title: National FFA Organization

text: FFA members are required to wear official FFA dress while participating in official organization activities. The National FFA Organization recently updated its bylaws, stating that members may wear any item they are comfortable in, including those which were previously reserved for only one gender. Religious garb, such as head-ware, is also allowed.


title: National FFA Organization

text: Official dress consists of black slacks or a black skirt, a white button up shirt with collar, an official FFA blue scarf or tie, black dress shoes with closed heel and toe, black socks or nylon hosiery, and an official FFA jacket zipped to the top.


title: National FFA Organization

text: FFA members earn metal pins that signify achievement within the organization. These pins can be placed on the front of the FFA jacket; however, official guidelines state that no more than three pins may be worn at one time. The pins are to be placed beneath the FFA member's have their name on the right chest and can recognize the highest degree, highest office, and/or highest award in that order from left to right. Two exceptions exist within pin placement guidelines. When an FFA member earns a State FFA Degree or American FFA Degree, the award keys should be worn above the name on the right chest or attached to the FFA jacket with a standard key chain, and no other pins should accompany these.


title: National FFA Organization

text: The FFA Mission: The National FFA Organization is dedicated to making a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth, and career success through agricultural education.


title: National FFA Organization

text: Cross section of the ear of corn: represents unity. Wherever you live in the United States, corn is grown everywhere.


title: National FFA Organization

text: Plow: signifies labor and tillage of the soil. It also shows the historic foundation of our country's strength.


title: National FFA Organization

text: The creed was written by Erwin Milton "E.M." Tiffany of Lyndon, Kansas and adopted at the 3rd National FFA Convention. It was revised at the 38th and 63rd National FFA Conventions by the assembled delegate body. It is recited by new members to the organization to reflect their growing belief in agriculture and agricultural education. The FFA Creed also must be memorized and recited to earn the Greenhand Degree.


title: National FFA Organization

text: FFA is represented at several different levels across the nation; FFA administration may change from state to state. The basic levels are the national level, serving all of the United States of America, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands; the state level, serving an individual state association; and the chapter level, serving a school or set of schools in an area. By definition, there can be three types of chapters at the secondary level, they are middle for middle school, junior for ninth grade and senior which can be either tenth through twelfth or ninth through twelfth depending on the school. Other levels include districts, sub districts, sections, regions, areas, and federations.


title: National FFA Organization

text: FFA was created to serve high school students and has moved into middle schools where membership may begin as early as age 12, allowing members to become active earlier and stay active longer. Each chapter is chartered as part of the state association and national organization. Collegiate chapters exist as well.


title: National FFA Organization

text: Most states hold FFA conventions at least once annually, where members gather to compete, be recognized for awards, attend leadership workshops, debate organizational issues in a delegate process, and more. Nationally, the National FFA Convention & Expo is held once a year in the fall. It was held in Kansas City, Missouri, from 1928 to 1998. The convention moved to Louisville, Kentucky, in 1999 before moving again in 2006 to Indianapolis, Indiana. Louisville again hosted the national convention from 2013 to 2015. FFA announced in July 2015 that the national convention would be hosted in Indianapolis each year from 2016 to 2024. In 2018, FFA announced that the national convention would be hosted in Indianapolis each year from 2025 to 2031.


title: National FFA Organization

text: As FFA is a student-led organization intended to serve youth around the nation, it elects officers from its own diverse membership to certain levels of FFA. With these basic constitutional officers a basis of parliamentary procedure is completed during meetings and banquets; each officer during these procedures will stand and recite their office level and what it is stationed by, and why the particular position is stationed as so. Typical officer roles are:


title: National FFA Organization

text: Each officer is an agriculture student and holds responsibilities needed to serve. Officers are elected each year by members at the respective level.


title: National FFA Organization

text: At the national level, the organization has student-held positions of president, secretary, and vice president for each of the four administrative regions (Eastern, Southern, Central, and Western). These officers had to once be officers in their respective state association .


title: National FFA Organization

text: FFA Career and Leadership Development Events (CDE/LDEs) are competitions that members compete in to test their skills learned through agricultural education instruction. They vary at the different levels of FFA, and some are contested only at certain levels or in specific states, districts, areas, or regions.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: Kenneth Charles Cope (born 14 April 1931) is an English retired actor and scriptwriter. He is best known for his roles as Marty Hopkirk in "Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)", Jed Stone in "Coronation Street" and Ray Hilton in "Brookside".


title: Kenneth Cope

text: Cope began playing character roles in films from the mid 1950's, and between 1961 and 1966, gained greater attention for his regular role in "Coronation Street" as the shady Jed Stone, a part he later returned to in 2008. The appearance led to the recording of a novelty pop single, "Hands Off, Stop Mucking About", with Tony Hatch. Although it was not a hit, it led to a regular slot as a disc jockey with Radio Luxembourg.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: He played Subutai in the 1965 film of the life of Genghis Khan, and in the same year appeared in "Dateline Diamonds" playing Lester Benson. In 1967 he appeared as Tom Savage in "The Bird Who Knew Too Much" episode of "The Avengers".


title: Kenneth Cope

text: In "Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)" (1969–1970), Cope played the ghost private eye Marty Hopkirk opposite Mike Pratt's Jeff Randall.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: He also took leading roles in two "Carry On" films. In "Carry On at Your Convenience" (1971) he played Vic Spanner, the obnoxious shop steward central to the film's trade union and industrial problems storyline and the rival in the film's romantic sub-plot. In "Carry On Matron" (1972) he took the more sympathetic role of Cyril Carter, the son of a thief who is forced to impersonate a female nurse as part of his father's attempt to rob a maternity hospital. Once there, Cyril finds love with a real nurse.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: In an episode of the first series of "The Adventures of Black Beauty" "Sailor on a Horse" (1972) he played Henry Thackery, a missing heir from Canada, returning from sea, just in time to save the land and Beauty's paddock next to the Gordon family, which greedy, contentious lawyer Weems tries to sell by fraud, palming one of his clerks off as being the true heir.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: He appeared as Jack Victor in "Catweazle" ("The Wogle Stone") in 1971. In 1975–1976 he wrote three series of the BBC children's television series "Striker", starring the young Kevin Moreton and inspired by the local youth football team in the village of Islip, Oxfordshire, where the Cope family was then living.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: Cope featured in three episodes of "Minder" playing different characters: newly released prisoner Arthur Stubbs in "Bury My Half at Waltham Green"; 'Scooter' in "Waiting for Goddard"; and police informer Phelan in "Bring Me the Head of Arthur Daley".


title: Kenneth Cope

text: He later appeared in the "Doctor Who" story "Warriors' Gate" (in 1981), and guest-starred in four episodes of "Casualty", as well as taking roles in "Juliet Bravo",""The Bill", "Waking the Dead", "A Touch of Frost" and "Kavanagh QC".


title: Kenneth Cope

text: In 1984, Cope starred in "Bootle Saddles", an ill-conceived surreal sitcom about a failing themed 'cowboy village' on the outskirts of Merseyside. He played the lead character Percy James, who was passionate about the park despite the poor financial returns. The series appeared to be less a parody and more a sort of homage to 1950s and 1960s westerns, with episodes structured loosely around epics like "High Noon" and "The Magnificent Seven". The characters rarely strayed out of their diegetic cowboy personas, despite the contemporary setting. The series was axed after one season.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: In 1997, Cope played dodgy ex-copper Charlie Fairclough alongside David Jason in an episode of "A Touch of Frost" titled "True Confessions".


title: Kenneth Cope

text: Cope was offered a cameo role in the 2000–2001 revival of "Randall and Hopkirk" starring Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer, but turned it down. He did, however, feature on the "Behind the Scenes" section of the Series 1 DVD, wishing the cast of the remake well. He also provided the foreword to a "Randall and Hopkirk" retrospective book (by Geoff Tibballs), published in 1994.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: Also, an 'Appreciation', written by Cope, was included in Annette André's autobiography, 'Where have I been all My Life?', (Quoit Media, 2018).


title: Kenneth Cope

text: In 2008, Cope's "Coronation Street" character Jed Stone returned to the ITV soap after 42 years' absence, appearing as part of a storyline involving property developer Tony Gordon. The character was kept onscreen for several months before being written out again, and marked Kenneth Cope's final acting gig.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: Cope now resides in Southport, and writes a weekly column for the weekly " Southport Visiter" newspaper.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: Cope married actress Renny Lister, whom he had met when she worked on "Coronation Street", in 1961. They had two sons and a daughter together and they live in Witney, Oxfordshire.. Their sons Nick and Mark Cope went on to form a rock band, The Candyskins. Their daughter, Martha Cope, is an actress. In 1997, Lister announced her retirement.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: In 1974, Cope and his wife opened a restaurant, in Watlington, Oxfordshire, named "Martha's Kitchen" after his daughter.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: Cope was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2000, but six years later he was told this was a misdiagnosis; he now suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.


title: Kenneth Cope

text: In January 2014, Cope appeared as a character witness during the trial of former "Coronation Street" colleague William Roache, who plays Ken Barlow in the series.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Chinese nationality law details the conditions by which a person holds nationality of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The primary law governing these requirements is the Nationality Law of the People's Republic of China, which came into force on September 10, 1980.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Foreign nationals may naturalize if they are permanent residents in any part of China or they have immediate family members who are Chinese citizens. Residents of the Taiwan Area are also considered Chinese citizens, due to the PRC's extant claim over areas controlled by the Republic of China (ROC).


