title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Fur was worn, mostly as a lining layer, by those who could afford it. The grey and white squirrel furs of the Middle Ages, vair and miniver, went out of style except at court, first for men and then for women; the new fashionable furs were dark brown sable and marten. Toward the end of the 15th century, wild animal furs such as lynx became popular. Ermine remained the prerogative and hallmark of royalty.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Slashing is a decorative technique that involved making small cuts on the outer fabric of a garment in order to reveal the sometimes brightly colored inner garment or lining. It was performed on all varieties of clothing, both men's and women's. Contemporary chroniclers identify the source of the fashion for slashing garments to the actions of Swiss soldiers in the aftermath of the Battle of Grandson in 1476. Supposedly the Swiss plundered the rich fabrics of the Burgundian nobles and used the scraps to patch their tattered clothes. In reality, images appear of sleeves with a single slashed opening as early as the mid-15th century, although the German fashion for "many small all-over slits" may have begun here. Whatever its origin, the fad for multiple slashings spread to German Landsknechts and thence to France, Italy, and England, where it was to remain a potent current in fashionable attire into the mid-17th century.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: A second result of the defeat at Grandson was the decline of Burgundy as a fount of culture and fashion. The heiress Mary of Burgundy married Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor but died young. In the last decade of the 15th century, Charles VIII of France invaded Italy and was briefly declared King of Naples. As a result, the French nobility were introduced to the fabrics and styles of Italy, which would combine with German influence to become mainstream fashion of the nobility in France (and later spread to England) in the first half of the 16th century.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Women's fashions of the 15th century consisted of a long dress, usually with sleeves, worn over a kirtle or underdress, with a linen chemise or smock worn next to the skin. The sleeves were made detachable and were heavily ornamented. The long-waisted silhouette of the previous period was replaced by a high-waisted style with fullness over the belly, often confined by a belt. The wide, shallow scooped neckline was replaced by a V-neck, often cut low enough to reveal the decorated front of the kirtle beneath.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Various styles of overdresses were worn. The "" fitted smoothly from the shoulders to the hips and then flared by means of inserted triangular gores. It featured sleeves tight to the elbow with hanging streamers or "tippets". The tight fit was achieved with lacing or buttons. This style faded rapidly from fashion in favor of the houppelande, a full robe with a high collar and wide sleeves that had become fashionable around 1380 and remained so to mid-15th century. The later houppelande had sleeves that were snug at the wrist, making a full "bag" sleeve. The bag sleeve was sometimes slashed in the front to allow the lower arm to reach through.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Around 1450, the dress of northern Europe developed a low V-neck that showed a glimpse of the square-necked kirtle. The neckline could be filled in with a sheer linen partlet. Wide turn-backs like revers displayed a contrasting lining, frequently of fur or black velvet, and the sleeves might be cuffed to match. Sleeves were very long, covering half of the hand, and often highly decorated with embroidery. Fine sleeves were often transferred from one dress to another. The term "robe déguisée" was coined in the mid-1400s to describe garments reflecting the very latest fashions, a term which endured into the 16th century.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: In Italy, the low scoop-neck of the early decades gave way to a neckline that was high in front with a lower V-neck at the back at mid-15th century. This was followed by a V-neckline that displayed the kirtle or "gamurra" (sometimes spelled "camorra"). Sleeveless overdresses such as the "cioppa" were popular, and the gamurra sleeves displayed were often of rich figured silks. The "" was a lighter-weight underdress for summerwear. A sideless overdress called the "giornea" was worn with the gamurra or cotta. Toward the end of the period, sleeves were made in sections or panels and slashed, allowing the full chemise sleeves below to be pulled through in puffs along the arm, at the shoulder, and at the elbow. This was the beginning of the fashion for puffed and slashed sleeves that would last for two centuries.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: The "partlet", a separate item to fill in a low neckline, appeared in this period, usually of sheer fabric (linen or possibly silk) with an open V-neckline. Some partlets had a collar and a back similar to the upper part of a shirt. Burgundian partlets were usually depicted worn under the dress (but over the kirtle); in Italy the partlet seems to have been worn over the dress and could be pointed or cut straight across at the lower front.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Two uniquely Spanish fashions appeared from the 1470s. The ' or ' was a gown with a bell-shaped hoop skirt with visible casings stiffened with reeds, which would become the farthingale. The earliest depictions of this garment come from Catalonia, where it was worn with pieced or slashed sleeves and the second new style, a chemise with trumpet sleeves, open and very wide at the wrist.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: The sideless surcoat of the 14th century became fossilized as a ceremonial costume for royalty, usually with an ermine front panel (called a "plackard" or "placket") and a mantle draped from the shoulders; it can be seen in variety of royal portraits and as "shorthand" to identify queens in illuminated manuscripts of the period.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: A variety of hats and headdresses were worn in Europe in the 15th century. The "crespine" of Northern Europe, originally a thick hairnet or snood, had evolved into a mesh of jeweler's work that confined the hair on the sides of the head by the end of the 14th century. Gradually the fullness at the sides of head was pulled up to the temples and became pointed, like horns ("à corné"). By mid-15th century, the hair was pulled back from the forehead, and the crespine, now usually called a "caul", sat on the back of the head. Very fashionable women shaved their foreheads and eyebrows. Any of these styles could be topped by a padded roll, sometimes arranged in a heart-shape, or a veil, or both. Veils were supported by wire frames that exaggerated the shape and were variously draped from the back of the headdress or covered the forehead.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Women also wore the chaperon, a draped hat based on the hood and liripipe, and a variety of related draped and wrapped turbans.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: The most extravagant headdress of Burgundian fashion was the hennin, a cone or truncated-cone shaped cap with a wire frame covered in fabric and topped by a floating veil. Later hennins featured a turned-back brim, or were worn over a hood with a turned-back brim. Towards the end of the 15th century women's head-dresses became smaller, more convenient, and less picturesque. The gable hood, a stiff and elaborate head-dress, emerged around 1480 and was popular among elder ladies up until the mid 16th century.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Women of the merchant classes in Northern Europe wore modified versions of courtly hairstyles, with coifs or caps, veils, and wimples of crisp linen (often with visible creases from ironing and folding). A brief fashion added rows of gathered frills to the coif or veil; this style is sometimes known by the German name "".


