enhancements. A variety of additional major projects were to follow, greatly enhancing and expanding all aspects of the community's development. City Manager Mark Rohr said, "This effort is the greatest opportunity the city has ever seen." Among other resources and support from governmental agencies, the Economic Development Administration provided $20 million to construct a new Joplin Library and a two-year funding agreement to hire a disaster recovery coordinator to help coordinate the city's nearly $850 million in immediate restoration and recovery efforts.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: In the summer of 2012, the United States Housing and Urban Development Department awarded a $45 million community development block grant for reconstruction efforts and in 2013 awarded another $113 million. In May 2013, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources awarded Wildcat Glades Conservation and Audubon Center $500,000 to help with the restoration of the urban forest, which was passed through to the City of Joplin as a subgrant; 1,500 large-calibre trees were planted in the tornado zone and along an urban stream, Joplin Creek.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: In May 2016, a summit was held under the name of "Joplin Disaster Recovery Summit". The summit's purpose was to tackle several issues and ensure that the recovery plans take place.


title: Joplin, Missouri

text: As of March 2018 the only project finished that was proposed in the recovery effort besides the hospital and schools was the new public library. Wallace-Bajjali was sued by a city they formerly contracted with and skipped town without fulfilling the contract made to refurbish Joplin.