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Although mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau are all administered by the PRC, Chinese citizens do not have automatic residence rights in all three jurisdictions; each territory maintains a separate immigration policy. Voting rights and freedom of movement are tied to the region in which a Chinese citizen is domiciled, determined by "hukou" in mainland China and right of abode in the two special administrative regions.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: While Chinese law makes possessing multiple citizenships difficult, a large number of residents in Hong Kong and Macau have some form of British or Portuguese nationality due to the history of those regions as former European colonies. Chinese nationals who voluntarily acquire foreign citizenship automatically lose Chinese nationality.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Before the mid-19th century, nationality issues involving China were extremely rare and could be handled on an individual basis. Customary law dictated that children born to Chinese subjects took the nationality of the father, but did not have clear rules for renunciation of citizenship or the naturalization of aliens. Imperial Chinese subjects were traditionally severely restricted from traveling overseas and international travel was only sanctioned for official business. Disputes arising from nationality questions became more common as the Qing dynasty was forced through a series of unequal treaties to open up trade with Western empires and allow its subjects to migrate overseas.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: The Qing government created the first Chinese nationality law in 1909, which defined a Chinese national as any person born to a Chinese father. Children born to a Chinese mother only inherited her nationality if the father was stateless or had unknown nationality status. Women who married foreigners lost Chinese nationality if they took the nationality of their husbands. Nationality could be inherited perpetually from Chinese fathers, making it difficult to lose for men. These regulations were enacted in response to a 1907 statute passed in the Netherlands that retroactively treated all Chinese born in the Dutch East Indies as Dutch citizens. "Jus sanguinis" was chosen to define Chinese nationality so that the Qing could counter foreign claims on overseas Chinese populations and maintain the perpetual allegiance of its subjects living abroad through paternal lineage.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: The 1909 law placed restrictions on Chinese subjects with dual nationality within China. At the time, foreign powers exercised extraterritoriality over their own nationals residing in China. Chinese subjects claiming another nationality by virtue of their birth in a foreign concession became exempt from Qing taxation and legal jurisdiction within Chinese borders. A strict policy against automatic expatriation was adopted to prevent this; a Chinese individual's foreign nationality was not recognized by Qing authorities unless specifically approved. Foreigners who acquired Chinese nationality were subject to restrictions as well; naturalized Qing subjects could not serve in high military or political office until 20 years after becoming a Chinese national, and only with imperial authorization.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Nationality law remained largely unchanged in the Republican China, except for a major revision passed by the Kuomintang in 1929 that decoupled a woman's nationality from that of her husband and minimized circumstances in which children would be born stateless. After the Communist Revolution, the new government abolished all republican-era legislation but did not immediately create laws to replace them. Mainland China lacked formal nationality regulations until greater legal reform began in the late 1970s to 1980s. The government unofficially applied the 1929 statute during this time to resolve nationality issues, and also made a mother's nationality normally transferable to her children outside of cases where the father is stateless. The PRC does not recognize dual nationality and actively discouraged its occurrence in its treaties with Indonesia, Nepal, and Mongolia in the 1950s. When the National People's Congress adopted the current nationality law in 1980, a further stipulation was added that automatically revokes nationality from Chinese nationals who settle overseas and voluntarily acquire foreign citizenship.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Hong Kong was a British colony from 1842 until its transfer to China in 1997. It initially consisted only of Hong Kong Island and was expanded to include Kowloon Peninsula and Stonecutters Island in 1860. These areas were ceded in perpetuity to the United Kingdom by the Qing dynasty after the Opium Wars. Britain negotiated a further expansion of the colony to include the New Territories in 1898, which were leased (rather than ceded) from China for a period of 99 years. Towards the end of this lease, the British and Chinese governments entered into negotiations over the future of Hong Kong and agreed on the Sino-British Joint Declaration in 1984. The entire territory of Hong Kong would be transferred to China at the conclusion of the New Territories lease in 1997 and governed under Chinese sovereignty as a special administrative region.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Macau was established as a trading post in 1557 permanently leased to the Kingdom of Portugal by the Ming dynasty. The territory was later fully ceded in the 1887 Sino-Portuguese Treaty of Peking, but returned to China in 1999. Following the 1974 Carnation Revolution, Portugal formally relinquished Macau as an overseas province in 1976 and acknowledged it as a "Chinese territory under Portuguese administration." After negotiations on Hong Kong's future had concluded, China and Portugal began deliberations on Macau in 1986 and agreed on the Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration in 1987. Macau would be transferred to China in 1999 and governed largely under the same terms as Hong Kong.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Although most Hongkongers at the time were British Dependent Territories citizens (BDTCs) and a substantial number of Macau residents held Portuguese citizenship, China treats all ethnic Chinese born in these territories before and after the handovers as Chinese nationals. Hong Kong BDTCs who did not have strong ties to another British Dependent Territory lost BDTC status on July 1, 1997. Former ethnic Chinese BDTCs could retain British nationality if they had voluntarily registered as British Nationals (Overseas) or acquired full British citizenship as part of the British Nationality Selection Scheme prior to the transfer of sovereignty, while Macau residents with Portuguese citizenship were permitted to continue that status in all cases. However, Chinese authorities treat these individuals solely as Chinese nationals and bar them from receiving British or Portuguese consular assistance while in Chinese territory. Given that a large number of Hongkongers and Macanese continue to hold dual nationality after the handover, Chinese nationality law as implemented in the special administrative regions does not remove citizenship from Hong Kong or Macau residents who acquire foreign nationality.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: The Republic of China (ROC) governed mainland China from 1912 to 1949. Near the end of the Chinese Civil War, the Nationalist government was forced to retreat to Taiwan by the Communist Party, which subsequently established the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. Since the conclusion of the war, the ROC has controlled only the Taiwan Area. Because both the PRC and ROC constitutionally claim areas under the other's control, the two governments treat each other's nationals as their own.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Individuals born within the People's Republic of China automatically receive Chinese nationality at birth if at least one parent is a Chinese national. Children born overseas to at least one Chinese parent are also Chinese nationals, unless they are foreign citizens at birth and either parent with Chinese nationality has acquired permanent residency abroad or foreign citizenship. In Hong Kong and Macau, broader regulations apply; all individuals of ethnic Chinese origin who possess right of abode in either region and were born in a Chinese territory are considered Chinese nationals, regardless of the nationalities of their parents. Furthermore, because of China's continuing claims over Taiwan, ROC nationals from Taiwan are considered PRC nationals by the PRC.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Foreigners may naturalize as Chinese nationals if they have immediate family with Chinese nationality, possess permanent residency in mainland China or a special administrative region, or have other "legitimate reasons". Applications for naturalization are normally considered by the National Immigration Administration in mainland China, while responsibility for this process is delegated to the Immigration Department in Hong Kong and the Identification Services Bureau in Macau. Successful applicants are required to renounce any foreign nationalities they have. Naturalization is exceptionally rare in mainland China; there were only 1,448 naturalized persons reported in the 2010 census out of the country's total population of 1.34 billion. Acquiring Chinese nationality is more common in Hong Kong; the Immigration Department naturalized over 10,000 people between the transfer of sovereignty and 2012, and continues to receive over 1,500 applications per year since 2016.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Chinese nationality can be relinquished by making a declaration of renunciation. It is also automatically revoked when persons from mainland China who reside abroad voluntarily acquire a foreign nationality. Hong Kong and Macau residents who become foreign citizens continue to be Chinese nationals unless they make an explicit declaration of nationality change to their territorial immigration authorities. Macanese residents with mixed Chinese-Portuguese ancestry are specifically given a choice between Chinese and Portuguese nationalities. On submitting a formal declaration to select Portuguese nationality, these individuals would lose Chinese nationality. Former Chinese nationals may subsequently apply for nationality restoration, subject to discretionary approval. Similar to naturalizing candidates, successful applicants must renounce their foreign nationalities.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: In regards to the de facto practices of the Chinese government, Kris Cheng wrote in "Foreign Affairs" that "Beijing presents nationality as an elaborate legal question, but in practice the answer is simple. Only one rule applies: If you have ever held or could have held Chinese citizenship, you are a Chinese national unless Beijing decides you are not. And even if you were born abroad but you're of Chinese descent, Beijing still feels as if it owns you."


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Yuan Yang of "Financial Times" cited the Chinese authorities treating Gui Minhai as a Chinese national despite his Swedish citizenship as evidence that the Chinese state "muddies" the distinction between ethnicity and citizenship.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: While Chinese nationality law does not recognize multiple nationalities, the current legal framework and its practical implementation allow for certain situations where de facto dual nationality occurs: While children born to Chinese parents abroad in general would not acquire Chinese nationality if they acquired foreign nationality by birth, those children who are born to Chinese parents living abroad only temporarily, such as diplomatic staff, humanitarian workers or overseas students, will still be regarded as Chinese nationals and hence be de facto nationals of both the Chinese and the foreign state. Chinese officials who naturalize in another country cannot renounce their Chinese nationality and hence will continue to be treated as Chinese nationals by the Chinese state.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Although mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau constitute a single country, Chinese citizens do not have freedom of movement in all three jurisdictions. Each region maintains a separate immigration policy and can deny entry to or deport non-resident Chinese citizens visiting from outside that territory. When traveling to other countries, visa-free access varies greatly depending on where a Chinese citizen is permanently resident. As of 2020, mainland Chinese residents can travel to 74 countries without a visa, Macau residents to 144, and Hong Kong residents to 170.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: "Hukou" is a household registration system that regulates internal migration within mainland China. Citizens are assigned a "hukou" classification (rural or urban) at birth based on their family's registration. The type of social welfare a person receives from the state is tied to "hukou"; individuals with rural "hukou" are allocated a housing plot with land for farming, while urban residents are provided with a variety of government services in their locale including healthcare, public education, unemployment benefits, and subsidized housing. Changing from a rural "hukou" to an urban one was tightly controlled and very rare until the 1980s. While reforms have relaxed these regulations in recent years, requirements for changing registration vary by location and can be very stringent in the largest cities. Likewise, urban-to-rural conversion is extremely difficult due to the land use rights associated with rural "hukou".