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: The general European convention of completely covering married women's hair was not accepted in warmer Italy. Italian women wore their hair very long, wound with ribbons or braided, and twisted up into knots of various shapes with the ends hanging free. The hair was then covered with sheer veils or small caps. Toward the 1480s women wore chin-length sections of hair in loose waves or ripples over the ears (a style that would inspire "vintage" hair fashions in the 1620s and '30s and again in the 1840s and 1850s). Blonde hair was considered desirable (by Botticelli for one), and visitors to Venice reported that ladies sat out in the sun on their terraces with their hair spread out around large circular disks worn like hats, attempting to bleach it in the sun. Chemical methods were also used.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Women from the 14th century wore laced ankle-boots, which were often lined with fur. Later in the 15th century, women also wore what were called crakows or poulaines. They used pattens to protect their tight shoes.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: The basic costume of men in this period consisted of a shirt, doublet, and hose, with some sort of overrobe (robe worn over clothing).


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Linen shirts were worn next to the skin. Toward the end of the period, shirts (French "chemise", Italian "camicia", Spanish "camisa") began to be full through the body and sleeves with wide, low necklines; the sleeves were pulled through the slashings or piecing of the doublet sleeves to make puffs, especially at the elbow and the back of the arm. As the cut of doublets revealed more fabric, wealthy men's shirts were often decorated with embroidery or applied braid.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Over the shirt was worn a doublet. From around the mid-15th century very tight-fitting doublets, belted or tailored to be tight at the waist, giving in effect a short skirt below, were fashionable, at least for the young. Sleeves were generally full, even puffy, and when worn with a large chaperon, the look was extremely stylish, but very top-heavy. Very tight hose, and long pointed shoes or thigh-boots gave a long attenuated appearance below the waist, and a chunky, solid one above. The doublet was often elaborately pleated, especially at the back, the pleats being achieved by various means. In Italy both shirt and doublet were often high, tight and collarless at the front of the neck; sometimes they are shown higher at the front than the back.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Men of all classes wore short "braies" or breeches, a loose undergarment, usually made of linen, which was held up by a belt. Hose or chausses made out of wool were used to cover the legs, and were generally brightly colored. Early hose sometimes had leather soles and were worn without shoes or boots. Hose were generally tied to the breech belt, or to the breeches themselves, or to a doublet.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: As doublets became shorter, hose reached to the waist rather than the hips, and were sewn together into a single garment with a pouch or flap to cover the front opening; this evolved into the codpiece.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: The hose exposed by short tops were, especially in Italy late in the 15th century, often strikingly patterned, parti-coloured (different colours for each leg, or vertically divided), or embroidered. Hose were cut on the cross-grain or bias for stretch.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: The Houppelande, in Italy called the "", was the characteristic overgarment of the wealthy in the first half of the 15th century. It was essentially a robe with fullness falling from the shoulders in organ pleats and very full sleeves often reaching to the floor with, at the start of the 16th century, a high collar. The houppelande could be lined in fur, and the hem and sleeves might be dagged or cut into scallops. It was initially often worn belted, but later mostly hanging straight. The length of the garment shortened from around the ankle to above the knee over this period. The floor-length sleeves were later wrist-length but very full, forming a bag or sack sleeve, or were worn off the arm, hanging ornamentally behind.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: A sideless tunic or tabard, called a "giornea" in Italy and a "journade" in France, was popular. It was usually pleated and was worn hanging loose or belted. Young men wore them short and older men wore them calf- or ankle-length.