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Chinese nationals who acquire a foreign nationality are obliged to renounce their Chinese nationality, which also implies that their "hukou" is cancelled. However, high numbers of former Chinese citizens were reported who are reluctant to cancel their "hukou" due to the social benefits bound to it. Due to insufficient communication between the relevant authorities, such practice even allows these individuals to illegally reacquire Chinese nationality by applying for a Chinese passport on the basis of their "hukou" they did not cancel as required.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Chinese nationals of mainland China are required to register for Resident Identity Cards, eligible to hold People's Republic of China passports, and able to vote in direct elections for local People's Congresses or village committees. When temporarily visiting Hong Kong or Macau, mainland Chinese residents must obtain Two-way Permits from their local public security bureau authorities. If permanently settling in either special administrative region, they must be approved for One-way Permits.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Law enforcement in mainland China may detain any citizens without arrest warrants or explicit authorization from judicial authorities, despite nominal constitutional protections against arbitrary arrest and detention. Political dissidents and their families are subject to invasive personal surveillance and house arrest. Mainland authorities will occasionally perform extraordinary rendition on Chinese citizens, abducting individuals of interest who are overseas and forcibly returning them to China.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Hong Kong and Macau permanent residents have the unrestricted right to live and work in their territories, but do not have automatic residence or employment rights in mainland China. The central government issues Home Return Permits to residents who are Chinese citizens for travel purposes and Residence Permits if they intend to reside or work in the mainland for longer than six months.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Chinese nationals with right of abode in these regions are eligible for Hong Kong or Macau Resident Identity Cards, able to hold Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passports or Macau Special Administrative Region passports, and may vote in elections for the Legislative Council of Hong Kong or Legislative Assembly of Macau.


title: Chinese nationality law

text: Similar to Hong Kong and Macau residents, Taiwanese residents are issued Mainland Travel Permits for short-term travel and Residence Permits if they intend to reside or work in the mainland for longer than six months. While they are also eligible to hold PRC passports, Taiwanese law automatically strips household registration from ROC nationals who are issued mainland passports without specific authorization from Taiwanese authorities.


title: Fonzworth Bentley

text: Derek Watkins (born February 13, 1974), known professionally as Fonzworth Bentley, is an American rapper, actor, television presenter, and author. He is perhaps best known for being Sean Combs' former personal valet and assistant, as first seen in "Making the Band 2", and was the host of MTV's "From G's to Gents". He was born in Atlanta, Georgia.


title: Fonzworth Bentley

text: He first appeared rapping on Da Band's 2002 album "Too Hot for TV", in the track "Cheers to Me, Mr. Bentley (Interlude)". In 2003, Bentley was featured on the "Good Day, Good Sir" skit on OutKast's "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below". In 2004, he made a cameo in the music video of Kanye West's "The New Workout Plan". Bentley is credited as a songwriter on multiple "Yeezus" tracks including “On Sight,” “Black Skinhead,” “I Am a God,” and “Hold My Liquor.” He is also credited as a producer on West's “Ultralight Beam.”


title: Fonzworth Bentley

text: He was also featured, playing the violin in the "Yes We Can" music video in support of Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign.


title: Fonzworth Bentley

text: Bentley was an executive producer for "Borrow My Crew" in 2005, in which he allowed one boy, Cory Cole, to borrow the entourage of P. Diddy for two days. In 2008, he hosted the MTV reality series "From G's to Gents", which ran for two seasons.


title: Fonzworth Bentley

text: In 2007, Bentley authored an etiquette book, "Advance Your Swagger: How to Use Manners, Confidence and Style to Get Ahead".


title: Fonzworth Bentley

text: In May 2009, Bentley hosted one of the afterparties following the White House Correspondents' Dinner in Washington, D.C.


title: Fonzworth Bentley

text: In 2007, Bentley contributed to KnowHow2GO. Bentley's involvement in the campaign has included creation of a radio public service advertisement ("Wanna Go?") and participation in the 2007 YMCA Black and Hispanic Achievers Teen Leadership Summit in Orlando, Florida. Bentley sang as a member of the chorus for "We Are The World", a remake of the original for Haiti, in February 2010.


title: Dominate

text: The Dominate, also known as the late Roman Empire is the name sometimes given to the "despotic" later phase of imperial government, following the earlier period known as the "Principate", in the ancient Roman Empire. Until the empire was reunited in 313, this phase is more often called the Tetrarchy.


title: Dominate

text: It may begin with the commencement of the reign of Diocletian in AD 284, following the Third Century Crisis of AD 235–284, and to end in the west with the fall of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476, while in the east its end is disputed, as either occurring at the close of the reign of Justinian I (AD 565) or of Heraclius (AD 641). In form, the Dominate is considered to have been more authoritarian, less collegial and more bureaucratic than the Principate from which it emerged.


title: Dominate

text: The modern term "dominate" is derived from the Latin "dominus", which translates into English as "lord" or "master." "Dominus", traditionally used by Roman slaves to address their masters, was sporadically used in addressing emperors throughout the Principate, usually in the form of excessive flattery (or political invective) when referring to the emperor. Augustus actively discouraged the practice, and Tiberius in particular is said to have reviled it as sycophancy. Domitian encouraged its use, but none of the emperors used the term in any semi-official capacity until the reign of Aurelian in AD 274, where coins were issued bearing the inscription "deus et dominus natus".


title: Dominate

text: However, it was only under Diocletian that the term "dominus" was adopted as part of the emperor's official titulature, forming part of Diocletian's radical reforms.


title: Dominate

text: The Dominate system of government emerged as a response to the 50 years of chaos that is referred to as the Crisis of the Third Century. The stresses and strains of those years (chronic usurpations, military insurrections, simultaneous military conflicts across multiple frontiers) exposed the weaknesses in the Roman state under the Principate, and saw a gradual movement from the collegiate model of government that existed prior to AD 235 to a more formally autocratic version that begins after AD 285. In broad terms, it saw the gradual exclusion of the senatorial elite from high military commands and the parallel elevation of the equestrian orders, the reorganisation of the armed forces and the creation of mobile field armies, changes in imperial dress and ceremonial displays, a religious policy aiming at religious unity, large scale monetary reforms, and the creation of an empire-wide civil bureaucracy.


title: Dominate

text: Although Diocletian is commonly thought of as creator of the Dominate, its origins lie in the innovations of earlier emperors, principally those undertaken by Aurelian (AD 270–275). Some reforms stretch back to the reigns of Gallienus (AD 253–268) and Trajan (AD 98–117), during whose reign "knights were given an escalating importance in the administration of Rome and the empire." Not all the changes that produced the 'Dominate' were completed by the time of Diocletian's abdication in AD 305; many changes were either introduced or modified by Constantine I. Consequently, just as the Principate emerged over the period 31 BC through to 14 AD, it is only by AD 337 that the reforms that resulted in the Dominate were largely complete.


title: Dominate

text: constructed with the most careful attention to details, was a solution of the formidable problem of holding together a huge heterogeneous empire, threatened with dissolution and bankruptcy, an empire which was far from being geographically compact and had four long, as well as several smaller, frontiers to defend. To govern a large state by two independent but perfectly similar machines, controlled not from one centre but from two foci, without sacrificing its unity was an interesting and entirely new experiment. These bureaucratic machines worked moderately well, and their success might have been extraordinary if the monarchs who directed them had always been men of superior ability. Blots of course and defects there were, especially in the fields of economy and finance. The political creation of the Illyrian Emperors was not unworthy of the genius of Rome.


title: Dominate

text: Under the Principate, the position of emperor saw the concentration of various civil and military offices within a single magistracy. Augustus and his successors usually took great care to disguise the autocratic nature of the office by hiding behind the institutions of the Roman Republic and the fiction that the emperor was simply the "princeps" or first citizen, whose authority was granted by the Senate. This role was almost always filled by a single individual, and the date that the "Potestas tribunicia" was conferred onto that person was the point when imperial authority could be exercised. Over the course of the Principate, it became common for the emperor (or "Augustus") to nominate an heir (referred to as the "Caesar"), but the "caesar" did not have access to the powers of the emperor, nor was he delegated any official authority.


title: Dominate

text: It was during the Crisis of the Third Century that the traditional imperial approach of a single imperial magistrate based at Rome became unable to cope with multiple and simultaneous invasions and usurpations that required the emperor to be everywhere at once. Further, it was their absence which caused usurpations to occur in response to a local or provincial crisis that traditionally would have been dealt with by the emperor.


title: Dominate

text: Under the Dominate, the burden of the imperial position was increasingly shared between colleagues, referred to as the "Consortium imperii". It was Diocletian who introduced this form of government, under a system called the Tetrarchy, which originally consisted of two co-emperors ("augusti") and two respectively subordinate junior emperors ("caesars"), each of whom shared in the imperial power. This original power sharing model lasted from AD 289 through to AD 324, being undone during the Civil wars of the Tetrarchy. With Constantine I's death in AD 337, the empire was again shared between multiple "augusti", lasting until AD 350. The model became a permanent feature of the empire in AD 364 with the accession of Valentinian I, who shared the imperial office with his brother Valens. Barring the 3-year period of solitary rule by Theodosius I from AD 392–395, this approach would last until the overthrow of the last western emperor in AD 476.


title: Dominate

text: While each "augustus" was autonomous within each portion of the empire they managed, all laws that were introduced by any emperor were valid across the entirety of the empire.


title: Dominate

text: During the Roman Republic, the office of Consul was the highest elected magistracy in the Roman state, with two consuls elected annually. With the arrival of the Principate, although all real power was invested in the emperor, the consuls were still in theory the head of state, and the calendar year was identified by the two "ordinary" consuls who began in office at the start of the year. Throughout the Principate, the imperial consulate was an important position, albeit as the method through which the Roman aristocracy could progress through to the higher levels of imperial administration – only former consuls could become consular legates, the proconsuls of Africa and Asia, or the urban prefect of Rome.


title: Dominate

text: Consequently, the high regard placed upon the ordinary consulate remained intact, as it was one of the few offices that one could share with the emperor, and during this period it was filled mostly by patricians or by individuals who had consular ancestors. It was a post that would be occupied by a man halfway through his career, in his early thirties for a patrician, or in his early forties for most others. If they were especially skilled or valued, they may even have achieved a second (or rarely, a third) consulate. Prior to achieving the consulate, these individuals already had a significant career behind them, and would expect to continue serving the state, filling in the post upon which the state functioned.


title: Dominate

text: Under the Dominate, the loss of many pre-consular functions and the encroachment of the "equites" into the traditional senatorial administrative and military functions meant that senatorial careers virtually vanished prior to their appointment as consuls. This had the effect of seeing a suffect consulship granted at an earlier age, to the point that by the 4th century, it was being held by men in their early twenties, and possibly younger. As time progressed, second consulates, usually ordinary, became far more common than had been the case during the first two centuries, while the first consulship was usually a suffect consulate. Also, the consulate during this period was no longer just the province of senators – the automatic awarding of a suffect consulship to the equestrian praetorian prefects (who were given the "ornamenta consularia" upon achieving their office) allowed them to style themselves "cos. II" when they were later granted an ordinary consulship by the emperor. All this had the effect of further devaluing the office of consul, to the point that by time of the Dominate, holding an ordinary consulate was occasionally left out of the cursus inscriptions, while suffect consulships were hardly ever recorded.


title: Dominate

text: One of the key changes in the management of the empire during the Dominate was the large scale removal of old-style senatorial participation in administrative and military functions. The process began with the reforms of Gallienus, who removed senators from military commands, placing them in the hands of the "Equites".


title: Dominate

text: Under Diocletian, the military equestrian transformation was taken a stage further, with the removal of hereditary senators from most administrative, as well as military, posts (such as the Legatus legionis). Hereditary senators were limited to administrative jobs in Italy and a few neighbouring provinces (Sicily, Africa, Achaea and Asia), despite the fact that senior administrative posts had been greatly multiplied by the tripling of the number of provinces and the establishment of dioceses (or super-provinces). The exclusion of the old Italian aristocracy, both senatorial and equestrian, from the political and military power that they had monopolised for many centuries was largely complete. The Senate became politically insignificant, although it retained great prestige.


title: Dominate

text: Constantine I, however, re-introduced a limited form of senatorial career, basing the magistracies on previous offices but with changed functions. Beginning with the quaestorship, a role which had acted as a form of apprenticeship for an ambitious senator during the Principate, it was downgraded during the Dominate and assigned to the sons of senators, with the legal qualifying age lowered to sixteen. This was followed by a suffect consulship and/or a praetorship. The office of Praetor had also lost much of its influence, as it had been stripped of its legal functions, so that during the Dominate its purpose was primarily to organise the "Ludi Romani".


title: Dominate

text: The most prestigious post that a senator could hold under the Dominate was that of "Praefectus urbi"; during this period the office gained in effective power, as the imperial court was removed from the city of Rome, meaning that the prefects were no longer under the emperor's direct supervision. The most significant change was the return of provincial government to the senatorial order, with the larger or more important provinces handed over to those senators who had held an ordinary consulship. However, unlike the time of the Principate, the role of governor was much reduced, being a purely civil magistrate with no military functions, and with provinces greatly reduced in size, and the number increasing from the roughly fifty pre-existing provinces to approximately one hundred.


title: Dominate

text: The decline in the functions carried out by the old aristocratic senatorial families acting collegially with the emperor in the running of the empire was offset by the rise of an expanded imperial bureaucracy who served the emperor in a subordinate role. Interposed between the governors and the emperors was the "Vicarius" and, above him, the Praetorian Prefect, both of which were civilian (non-military) roles. Gone was the division between provinces under the jurisdiction of the Senate and those under the authority of the emperor during the Principate. Now all provinces, dioceses, and the Praetorian prefecture were under the authority of the emperor. The Praetorian Prefects had wide-ranging administrative, financial, judicial and legislative powers. The provincial governors were appointed at his recommendation, and with him rested their dismissal, subject to the Emperor's approval. The only civilian officials not under the direct oversight of the Praetorian Prefects were the proconsular governors of Africa, Achaea and Asia, along with the Urban Prefects.


title: Dominate

text: The increasing administrative machinery surrounding the emperor resulted in an explosion of bureaucratic offices. These state officials were paid originally both in food and with money, but over the course of the Dominate, the "annona" (or food ration) was converted into money. Their salaries therefore consumed a considerable chunk of the imperial budget. Although precise numbers are not available, it has been speculated that the state bureaucracy in the Praetorian prefecture of the East and the Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum, including the diocesan and provincial governor's staffs, would have consisted of somewhere around 10,000 individuals. This figure did not include the staff of the military commanders, or the financial and other central ministries, and contrasts with the estimated 300 state bureaucrats that were employed across all the provinces during the period of the Julio-Claudian emperors.


title: Dominate

text: All important offices automatically carried with them admission into the Senate, thereby further eroding the standing of the traditional aristocratic Senatorial families of the Principate under the Dominate. This resulted in a senatorial body of around 2,000 members during the reign of Constantine, and these numbers only increased when there were two senatorial bodies in existence, one at Rome and one at Constantinople.


title: Dominate

text: All the higher officials in the imperial bureaucracy belonged to one of the three classes or ranks introduced by Constantine I – the "illustres", "spectabiles" and "clarissimi", all of whom were automatically members of the senatorial order. The heads of the great central civil ministries, the "magistri militum" and other high level military commanders as well as the "Praepositus sacri cubiculi" were all graded as "illustres", the highest of the new senatorial ranks. The second class ("spectabiles") was assigned to a large group of civil servants, including the Proconsuls, "vicarii", the military governors in the provinces and the "magistri scriniorum".


title: Dominate

text: The entry level class, "clarissimus", was the minimum qualification for membership of the Senate. It was automatically awarded as part of the governorship of a province, and to a myriad of other lesser officers. It was held by a large number of junior imperial public servants, as well as being awarded to them after their retirement. The generosity of the emperors in bestowing the "clarissimus" witnessed the gradual erosion in its value. As a consequence, the emperors began to raise many "clarissimi" graded officials to the rank of "spectabiles", which in turn cheapened the highest rank of "illustres". This inflationary pressure resulted in the creation of a new senatorial rank before the middle of the 6th century, that of "gloriosi". Higher in grading than the "illustres", all of the highest state officials were regraded to this rank.


title: Dominate

text: Under the Principate, provinces that contained legions were under the proconsular authority of the emperor, who managed those provinces through designated legates ("Legatus Augusti pro praetore"), while the units stationed at Rome were under the authority of the Praetorian Prefect. During the Crisis of the Third Century, greater authority over imperial military matters was ceded to the Praetorian Prefects, while the imperial legates took advantage of weakened centralised authority to use the troops under their command to rebel against the emperor and claim the imperial title for themselves.


title: Dominate

text: It was Diocletian who initially divided the military administrative apparatus and the civil administration in order to mitigate the risk that future imperial governors or Praetorian Prefects might attempt to seize the throne through force, and then he reorganized both of them. During the Tetrarchy, the Praetorian Prefects were the Emperor's top administrators, ranking just below the Emperor himself in dignity. While initially serving as the Emperor's second in command in all matters of imperial administration (military, civil, judicial, taxation, etc.), during the course of the Dominate the Prefects gradually had portions of their authority stripped from them and given to other offices: the Masters of the Soldiers for military affairs and the Imperial Chancellor for central civilian administration. These reforms were the result of both the lack of officials suitable for the prefect's wide-ranging tasks, and of the desire to reduce the potential challenge to the Emperor's authority posed by a powerful Prefect.


title: Dominate

text: The next reforms were undertaken by Constantine I, who reorganised the supreme military command. Two significant parts of the reform are apparent: the separation of military commanders from civil administration and the division of the army into two classes: the Field Armies (""comitatenses"") and the Frontier Troops (""limitanei""). The Field Armies served as the Empire's strategic reserve to respond to crisis where it may arise whereas the Frontier Troops were permanently stationed along the Empire's borders (""limes""). Recruited from the ranks of the Field Armies were the Palace Troops units (""Palatini""), who accompanied the Emperor as he travelled around the Empire, functioning as the successor to the Principate's Praetorian Guard.


title: Dominate

text: Around the same time, Constantine established the new military roles of the Master of the Soldiers (""Magister Militum""), who were the supreme military commanders of the empire. Beginning with the head of the foot troops, the "magister peditum" ("Master of the Foot"), and one for the more prestigious horse troops, the "magister equitum" ("Master of the Horse"), these were established in each of the four Praetorian Prefectures. Over time, the numbers and types of Masters would vary across the empire. The establishment of solely military officials provided for a more professional military leadership. The Masters were all ranked as "illustres".


title: Dominate

text: To support the Masters of the Soldiers, the Empire established several Military Counts (""Comes rei militaris""). There were six such Military Counts throughout the Empire. The Military Counts were all ranked as "spectabiles".