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: The middle of the 15th century in Burgundy saw what seems to have been the earliest occurrence of the male fashion for dressing all in black, which was to reappear so strongly in the "Spanish" style of the mid-16th–17th century and again in the 19th–20th centuries. This was apparently begun by Duke Philip the Good.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: In Venice, the patrician class, after the age of joining the Great Council, wore their long red robes as a uniform virtually unchanged throughout the 15th century. In contrast, the young men and the famous courtesans of the city dressed very extravagantly.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: In the last decades of the 15th century, a new style of overgown appeared; this was of various lengths, generally worn unbelted, and featured wide turned back revers and collar.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Short or long cloaks or mantles were worn overall for ceremonial occasions and in bad weather; these typically fastened on one shoulder.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Early in the 15th century, the hood remained a common component of dress for all classes, although it was frequently worn around the neck as a cowl or twisted into the fantastical shapes of the chaperon. Hats of various styles—tall-crowned with small brims or no brims at all, hats with brims turned up on one side for variations of the coif, or low-crowned with wider brims pulled to a point in front—began to compete with the draped chaperon, especially in Italy. A brimless scarlet cap became nearly universal for young Florentines in particular, and was widely worn by older men and those in other cities.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: In mid-15th century, a bowl haircut with the hair shaved at the back of the neck was stylish. In Germany, and briefly in Venice, a wide shock of frizzy blond hair was often seen on images of lovers (and angels) in the later part of the 15th century—less often in portraits. By the end of the 15th century, shoulder-length hair became fashionable, a trend that would continue into the early 16th century.


title: 1400–1500 in European fashion

text: Children's clothing during the Italian Renaissance reflected that of their parents. In other words, kids dressed exactly like the adults and looked like miniature versions of them. As babies and toddlers, children were all put in dresses to make the potty training process easier for parents or maids. Then, around the age of 6 or 7, boys would receive their first pair of hose (called breeching).


title: Fionn O'Shea

text: Fionn O'Shea (born 2 January 1997) is an Irish actor, best known for playing Ned Roche in the 2016 film "Handsome Devil", Eddie in the 2020 film "Dating Amber" and Jamie in the television series "Normal People".


title: Fionn O'Shea

text: In 2007, O'Shea made his film debut in the Irish short film "New Boy"; it received an Academy Award nomination for Best Live Action Short Film. In 2009, he made his feature film debut, playing an orphan boy in "A Shine of Rainbows". Between 2009 and 2012 he appeared on "Roy", an Irish-British animated children's television series. In 2016, he portrayed Ned Roche in the Irish comedy-drama film "Handsome Devil". At the 15th Irish Film & Television Awards in 2018 he was nominated for Actor in a leading role and Rising Star Award. In 2018 he featured on "Hang Ups", a British television sitcom. Also in 2018 he appeared in "Innocent", a British television miniseries. In 2019, he played a supporting role in the drama film "The Aftermath". In 2020, he played Eddie in "Dating Amber", and Jamie in "Normal People".


title: The People in the Trees

text: The People in the Trees is the 2013 debut novel of author Hanya Yanagihara. Yanagihara stated that her book was in part inspired by Daniel Carleton Gajdusek, who was revered in the scientific community before being accused of child molestation.


title: The People in the Trees

text: The bulk of the novel is made up of the fictional memoirs of Dr. Abraham Norton Perina, a scientific researcher who discovers a turtle with life-prolonging qualities on the fictional island of Ivu'ivu.


title: The People in the Trees

text: Yanagihara based the physical look and shape of Ivu'ivu on Angra dos Reis. The book received critical acclaim.


title: The People in the Trees

text: In the late 1990s, Dr. Ronald Kubodera, a colleague of Nobel Laureate Dr. Abraham Norton Perina, mourns Norton's downfall after being convicted of sexually abusing his own children. Kubodera encourages Norton to write his memoirs from his prison isolation, and marks them with footnotes.