title: Dominate

text: The various Frontier Troops were under the command of Dukes (""duces limitis"" or "border commanders"). These commanders were the closest in function to the Imperial Legates of the Principate. Most Dukes were given command of forces in a single province, but a few controlled more than one province. In the East, the Dukes reported to the Master of the Soldiers of their district whereas in the West they reported to their respective Military Count.


title: Dominate

text: The Dominate saw enormous changes in the official religion of the empire from its pantheistic Principate origins. Its principal feature was the elevation of a supreme deity that all peoples in the empire were to worship. According to John Bagnall Bury,


title: Dominate

text: "while in all ancient monarchies religion and sacerdotalism were a political as well as a social power, the position of the Christian Church in the Roman Empire was a new thing in the world, presenting problems of a kind with which no ruler had hitherto been confronted and to which no past experience offered a key. The history of the Empire would have been profoundly different if the Church had remained as independent of the State as it had been before Constantine. But heresies and schisms and religious intolerance on one side, and the despotic instinct to control all social forces on the other, brought about a close union between State and Church which altered the character and spirit of the State, and constituted perhaps the most striking difference between the early and the later Empire."


title: Dominate

text: The origins of the change began in the reign of Aurelian, who promoted the worship of Sol Invictus as the supreme deity of the empire. Although the worship of Sol Invictus did not remove the veneration towards the traditional Roman gods, it was seen as a mark of imperial favouritism, and the emperors linked his cult to the well-being of the state and on-going military victories of the empire.


title: Dominate

text: Next, it was during Diocletian's reign that emperor worship was fully adopted by the emperors, as a method of expressing loyalty to the state. Previously, deceased emperors had been worshiped as "divus" across the empire. Living emperors had been worshiped as gods in the eastern half of the empire since the time of Augustus, but this was not officially encouraged during the Principate, and it was not introduced into Italy. It was Diocletian who altered this to have the worship of the living emperors as an official part of the religious framework of the entire empire. To facilitate this, Diocletian was linked to the god Jupiter, while his colleague Maximian was associated with Hercules.


title: Dominate

text: It was under Constantine I that the religious transformation began to take its late Dominate shape, initially with Constantine officially favouring the worship of a single deity in the shape of Sol Invictus. During the course of his reign, the identification of Sol Invictus as the principal god began to merge with the Christian god. To avoid offending Christians, Constantine abandoned the emperor's formal claim to divinity and ceased to demand sacrifices to the emperor that formed part of the imperial cult. In an attempt to appeal to both Christians and pagans, Constantine adopted two new religious symbols into the imperial iconography, in the form of the Chi Rho and the Labarum. By the time of Constantine's death in AD 337, this process was largely complete, with Constantine being baptized on his deathbed.


title: Dominate

text: At the Imperial court, Christians began indiscernibly to rise in favour, to the detriment of pagans. This did not begin to immediately hamper the advancement of pagan courtiers after the defeat of Maxentius in 312, as the full effects were not visible until paganism was prohibited at the end of the 4th century. Ultimately, however, as a result of the imperial patronage of Constantine and especially his sons, Christianity rapidly emerged as the official religion of the empire, although many vestiges of the imperial cult took some time to pass (such as the Emperors still assuming the role of Pontifex Maximus, chief priest of the pagan cults, until AD 381).


title: Dominate

text: By the time of Theodosius I, the organisation of the Imperial Church had aligned to the civil administration of the empire. Every city had a bishop, every province had a metropolitan, and every civil diocese had an exarch. At the level of the Praetorian Prefectures sat the five Patriarchates. The Bishop of Rome's authority extended over the whole western or Latin half of the Empire, and included the Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum. The Patriarchate of Constantinople had oversight over the civil dioceses of Thrace, Pontus, and Asia. The Patriarchate of Alexandria corresponded to the Diocese of Egypt. The Patriarchate of Antioch had jurisdiction over the majority of the Praetorian prefecture of the East, while the smaller Patriarchate of Jerusalem dominated the three Palestinian provinces.


title: Dominate

text: The emperors had, over time, conceded many privileges to the clergy and the churches. Firstly, all clergy, like the holders of the pagan religious offices, were exempted from taxation. There were no restrictions placed on churches receiving bequests through wills, and they were given the same rights as the pagan temples had in granting asylum to any who requested it. Bishops were permitted to act as judges in civil cases when both parties had agreed, and no appeal was permitted once the Bishop had made their ruling. The state made increasing use of the ecclesiastical authorities in local administration due to the decline in the civic life of the urban communities, which coincided with the increasing local influence of the bishops. Finally, bishops were given the same role as the "defensor civitatis", who was responsible for protecting the poor against exploitation by government officials and defending them from other powerful individuals, during the course of which the bishop could bring cases of illegality directly to the emperor.


title: Dominate

text: One of the most visible signs of the changes brought about by the Dominate was the downgrading of Rome from its status as the official residence of the emperor. This precedent had already been established by Gallienus in 260, who moved the imperial court to Mediolanum in response to a suspected future attack by the usurper Postumus as well as defending Italy from the ravages of the Alamanni.


title: Dominate

text: Rome was increasingly seen to be too distant a residence for the emperor when troubles could erupt along any of the borders of the empire. In the west, Mediolanum was seen to be a much better strategic city for the emperor to be based at, as it gave good access through the Alps northwards to both the Danubian provinces in the east as well as the Rhine provinces and Gaul to the west. Further, it was well positioned to guard against incursions through the alpine passes. This decision was confirmed when Diocletian established the Tetrarchy, and his colleague Maximian informally established Mediolanum as the senior western emperor's official residence. Diocletian, conscious that the Persian threat to the eastern provinces required a continuous imperial presence, placed his eastern capital in the city of Nicomedia. Meanwhile, the Caesars also had imperial residences – Constantius Chlorus was based at Augusta Treverorum, while Galerius sited his residence at Sirmium.


title: Dominate

text: After the collapse of the Tetrachy, Constantine I at first placed his imperial capital at Ulpia Serdica before erecting a new imperial capital on the site of the old Greek city of Byzantium. Naming it Constantinople, it finally replaced Nicomedia as the site of the emperor's residence in the east in 330. Constantinople would remain the capital of the eastern provinces throughout the period of the Dominate.


title: Dominate

text: In the west, Mediolanum continued to be the imperial residence until the repeated invasions by Alaric I forced the western emperor Honorius to relocate to the strongly fortified city of Ravenna in 402. Ravenna remained the western imperial capital until the loss of Italy in 476. Although Rome was reincorporated into the empire by Justinian I in 540, it was Ravenna which was selected as the official residence of the Exarch, the governor who represented the emperor in Italy. Ravenna would retain this position until 751, when the Byzantine Empire finally lost the central Italian provinces to the Lombards.


title: Dominate

text: Large Roman landowners increasingly relied on Roman freemen, acting as tenant farmers to provide labor.


title: Dominate

text: The status of these tenant farmers, eventually known as coloni, steadily eroded. Because the tax system implemented by Diocletian (reigned 284-305) assessed taxes based both on land and on the inhabitants of that land, it became administratively inconvenient for peasants to leave the land where the census counted them.


title: Dominate

text: Starting in 332 AD, Emperor Constantine issued legislation that greatly restricted the rights of the coloni and tied them to the land. Coloni and lower-ranking plebeians were no longer allowed to change their occupation. Ultimately, with the Fall of Rome, non-Patrician Roman citizens themselves would find themselves displaced and would become serfs.


title: Dominate

text: Diocletian and his "augusti" colleagues and successors openly displayed the naked face of Imperial power. They ceased using the more modest title of princeps; they adopted the veneration of the potentates of ancient Egypt and Persia; and, they started wearing jeweled robes and shoes in contrast to the simple toga praetexta used by Emperors of the Principate.


title: Dominate

text: Emperors inhabited luxurious palaces (the ruins of Diocletian's enormous palace in Dalmatia survive to this day; see Diocletian's Palace) and were surrounded by a court of individuals who, only due to the favor and proximity of the Emperor, attained the highest honorific titles and bureaucratic functions. In fact, many offices associated with the palatine life and that suggested intimate relationship with royalty eventually developed connotations of power, such as the offices of Chamberlain and Constable. The titles of Senator and Consul, after the loss of every residue of political power they had had in the Principate, became mere honorifics in the later Empire.


title: Dominate

text: Historian David Potter describes the transformation of government under Diocletian when describing the shifts in imagery the Emperor used to display his power (in this case the building of a huge new palace at Sirmium):


title: Dominate

text: The style of Government so memorably described by Marcus, whereby the emperor sought to show himself as a model of correct aristocratic deportment, had given way to a style in which the emperor was seen to be distinct from all other mortals. His house could no longer be a grander version of houses that other people might live in: it, like him, had to be different.


title: Dominate

text: The adoption of "Dominus" as a formal title reflected the divine status ("divus") that has come to be a prerogative of the Imperial position. Originally an exceptional honour awarded by the Senate to an Emperor posthumously, the elevation had devolved to an expected convention for still-living Caesars. To dissuade the rebellions and usurpations of the Crisis of the Third Century, the Emperors sought the kind of divine legitimacy invoked by Eastern monarchies.