title: The People in the Trees

text: Norton writes of his childhood in the small town of Lindon, Indiana, where his interest in science was piqued by his paternal aunt Sybil, a doctor. While attending medical school, Norton attracts the attention of Gregory Smythe, and is hired to work in his lab. Norton is eventually invited to Smythe's home for dinner, where Smythe cries in front of him. Repulsed by Smythe, Norton quits the lab. Shortly before graduation, however, Norton is approached to be the medical doctor on an anthropological mission to U'ivu, led by a man named Paul Tallent. Norton realizes that Smythe recommended him in order to send him as far away as possible from him. Despite the fact that the mission is considered career suicide, Norton accepts.


title: The People in the Trees

text: Norton meets Tallent for the first time before they leave from Hawaii to U'ivu, and finds him beautiful and enigmatic. When they arrive in U'ivu, they meet the other member of the team, a woman named Esme Duff, whom Norton immediately dislikes. Tallent leads Norton and Esme to a smaller island that is part of U'ivu, called Ivu'ivu. There they meet three hunter guides, who lead them deep into the jungle of the island, where eventually Tallent reveals to Norton that there is a legend among the U'ivu people about a lost tribe that has been gifted with eternal life but also deep stupidity, and that their guides have actually seen one of these people. Shortly after, they discover a woman who is devoid of language, completely nude and seemingly unable to function as a regular human being. The explorers dub the woman Eve, and quickly discover a tribe of other people like her – whom they dub "Dreamers" –, all of whom have varyingly poor grasp of language. Through some of the more lucid dreamers, Tallent discovers that, though they all have a mark of a turtle on them, indicating that they are 60, they are actually all well over 100 years old.


title: The People in the Trees

text: Shortly after discovering the Dreamers, the explorers also discover a group of Ivu'ivu's who had lost contact with the U'ivuians. They are allowed to observe the village, as long as they do not bring the Dreamers in contact with them. While there, Norton observes the villagers engaging in the ritualistic rape of a young ten-year-old boy. While Esme finds the ritual disturbing, Norton decides that it is not rape or abuse but simply a cultural difference. Later on, he has a sexual encounter with the boy who was raped, which he claims is consensual.


title: The People in the Trees

text: He and the group also observe the chief of the village engaging in a ritual to celebrate his 60th year, where he eats a turtle. Norton quickly realizes that there is a link between eating the turtle, the seeming immortality, and the brain damage exhibited by the dreamers. After interviewing one of the dreamers, he is taken to a small pond where the turtles come from, and later, against Tallent's advice, he returns and kills one of the turtles to bring back its flesh for experiments in America. He and Tallent also bring back four of the Dreamers for further observation.


title: The People in the Trees

text: Back in America, working at Stanford, Norton feeds the turtle to mice, and realizes that their life cycle can be extended six times that of regular mice. He publishes his paper, at first to derision and, eventually, to acclaim. Tallent warns him that his paper has condemned the people of U'ivu, and this eventually proves true: the turtles of Ivu'ivu are eventually hunted to extinction by pharmaceutical companies, and the island itself is destroyed. Eventually, U'ivu is colonized as well. Norton continues to visit the island, and begins to adopt local abandoned children in great numbers. In 1980, he sees a decrepit man he believes was the boy he had the sexual encounter with when he first came to Ivu'ivu, who foists his son on Norton. Norton takes the boy home and names him Victor.


title: The People in the Trees

text: As Victor grows older, he and Norton develop an increasingly contentious relationship. Norton claims that, on Christmas, Victor locked Norton out of his home, leaving him to die, after which Norton locks Victor in the basement for a few days. When Victor is a teenager, he goes to Norton's brother, Owen, and tells him that Norton raped him, causing a rift between the brothers, and leading to Norton's imprisonment.


title: The People in the Trees

text: In December 2000, Dr. Kubodera writes that he and Norton have escaped from his parole officer. He confesses to feeling guilty for having omitted a portion of Norton's memoirs, and includes it as a post-script. The omitted portion reveals that Norton raped not only Victor but many of his other adopted sons.


title: The People in the Trees

text: Yanagihara received rave reviews for her novel. "The New York Times" called her "a writer to marvel at", while "The Guardian" called the book an "ambitious debut". A review in "The Independent" was also overwhelmingly positive, calling the novel "an absorbing, intelligent and uncompromising novel, which beguiles and unnerves".


title: Antenna (record label)

text: Antenna (Hangul: 안테나) is a South Korean record label founded by You Hee-yeol of the band Toy in 1997. Formerly an independent label, it was fully incorporated as a subsidiary under Kakao Entertainment in August 2021.