title: Dominate

text: Emperors imported rituals such as kneeling before the Emperor, and kissing of the hem of the Imperial robe (proskynesis). Even some Christian emperors, such as Constantine, were venerated after death. In the Eastern Roman Empire after 476 AD, the symbiotic relation between the Imperial Crown in Constantinople and the Eastern Orthodox Church led to the distinctive character of the medieval Roman state. Anastasius I was the last emperor known to be consecrated as "divus" on his death (518 AD). The title appears to have been abandoned thereafter on grounds of its spiritual impropriety (see Imperial cult of ancient Rome for more on the divinity of Roman leaders). The last ruler to use the titles "Dominus Noster" was Justinian I (died 565), giving place to the title of "Basileus" ("King"). In the Eastern half of the Empire, and especially from the time of Justinian I, the system of the Dominate evolved into autocratic absolutism.


title: Dominate

text: In contrast to the situation in the Principate, however, emperors in the Dominate could not be deified as it was, excepting the two initial decades and the reign of Julian, the Christian period of the Roman Empire.


title: Dominate

text: Another clear symptom of the upgrading of the imperial status was the notion of the emperor as an incarnation of the majesty of Rome; thus "lèse majesté" became high treason.


title: 88 Minutes

text: 88 Minutes is a 2007 thriller film directed by Jon Avnet and starring Al Pacino, Alicia Witt, Leelee Sobieski, William Forsythe, Deborah Kara Unger, Amy Brenneman, Neal McDonough and Benjamin McKenzie. In the film, famed forensic psychiatrist Dr. Jack Gramm (Pacino) is one of the most sought-after profilers in the world. His expert testimony resulted in the conviction of serial killer Jon Forster (McDonough). However, on the eve of Forster's execution, one of Gramm's students is murdered in a vicious copycat crime, and Gramm himself receives an ominous message informing him that he has 88 minutes to live. Filming began in the Vancouver area on October 8, 2005, and wrapped up in December 2005. In 2007 the film was released in various European countries.


title: 88 Minutes

text: In May 2007, Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group paid $6 million to acquire North American and select international distribution rights of "88 Minutes". The group released the film in the United States theatrically on April 18, 2008, through TriStar Pictures.


title: 88 Minutes

text: In 1997, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Jack Gramm testifies at the trial of suspected serial killer Jon Forster, dubbed "The Seattle Slayer" by police. Gramm's testimony and expert psychiatric opinion are crucial in the conviction of Forster for the attempted killing of Janie Cates and the murder of her sister Joanie, who was drugged, hanged upside down and killed after the killer invaded the sisters' apartment. Upon receiving a guilty verdict from the jury, Forster taunts Gramm, saying "Tick-tock, Doc."


title: 88 Minutes

text: Nine years later, as Forster's execution date approaches, several similar torture murders occur. Gramm, now teaching at the University of Washington, is questioned by a lawyer from the Attorney General's office as well as FBI Special Agent Frank Parks. The latest victim, Dale Morris, is revealed to be a former psychology student of Gramm's; they attended the same party the night before. On the way to his class, Gramm receives a phone call from someone using a voice changer, informing him that he has 88 minutes to live. He reports the call to his lesbian secretary, Shelly, asking for a risk assessment profile of suspects.


title: 88 Minutes

text: Gramm receives another phone threat while teaching and becomes suspicious of his students, particularly Mike Stempt. The dean of students, Carol Johnson, interrupts the class to report a bomb threat. Evacuating, Gramm finds threats written both on the classroom's overhead projector and on his car, which has been vandalized in the parking garage. Gramm is then met by his teaching assistant, Kim Cummings, who offers to help find the perpetrator. In the stairwell, Gramm encounters one of his students, Lauren Douglas, attacked by an unknown assailant and reports the assault to campus security.


title: 88 Minutes

text: Gramm and Kim go to his condo, where a package has been delivered. The package contains an audio tape of his kid sister, Kate, crying for help before being murdered. Gramm concludes that someone accessed his secure files to obtain the tape. Kim's ex-husband, Guy LaForge, appears with a gun at the apartment door, but is shot and killed from behind by an assailant masked by a motorcycle helmet. A fire alarm is triggered by the sudden onset of smoke and the shooter flees through the crowd outside. Shortly after, Gramm's car explodes, having been rigged with a bomb.


title: 88 Minutes

text: Renting a cab, Gramm explains to Kim that his sister was killed decades earlier, when he left her alone in his apartment; the crime took exactly 88 minutes. Next, Gramm and Kim visit Sara Pollard, a woman Gramm slept with the night before, but find her murdered in her apartment with evidence incriminating Gramm. Carol calls Gramm and makes comments suggesting that she is the killer, demanding that Gramm meet her at his office. Shelly arrives at Sara's apartment and advises Gramm that she suspects Lauren was the one who stole the audio tape of Kate's death. Kim disappears from the apartment and later calls Gramm with a threat similar to Carol's, also demanding he meet her at the office.


title: 88 Minutes

text: Through prison visitation records, Gramm deduces that Forster's appeals attorney "Lydia Doherty" is a pseudonym for Lauren, surmising that she set up the frame on orders from Forster. Kim calls again, instructing Gramm to come to another nearby location on campus, where he finds Carol hanging over a seventh floor balcony; Kim is tied up and gagged nearby, held at gun point by Lauren. Lauren forces Gramm to "confess" on tape that he gave false testimony at Forster's trial. Special Agent Parks arrives and shoots Lauren, causing both Carol and Lauren to partially fall from the balcony. Gramm saves Carol from completing the fall, but Lauren comes loose and plummets to her death. When Forster calls asking to speak with Lauren, Gramm informs him of Lauren's death. He quips "Tick-tock, tick-tock, you got 12 hours to live," before throwing the phone into the void. Gramm flashes back to interactions with Kate and Janie Cates, then pockets the device that recorded his "confession". He shares knowing glances with Parks and Kim before walking away.


title: 88 Minutes

text: In its opening weekend, the film grossed $7 million in 2,168 theaters in the United States and Canada, ranking fourth at the box office and averaging $3,209 per theater. In its second weekend, the film grossed $3.6 million and fell to number eight at the box office. The film grossed $17.2 million at the US and Canadian box office and $15.4 million internationally, for a worldwide gross of $32.6 million.


title: 88 Minutes

text: Upon its release, "88 Minutes" was universally panned by critics. Rotten Tomatoes reports that 5% of the critics gave the film positive reviews based on 124 reviews, averaging out at a 2.9/10 rating. The critical consensus states ""88 Minutes" is a shockingly inept psychological thriller that expertly squanders the talent at hand." The film also has a score of 17 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on 27 critics indicating "Overwhelming dislike".


title: 88 Minutes

text: The film was nominated for two Razzie Awards, Worst Actor for Al Pacino (and for "Righteous Kill", also directed by Jon Avnet) and Worst Supporting Actress for Leelee Sobieski (and for "In the Name of the King"), but lost to Mike Myers for "The Love Guru" and Paris Hilton for "Repo! The Genetic Opera" respectively.


title: 88 Minutes

text: "88 Minutes" was released on DVD on September 16, 2008, and sold 220,965 in the opening weekend. As of the seventh week, it has sold about 574,041 units which gathered revenue of $11,150,056 or more than one-third of the budget.