title: Antenna (record label)

text: South Korean musician You Hee-yeol, known as Toy, founded the indie record label Toy Music in 1997. In the following decade, the label published several albums by artists including Lucid Fall, Kim Yeon-woo, Dear Cloud, and You Hee-yeol himself.


title: Antenna (record label)

text: In 2007, the label's name was changed to Antenna Music. The modern electronic band Peppertones signed under Antenna Music in 2008, followed by pianist Jung Jae-hyung following completion of his degree from the École Normale de Musique de Paris, and singer-songwriter Park Sae-byul.


title: Antenna (record label)

text: From 2013 to 2017, You Hee-yeol served as a judge on Seasons 3–6 of the reality television competition show "K-pop Star". During this time, Sam Kim, Kwon Jin-ah, Jung Seung-hwan, Lee Jin-ah and Lee Soo-jung signed to the label after successfully auditioning for the program and finishing in the top three of their respective seasons.


title: Antenna (record label)

text: In May 2021, Kakao Entertainment acquired 19% of Antenna's shares, establishing a strategic partnership between the two companies. On July 14, it was announced that Antenna had signed television personality Yoo Jae-suk, the first non-musician to be managed by the label. On August 17, Kakao acquired Antenna's remaining shares, making it a fully owned subsidiary. On November 17, it was announced that Antenna had signed former Lovelyz member Mijoo.


title: Overture

text: Overture (from French "ouverture", "opening") in music was originally the instrumental introduction to a ballet, opera, or oratorio in the 17th century. During the early Romantic era, composers such as Beethoven and Mendelssohn composed overtures which were independent, self-existing instrumental, programmatic works that foreshadowed genres such as the symphonic poem. These were "at first undoubtedly intended to be played at the head of a programme".


title: Overture

text: The idea of an instrumental opening to opera existed during the 17th century. Peri's "Euridice" opens with a brief instrumental ritornello, and Monteverdi's "L'Orfeo" (1607) opens with a toccata, in this case a fanfare for muted trumpets. More important, however, was the prologue, which comprised sung dialogue between allegorical characters which introduced the overarching themes of the stories depicted.


title: Overture

text: As a musical form, however, the French overture first appears in the court ballet and operatic overtures of Jean-Baptiste Lully, which he elaborated from a similar, two-section form called "Ouverture", found in the French ballets de cour as early as 1640. This French overture consists of a slow introduction in a marked "dotted rhythm" (i.e., exaggerated iambic, if the first chord is disregarded), followed by a lively movement in fugato style. The overture was frequently followed by a series of dance tunes before the curtain rose, and would often return following the Prologue to introduce the action proper. This ouverture style was also used in English opera, most notably in Henry Purcell's "Dido and Æneas". Its distinctive rhythmic profile and function thus led to the French overture style as found in the works of late Baroque composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Friedrich Händel, and Georg Philipp Telemann. The style is most often used in preludes to suites, and can be found in non-staged vocal works such as cantatas, for example in the opening chorus of Bach's cantata "Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 61". Handel also uses the French overture form in some of his Italian operas such as "Giulio Cesare".


title: Overture

text: In Italy, a distinct form called "overture" arose in the 1680s, and became established particularly through the operas of Alessandro Scarlatti, and spread throughout Europe, supplanting the French form as the standard operatic overture by the mid-18th century. Its stereotypical form is in three generally homophonic movements: fast–slow–fast. The opening movement was normally in duple metre and in a major key; the slow movement in earlier examples was usually quite short, and could be in a contrasting key; the concluding movement was dance-like, most often with rhythms of the gigue or minuet, and returned to the key of the opening section. As the form evolved, the first movement often incorporated fanfare-like elements and took on the pattern of so-called "sonatina form" (sonata form without a development section), and the slow section became more extended and lyrical. Italian overtures were often detached from their operas and played as independent concert pieces. In this context, they became important in the early history of the symphony.


title: Overture

text: Prior to the 18th century, the symphony and the overture were almost interchangeable, with overtures being extracted from operas to serve as stand-alone instrumental works, and symphonies being tagged to the front of operas as overtures. With the reform of "opera seria," the overture began to distinguish itself from the symphony, and composers began to link the content of overtures to their operas dramatically and emotionally. Elements from the opera are foreshadowed in the overture, following the reform ideology that the music and every other element on stages serves to enhance the plot. One such overture was that of "La Magnifique" by André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry, in which several of the arias are quoted. This "medley form" persists in the overtures to many works of musical theatre written in the 20th and 21st centuries.


title: Overture

text: In 19th-century opera the overture, "Vorspiel", "Einleitung," Introduction, or whatever else it may be called, is generally nothing more definite than that portion of the music which takes place before the curtain rises. Richard Wagner's "Vorspiel" to "Lohengrin" is a short self-contained movement founded on the music of the Grail.


title: Overture

text: In Italian opera after about 1800, the "overture" became known as the "sinfonia". Fisher also notes the term "Sinfonia avanti l'opera" (literally, the "symphony before the opera") was "an early term for a sinfonia used to begin an opera, that is, as an overture as opposed to one serving to begin a later section of the work".


title: Overture

text: Although by the end of the eighteenth century opera overtures were already beginning to be performed as separate items in the concert hall, the "concert overture", intended specifically as an individual concert piece without reference to stage performance and generally based on some literary theme, began to appear early in the Romantic era. Carl Maria von Weber wrote two concert overtures, "Der Beherrscher der Geister" ('The Ruler of the Spirits', 1811, a revision of the overture to his unfinished opera "Rübezahl" of 1805), and "Jubel-Ouvertüre" ('Jubilee Overture', 1818, incorporating "God Save the King" at its climax). However, the overture "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (1826) by Felix Mendelssohn is generally regarded as the first concert overture. Mendelssohn's other contributions to this genre include his "Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage" overture (1828), his overture "The Hebrides" (1830; also known as "Fingal's Cave") and the overtures "Die schöne Melusine" ("The Fair Melusine", 1834) and "Ruy Blas" (1839). Other notable early concert overtures were written by Hector Berlioz (e.g., "Les Francs juges" (1826), and "Le corsaire" (1828)).


title: Overture

text: In the 1850s the concert overture began to be supplanted by the symphonic poem, a form devised by Franz Liszt in several works that began as dramatic overtures. The distinction between the two genres was the freedom to mould the musical form according to external programmatic requirements. The symphonic poem became the preferred form for the more "progressive" composers, such as César Franck, Camille Saint-Saëns, Richard Strauss, Alexander Scriabin, and Arnold Schoenberg, while more conservative composers like Anton Rubinstein, Tchaikovsky, Johannes Brahms, Robert Schumann and Arthur Sullivan remained faithful to the overture.


title: Overture

text: In the age when the symphonic poem had already become popular, Brahms wrote his "Academic Festival Overture", Op. 80, as well as his "Tragic Overture", Op. 81. An example clearly influenced by the symphonic poem is Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture". His equally well-known "Romeo and Juliet" is also labelled a 'fantasy-overture'.


title: Overture

text: In European music after 1900, an example of an overture displaying a connection with the traditional form is Dmitri Shostakovich's "Festive Overture", Op. 96 (1954), which is in two linked sections, "Allegretto" and "Presto" (Temperely 2001). Malcolm Arnold's "A Grand, Grand Overture", Op. 57 (1956), is a 20th-century parody of the late 19th century concert overture, scored for an enormous orchestra with organ, additional brass instruments, and obbligato parts for four rifles, three Hoover vacuum cleaners (two uprights in B, one horizontal with detachable sucker in C), and an electric floor polisher in E; it is dedicated "to President Hoover"


title: Overture

text: In motion pictures, an overture is a piece of music setting the mood for the film before the opening credits start. For a comprehensive list, see the list of films with overtures.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Venomous mammals are animals of the class Mammalia that produce venom, which they use to kill or disable prey, to defend themselves from predators or conspecifics or in agonistic encounters. Mammalian venoms form a heterogeneous group with different compositions and modes of action, from three orders of mammals: Eulipotyphla, Monotremata, and Chiroptera. It has been proposed that some members of a fourth order, Primates, are venomous. To explain the rarity of venom delivery in Mammalia, Mark Dufton of the University of Strathclyde has suggested that modern mammalian predators do not need venom because they are able to kill quickly with their teeth or claws, whereas venom, no matter how sophisticated, requires time to disable prey.