title: 88 Minutes

text: In May 2013, Original Entertainment confirmed to have sealed a five-picture deal with Millennium Films to produce Bollywood remakes of "Rambo", "The Expendables", "16 Blocks", "88 Minutes", and "Brooklyn's Finest", with the productions for "Rambo" and "The Expendables" expected to start at the end of that year.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The Polish United Workers' Party (; ), commonly abbreviated to PZPR, was the communist party which ruled the Polish People's Republic as a one-party state from 1948 to 1989. The PZPR had led two other legally permitted subordinate minor parties together as the Front of National Unity and later Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth. Ideologically, it was based on the theories of Marxism-Leninism, with a strong emphasis on left-wing nationalism. The Polish United Workers' Party had total control over public institutions in the country as well as the Polish People's Army, the UB-SB security agencies, the Citizens' Militia (MO) police force and the media.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The falsified 1947 Polish legislative election granted the far-left complete political authority in post-war Poland. The PZPR was founded forthwith in December 1948 through the unification of two previous political entities, the Polish Workers' Party (PPR) and the Polish Socialist Party (PPS). Since 1952, the position of "First Secretary" of the Polish United Workers' Party was equivalent to that of a dictator, the president or the head of state in other world countries. Throughout its existence, the PZPR maintained close ties with ideologically-similar parties of the Eastern Bloc, most notably the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, Communist Party of Czechoslovakia and the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Between 1948 and 1954, nearly 1.5 million individuals registered as Polish United Workers' Party members, and membership rose to 3 million by 1980.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The party's primary objective was to impose socialist agenda into Polish society. The communist government sought to improve the living standards of the proletariat, make education and healthcare available to all, establish a centralized planned economy, nationalize all institutions and provide internal or external security by up-keeping a strong-armed force. Some concepts imported from abroad, such as large-scale collective farming and secularization, failed in their early stages. The PZPR was considered more liberal and pro-Western than its counterparts in East Germany or the Soviet Union, and was more averse to radical politics. Although propaganda was utilized in major media outlets like "Trybuna Ludu" ("People's Tribune") and televised "Dziennik" ("Journal"), censorship became ineffective by the mid-1980s and was gradually abolished. On the other hand, the Polish United Worker's Party was responsible for the brutal pacification of civil resistance and protesters in the Poznań protests of 1956, the 1970 Polish protests and throughout martial law between 1981 and 1983. The PZPR also initiated a bitter anti-Semitic campaign during the 1968 Polish political crisis, which forced the remainder of Poland's Jews to emigrate.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Amidst the ongoing political and economic crises, the Solidarity movement emerged as a major anti-bureaucratic social movement that pursued social change. With communist rule being relaxed in neighbouring countries, the PZPR systematically lost support and was forced to negotiate with the opposition and adhere to the Polish Round Table Agreement, which permitted free democratic elections. The elections on 4 June 1989 proved victorious for Solidarity, thus bringing 40-year communist rule in Poland to an end. The Polish United Workers' Party was dissolved in January 1990.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Until 1989, the PZPR held dictatorial powers (the amendment to the constitution of 1976 mentioned "a leading national force") and controlled an unwieldy bureaucracy, the military, the secret police, and the economy.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Its main goal was to create a Communist society and help to propagate Communism all over the world. On paper, the party was organised on the basis of democratic centralism, which assumed a democratic appointment of authorities, making decisions, and managing its activity. These authorities decided about the policy and composition of the main organs; although, according to the statute, it was a responsibility of the members of the congress, which was held every five or six years. Between sessions, the regional, county, district and work committees held party conferences. The smallest organizational unit of the PZPR was the Fundamental Party Organization (FPO), which functioned in workplaces, schools, cultural institutions, etc.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The main part in the PZPR was played by professional politicians, or the so-called "party's hardcore", formed by people who were recommended to manage the main state institutions, social organizations, and trade unions. The crowning time of the PZPR development (the end of the 1970s) consisted of over 3.5 million members. The Political Office of the Central Committee, Secretariat and regional committees appointed the key posts within the party and in all organizations having ‘state’ in its name – from central offices to even small state and cooperative companies. It was called the nomenklatura system of state and economy management. In certain areas of the economy, e.g., in agriculture, the nomenklatura system was controlled with the approval of the PZPR and by its allied parties, the United People's Party (agriculture and food production), and the Democratic Party (trade community, small enterprise, some cooperatives). After martial law began, the Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth was founded to organize these and other parties.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The Polish United Workers' Party was established at the unification congress of the Polish Workers' Party and Polish Socialist Party during meetings held from 15 to 21 December 1948. The unification was possible because the PPS activists who opposed unification (or rather absorption into the Workers' Party) had been forced out of the party. Similarly, the members of the PPR who were accused of "rightist–nationalist deviation" () were expelled. Thus, the PZPR was the PPR under a new name for all intents and purposes.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: "Rightist-nationalist deviation" was a political propaganda term used by the Polish Stalinists against prominent activists, such as Władysław Gomułka and Marian Spychalski who opposed Soviet involvement in the Polish internal affairs, as well as internationalism displayed by the creation of the Cominform and the subsequent merger that created the PZPR. It is believed that it was Joseph Stalin who put pressure on Bolesław Bierut and Jakub Berman to remove Gomułka and Spychalski as well as their followers from power in 1948. It is estimated that over 25% of socialists were removed from power or expelled from political life.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Bolesław Bierut, an NKVD agent and a hardline Stalinist, served as first Secretary General of the ruling PZPR from 1948 to 1956, playing a leading role in imposing communism and the installation of its repressive regime. He had served as President since 1944 (though on a provisional basis until 1947). After a new constitution abolished the presidency, Bierut took over as Prime Minister, a post he held until 1954. He remained party leader until his death in 1956.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Bierut oversaw the trials of many Polish wartime military leaders, such as General Stanisław Tatar and Brig. General Emil August Fieldorf, as well as 40 members of the Wolność i Niezawisłość (Freedom and Independence) organisation, various Church officials and many other opponents of the new regime including Witold Pilecki, condemned to death during secret trials. Bierut signed many of those death sentences.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Bierut's mysterious death in Moscow in 1956 (shortly after attending the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union) gave rise to much speculation about poisoning or a suicide, and symbolically marked the end of Stalinism era in Poland.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: In 1956, shortly after the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, the PZPR leadership split into two factions, dubbed "Natolinians" and "Puławians". The Natolin faction – named after the place where its meetings took place, in a government villa in Natolin – were against the post-Stalinist liberalization programs ("Gomułka thaw"). The most well known members included Franciszek Jóźwiak, Wiktor Kłosiewicz, Zenon Nowak, Aleksander Zawadzki, Władysław Dworakowski, Hilary Chełchowski.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The Puławian faction – the name comes from the Puławska Street in Warsaw, on which many of the members lived – sought great liberalization of socialism in Poland. After the events of Poznań June, they successfully backed the candidature of Władysław Gomułka for First Secretary of party, thus imposing a major setback upon Natolinians. Among the most prominent members were Roman Zambrowski and Leon Kasman. Both factions disappeared towards the end of the 1950s.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Initially very popular for his reforms and seeking a "Polish way to socialism", and beginning an era known as "Gomułka's thaw", he came under Soviet pressure. In the 1960s he supported persecution of the Roman Catholic Church and intellectuals (notably Leszek Kołakowski who was forced into exile). He participated in the Warsaw Pact intervention in Czechoslovakia in 1968. At that time he was also responsible for persecuting students as well as toughening censorship of the media. In 1968, he incited an anti-Zionist propaganda campaign, as a result of Soviet bloc opposition to the Six-Day War.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: In December 1970, a bloody clash with shipyard workers in which several dozen workers were fatally shot forced his resignation (officially for health reasons; he had in fact suffered a stroke). A dynamic younger man, Edward Gierek, took over the Party leadership and tensions eased.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: In the late 1960s, Edward Gierek had created a personal power base and become the recognized leader of the young technocrat faction of the party. When rioting over economic conditions broke out in late 1970, Gierek replaced Gomułka as party first secretary. Gierek promised economic reform and instituted a program to modernize industry and increase the availability of consumer goods, doing so mostly through foreign loans. His good relations with Western politicians, especially France's Valéry Giscard d'Estaing and West Germany's Helmut Schmidt, were a catalyst for his receiving western aid and loans.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The standard of living improved in Poland in the 1970s, the economy, however, began to falter during the 1973 oil crisis, and by 1976 price hikes became necessary. New riots broke out in June 1976, and although they were forcibly suppressed, the planned price increases were suspended. High foreign debts, food shortages, and an outmoded industrial base compelled a new round of economic reforms in 1980. Once again, price increases set off protests across the country, especially in the Gdańsk and Szczecin shipyards. Gierek was forced to grant legal status to Solidarity and to concede the right to strike. (Gdańsk Agreement).


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Shortly thereafter, in early September 1980, Gierek was replaced by Stanisław Kania as General Secretary of the party by the Central Committee, amidst much social and economic unrest.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Kania admitted that the party had made many economic mistakes, and advocated working with Catholic and trade unionist opposition groups. He met with Solidarity leader Lech Wałęsa, and other critics of the party. Though Kania agreed with his predecessors that the Communist Party must maintain control of Poland, he never assured the Soviets that Poland would not pursue actions independent of the Soviet Union. On 18 October 1981, the Central Committee of the Party withdrew confidence in him, and Kania was replaced by Prime Minister (and Minister of Defence) Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: On 11 February 1981, Jaruzelski was elected Prime Minister of Poland and became the first secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party on 18 October 1981. Before initiating the plan of suppressing Solidarity, he presented it to Soviet Premier Nikolai Tikhonov. On 13 December 1981, Jaruzelski imposed martial law in Poland.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: In 1982, Jaruzelski revitalized the Front of National Unity, the organization the Communists used to manage their satellite parties, as the Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: In 1985, Jaruzelski resigned as prime minister and defence minister and became chairman of the Polish Council of State, a post equivalent to that of president or a dictator, with his power centered on and firmly entrenched in his coterie of "LWP" generals and lower ranks officers of the Polish People's Army.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The attempt to impose a naked military dictatorship, notwithstanding, the policies of Mikhail Gorbachev stimulated political reform in Poland. By the close of the tenth plenary session in December 1988, the Polish United Workers Party was forced, after strikes, to approach leaders of Solidarity for talks.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: From 6 February to 15 April 1989, negotiations were held between 13 working groups during 94 sessions of the roundtable talks.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: These negotiations resulted in an agreement that stated that a great degree of political power would be given to a newly created bicameral legislature. It also created a new post of president to act as head of state and chief executive. Solidarity was also declared a legal organization. During the following Polish elections the Communists won 65 percent of the seats in the Sejm, though the seats won were guaranteed and the Communists were unable to gain a majority, while 99 out of the 100 seats in the Senate — all freely contested — were won by Solidarity-backed candidates. Jaruzelski won the presidential ballot by one vote.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Jaruzelski was unsuccessful in convincing Wałęsa to include Solidarity in a "grand coalition" with the Communists and resigned his position of general secretary of the Polish United Workers Party. The PZPR' two allied parties broke their long-standing alliance, forcing Jaruzelski to appoint Solidarity's Tadeusz Mazowiecki as the country's first non-communist prime minister since 1948. Jaruzelski resigned as Poland's President in 1990, being succeeded by Wałęsa in December.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: Starting from January 1990, the collapse of the PZPR became inevitable. All over the country, public occupations of the party buildings started in order to prevent stealing the party's possessions and destroying or taking the archives. On 29 January 1990, XI Congress was held, which was supposed to recreate the party. Finally, the PZPR dissolved, and some of its members decided to establish two new social-democratic parties. They got over $1 million from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union known as the Moscow loan.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The former activists of the PZPR established the Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland (in Polish: Socjaldemokracja Rzeczpospolitej Polskiej, SdRP), of which the main organizers were Leszek Miller and Mieczysław Rakowski. The SdRP was supposed (among other things) to take over all rights and duties of the PZPR, and help to divide out the property. Up to the end of the 1980s, it had considerable incomes mainly from managed properties and from the RSW company ‘Press- Book-Traffic’, which in turn had special tax concessions. During this period, the income from membership fees constituted only 30% of the PZPR's revenues. After the dissolution of the Polish United Workers' Party and the establishment of the SdRP, the rest of the activists formed the Social Democratic Union of the Republic of Poland (USdRP), which changed its name to the Polish Social Democratic Union, and The 8th July Movement.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: At the end of 1990, there was an intense debate in the Sejm on the takeover of the wealth that belonged to the former PZPR. Over 3000 buildings and premises were included in the wealth and almost half of it was used without legal basis. Supporters of the acquisition argued that the wealth was built on the basis of plunder and the Treasury grant collected by the whole society. Opponents of SdRP claimed that the wealth was created from membership fees; therefore, they demanded wealth inheritance for SdPR which at that time administered the wealth. Personal property and the accounts of the former PZPR were not subject to control of a parliamentary committee.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: On 9 November 1990, the Sejm passed "The resolution about the acquisition of the wealth that belonged to the former PZPR". This resolution was supposed to result in a final takeover of the PZPR real estate by the Treasury. As a result, only a part of the real estate was taken over mainly for a local government by 1992, whereas a legal dispute over the other party carried on till 2000. Personal property and finances of the former PZPR practically disappeared. According to the declaration of SdRP Members of Parliament, 90–95% of the party's wealth was allocated for gratuity or was donated for social assistance.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The highest statutory authority of the Voivodeship party organization was the voivodeship conference, and in the period between conferences – the PZPR voivodeship committee. To drive current party work, the provincial committee chose the executive. Voivodeship conferences convened a provincial committee in consultation with the Central Committee of PZPR – formally at least once in year. Plenary meetings of the Voivodeship committee were to be convened at least every two months and executive meetings – once a week.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: In practice, the frequency of holding provincial conferences and plenary meetings KW deviated from the statutory standards were held less often. Dates and basic Topics of session of Voivodeship party conferences and plenary sessions of Voivodeship Committee PZPR in the provinces of Poland were generally correlated with dates and topics of plenary sessions Central Committee of the PZPR. They were devoted mainly to "transferring" resolutions and decisions of the Central Committee to the provincial party organization. The provincial committee had no freedom in shaping the original, its own meeting plan. The initiative could be demonstrated – in accordance with the principle of democratic centralism – only in the implementation of resolutions and orders of instances supreme.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The dependence of the Voivodeship party organization and its authorities was also determined by that its activity was financed almost entirely from a subsidy received from the Central Committee of PZPR. Membership fees constituted no more than 10% of revenues. The activities of the Voivodeship Committee between PZPR Voivodeship conferences were formally controlled by the Audit Committee (elected during these conferences). Initially only examined the budget implementation and accounting of PZPR Voivodeship Committee. In the following years, the scope of its activities was expanded, including control over the management of party membership cards, security OF confidential documents, how to deal with complaints and complaints addressed to the party. The number of inspections carried out grew systematically, and the work of committees accepted more planned and formalized character.