title: Venomous mammal

text: In spite of the rarity of venom among extant mammals, venom may be an ancestral feature among mammals, as venomous spurs akin to those of the modern platypus are found in most non-therian Mammaliaformes groups.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Venom is much more common among other vertebrates; there are many more species of venomous reptiles (e.g. venomous snakes) and fish (e.g. stonefish). Some birds are poisonous to eat or touch (e.g. hooded pitohui) though no bird species is known to be venomous. There are only a few species of venomous amphibians; certain salamandrid salamanders can extrude sharp venom-tipped ribs.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Bücherl states that venomous animals must possess at least one venom gland, a mechanism for excretion or extrusion of the venom, and apparatus with which to inflict wounds.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Mebs writes that venomous animals produce venom in a group of cells or gland, and have a tool, the venom apparatus, which delivers the venom by injection during a bite or sting. The venom apparatus in this definition encompasses both the gland and the injection device, which must be directly connected.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Fry et al. found that a venom is a secretion produced in a specialized gland in one animal and delivered to a target animal through the infliction of a wound. This secretion must contain molecules that disrupt normal physiological processes so as to facilitate feeding or defense by the producing animal. Additionally, the feeding secretion of hematophagous specialists (e.g. vampire bats) may be regarded as a specialized subtype of venom.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Venomous mammals may have been more common in the past. Most non-therian mammals possess tarsal spurs akin to those of the modern platypus, suggesting that this feature was very widespread, with gobiconodontids and "Zhangheotherium" being among the clearer examples. The absence of venom spurs in non-Mammaliaformes cynodonts suggests that venom was an ancient mammalian synapomorphy and ancestral characteristic.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Canine teeth dated at 60 million years old from two extinct species, the shrew-like "Bisonalveus browni" and another unidentified mammal, show grooves that some palaeontologists have argued are indicative of a venomous bite. However, other scientists have questioned this conclusion given that many living non-venomous mammals also have deep grooves down the length of their canines (e.g., many primates, coatis and fruit bats), suggesting that this feature does not always reflect an adaptation to venom delivery.


title: Venomous mammal

text: With the exception of vampire bats, Eulipotyphla are the only mammals so far observed to produce toxic saliva.


title: Venomous mammal

text: These species have significantly enlarged and granular submaxillary salivary glands from which the toxic saliva is produced.


title: Venomous mammal

text: The Cuban solenodon ("Solenodon cubanus") and Hispaniolan solenodon ("Solenodon paradoxus") look similar to large shrews. They both have venomous bites; the venom is delivered from modified salivary glands via grooves in their second lower incisors. Recent study has identified the gene regulatory network responsible for the development of venom delivery systems in these small mammals. Due to the overexpression of kallikreins in their saliva, solenodon bites cause vasodilation and may result in circulatory shock. It was reported that death was frequent among Hispaniolan solenodons kept together in the same enclosure, with bite marks on their feet being the only observable cause. Such use in competition may be a secondary aspect of the insectivore venom.


title: Venomous mammal

text: The northern short-tailed shrew ("Blarina brevicauda"), Mediterranean water shrew ("Neomys anomalus"), and Eurasian water shrew ("Neomys fodiens") are capable of delivering a venomous bite. Other American short-tailed shrews: the southern short-tailed shrew ("Blarina carolinensis"), Elliot's short-tailed shrew ("Blarina hylophaga"), and Everglades short-tailed shrew ("Blarina peninsulae") and the Transcaucasian water shrew ("Neomys teres") possibly also have a venomous bite. Shrews cache various prey in a comatose state, including earthworms, insects, snails, and to a lesser extent, small mammals such as voles and mice. This behaviour is an adaption to winter. In this context, the shrew venom acts as a tool to sustain a living hoard, thus ensuring food supply when capturing prey is difficult. This is especially important considering the high metabolic rate of shrews. Arguments against this suggest that the venom is used as a tool to hunt larger prey. Insectivores have an enhanced dependence on vertebrate food material, which is larger and more dangerous than their power to weight ratio would allow, thus requiring an extra asset to overcome these difficulties. Extant shrews do not have specialized venom delivery apparatus. Their teeth do not have channels, but a concavity on the first incisors may collect and transmit saliva from the submaxillary ducts, which open near the base of these teeth.


title: Venomous mammal

text: The European mole ("Talpa europaea"), and possibly other species of mole, have toxins in their saliva that can paralyze earthworms, allowing the moles to store them alive for later consumption.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Both male and female platypuses ("Ornithorhyncus anatinus") hatch with keratinised spurs on the hind limbs, although the females lose these during development. The spurs are connected to the venom-producing crural glands, forming the crural system. During the mating season these glands become highly active, producing venom to be delivered by the channeled spur. Echidnas, the other monotremes, have spurs but no functional venom glands. Although not potent enough to be lethal to humans, platypus venom is nevertheless so excruciating that victims may sometimes be temporarily incapacitated. Platypus envenomation was fairly common when the animal was still hunted for its fur. Nowadays any close contact with the animal is rare and restricted to biologists, zookeepers and anglers (who occasionally catch them in fishing lines or nets).