title: Polish United Workers' Party

text: The Central Committee had its seat in the "Party's House", a building erected by obligatory subscription from 1948 to 1952 and colloquially called "White House" or the "House of Sheep". Since 1991 the Bank-Financial Center "New World" is located in this building. From 1991–2000 the Warsaw Stock Exchange also had its seat there.


title: Fauja Singh

text: Fauja Singh () is a British Sikh and retired marathon runner of Punjabi Indian descent. He has beaten a number of world records in multiple age brackets, but none of his times have been ratified as records. His personal best time for the London Marathon (2003) is 6 hours 2 minutes, and his marathon best, claimed for the 90-plus age bracket, is 5 hours 40 minutes at the age of 92, at the 2003 Toronto Waterfront Marathon.


title: Fauja Singh

text: Fauja Singh claims to have been born in Beas Pind, Jalandhar, Punjab, British India on 1 April 1911, the youngest of four children. Singh did not walk until he was five years old. His legs were thin and weak, and he could hardly walk long distances. Because of this, he was often teased, and he was called by the nickname "danda" ( for "stick") for the next ten years. As a young man, Singh was an avid amateur runner, but he gave it up at the time of the Partition of India.


title: Fauja Singh

text: It was only after witnessing the death of his fifth son, Kuldip, in a construction accident in August 1994, that Singh returned to his passion for running, in 1995. The death of his wife in 1992, and his eldest daughter who had died from complications after giving birth to his third granddaughter, gave him the determination for this new focus in life. He emigrated to England in the 1990s and lives with one of his sons in Ilford.


title: Fauja Singh

text: At 89 years, he took seriously to running and ended up in international marathon events. When he first turned up for training at Redbridge, Essex, he was dressed in a three-piece suit. The coach had to rework everything, including his attire. Singh ran his first race, the London Marathon, in 2000. According to his coach, he used to run up to 20 kilometres easily and wanted to run a marathon, thinking it to be just 26 kilometres and not 26 miles (42 kilometres). It was after he realised this that he began training seriously.


title: Fauja Singh

text: At the age of 93, Singh completed a marathon in 6 hours and 54 minutes, 58 minutes quicker than the world best for the 90-plus age bracket.


title: Fauja Singh

text: In 2004, he was featured in an advertising campaign for sportswear manufacturer Adidas alongside David Beckham and Muhammad Ali.


title: Fauja Singh

text: Singh bettered the UK records for the 200 m, 400 m, 800 m, mile and 3000 m for his, claimed, age group, all within a single 94-minute period, but they are not currently listed as records.


title: Fauja Singh

text: At the age of 100, Singh attempted and accomplished eight world age group records in one day, at the special Ontario Masters Association Fauja Singh Invitational Meet, held at Birchmount Stadium in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Timed by officials in Canada, he ran the 100 metres in 23.14, 200 metres in 52.23, the 400 metres in 2:13.48, the 800 metres in 5:32.18, the 1500 metres in 11:27.81, the mile in 11:53.45, the 3000 metres in 24:52.47, and the 5000 metres in 49:57.39, setting five world records for his age group in one day. Some events had no previous record holder, as nobody over age 100 had ever attempted the distance. Some of his marks are significantly superior to the listed world record in the M95 age group as well.


title: Fauja Singh

text: Three days later, on 16 October 2011, Singh became the first 100-year-old to finish a marathon, completing the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in 8:11:06. As it took him over 14 minutes after the gun to cross the starting line, the official time submitted for the age group record will be 8:25:17.


title: Fauja Singh

text: "Guinness World Records" refused to include Singh in its record book because he could not produce his birth certificate to prove his age. Birth records were not kept in India in 1911 although Singh was able to produce a passport listing his date of birth as 1 April 1911, and a letter from Queen Elizabeth II congratulating him on his 100th birthday.


title: Fauja Singh

text: Singh had stated that he would retire from competitive running after taking part in the Hong Kong marathon on 24 February 2013, five weeks shy of his 102nd birthday. He completed the 10 kilometre run at the Hong Kong marathon in 1 hour 32 minutes and 28 seconds, and said that he intends to continue running for pleasure, health and charity.


title: Fauja Singh

text: Singh was awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to sport and charity.


title: Fauja Singh

text: Singh is 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) tall and weighs 52 kg (115 lb). He attributes his physical fitness and longevity to abstaining from smoking and alcohol and to following a simple vegetarian diet. He has been quoted as saying "I am very careful about different foods. My diet is simple phulka, dal, green vegetables, yogurt and milk. I do not touch parathas, pakoras, rice or any other fried food. I take lots of water and tea with ginger. ... I go to bed early taking the name of my "Rabba" (God) as I don’t want all those negative thoughts crossing my mind."


title: Fauja Singh

text: Speaking about the marathon, he said: "The first 20 miles are not difficult. As for last six miles, I run while talking to God."


title: Fauja Singh

text: He is the eldest of a group of Sikhs who call themselves "Sikhs in the City". There were three other Sikhs, aged 79, 79 and 80, in the "Golden Oldies" team which ran the Edinburgh Marathon relay in 2009. The SITC running group are a now a well-established team based in East London, running marathons across the world with interfaith groups and raising money for Fauja Singh's charities.


title: Fauja Singh

text: His biography, titled "Turbaned Tornado", was formally released in the Attlee Room of Britain's House of Lords on 7 July 2011 by Lord Anthony Young of Norwood Green and retired British Crown Court judge Sir Mota Singh. The book was written by Chandigarh-based columnist and writer Khushwant Singh.


title: Fauja Singh

text: On 13 November 2003, Singh was awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor by the National Ethnic Coalition, a US group that advocates ethnic pride and tolerance. William Fugazy, the chairman of the coalition, said Singh is a symbol of racial tolerance, and his running helps bridge the gap created by the 11 September terrorist attacks. "He is the greatest inspiration," said Fugazy, and added that Singh was the first non-American to receive the honour. He was awarded the "Pride of India" title by a UK-based organisation for his achievements in 2011.


title: Fauja Singh

text: He attended an election rally at village Kukranwala under the Raja Sansi constituency (near Amritsar) for the People's Party of Punjab candidate, where he was reported to have extended his support for the party. However, the party was criticized by "Sikhs in the City" for the "misuse of Fauja Singh for political purposes", and for having "abused the vulnerability of an old man for its own ends".


title: Fauja Singh

text: Fauja Singh was invited as a special guest for the 2nd Annual Chardikala Run in Malaysia. The run was given a theme '101 and running' as a mark of respect for Singh. He was given a warm crowd response and was also presented with The BrandLaureate Award on stage during the closing ceremony.


title: Fauja Singh

text: Singh was given a warm response by the people of Malaysia. He was escorted to the Chardikala Charitable Fun Run venue, Astaka in Petaling Jaya, by the Malaysian Bikers Group. Singh flagged off the start of the Marathon. Fauja Singh's attitude was praised especially because he had taken part in the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon on the same morning, yet was in full spirits meeting, greeting and being a major part of the successful CCFR 2012.