title: Venomous mammal

text: When platypuses attack, they drive their hind legs together with considerable force so that the spurs are embedded in the flesh caught between and if venom is being produced, a few milliliters are injected by repeated jabbing. The spurs have enough strength to support the weight of the platypus, which often hangs from the victim, requiring assistance for removal.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Most of the evidence now supports the proposition that the venom system is used by males on one another as a weapon when competing for females, taking part in sexual selection. During this season, males become more aggressive and are found with punctures in their bodies, especially in the tail region. Adult male platypuses largely avoid each other, outside of this mating rivalry.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Platypus venom is likely retained from its distant non-monotreme ancestors, being the last living example of what was once a common characteristic among mammals. Fossil records show that venom delivery systems were not sexually dimorphic in ancestral monotremes. It has been hypothesized that venom spurs were once used for defense against predators. Proteins derived from platypus venom are being studied for potential analgesic properties.


title: Venomous mammal

text: The definition of venom by Fry et al. (see Definitions) regards the feeding secretions of hematophagous (blood eating) specialists as a particular subtype of venom. In this context, the subfamily Desmodontinae represents the venomous mammals from the order Chiroptera. This group comprises the most well known venomous bat, the common vampire bat ("Desmodus rotundus") and two other rare species, the hairy-legged vampire bat ("Diphylla ecaudata") and the white-winged vampire bat ("Diaemus youngi"). These bats produce toxic saliva with anticoagulant properties and have a series of anatomical and physiological adaptations to allow nourishment based solely on blood. The majority of their prey do not perish from the attack or contact with the venom.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Slow lorises (of the genera "Nycticebus" and "Xanthonycticebus") are accepted as the only known venomous primate. Slow loris venom was known in folklore in their host countries throughout southeast Asia for centuries; but dismissed by Western science until the 1990s. There are nine recognised species of this small-bodied nocturnal primate. They possess a dual composite venom consisting of saliva and brachial gland exudate, a malodourous fluid forming from an apocrine sweat gland on the animal's forearm. Both fluids have been demonstrated as being venomous individually and creating a more potent venom when mixed. Slow loris brachial gland exudate (BGE) has been shown to possess up to 142 volatile components, and possesses a variant of the cat allergen protein Fel-D1. The BGE has several ecological functions including anti-parasitic defence and communication. Slow loris saliva has been shown to be cytotoxic to human skin cells in laboratory experiments without the administration of BGE.


title: Venomous mammal

text: The venom is administered through morphologically distinct dentition in the form of an adapted toothcomb. In the wild envenomation occurs from intraspecific competition; whereby two slow lorises fight for mates, food or territory. Slow loris inflicted wounds are a major cause of premature death in zoo and wildlife slow loris populations; often resulting in festering and necrotic wounds. Slow loris envenomation in humans is rare, but can result in near fatal anaphylactic shock. A suite of additional effects of the venom have been documented including mild to permanent disfigurement and mobility loss. The study of slow loris venom was brought to the public attention in 2012 by the research of the primatologist Prof. K.A.I Nekaris and in her BBC documentary "The Jungle Gremlins of Java".


title: Venomous mammal

text: Hedgehogs ("Erinaceinae") anoint their spines with a range of toxic and irritating substances. They will sometimes kill toads ("Bufo"), bite into the toads' poison glands and smear the toxic mixture on their spines.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Tenrecs, which are similar in appearance to hedgehogs but from a different line of evolutionary descent, may also have separately evolved self-anointing behaviour.


title: Venomous mammal

text: The African crested rat ("Lophiomys imhausi") has a mane of long, coarse black-and-white banded hairs which extends from the top of the animal's head to just beyond the base of the tail. This mane is bordered by a broad, white-bordered strip of hairs covering an area of glandular skin on the flank. When the animal is threatened or excited, the mane erects and this flank strip parts, exposing the glandular area. The hairs in this flank area are highly specialised; at the tips they are like ordinary hair, but are otherwise spongy, fibrous, and absorbent. The rat is known to deliberately chew the roots and bark of the Poison-arrow tree ("Acokanthera schimperi"), so-called because human hunters extract a toxin, ouabain, to coat arrows that can kill an elephant. After the rat has chewed the tree, it deliberately slathers the resulting mixture onto its specialised flank hairs which are adapted to rapidly absorb the poisonous mixture, acting like a lamp wick. It thereby creates a defense mechanism that can sicken or even kill predators which attempt to bite it.


title: Venomous mammal

text: Skunks can eject a noxious fluid from glands near their anus. It is not only foul smelling, but can cause skin irritation and, if it gets in the eyes, temporary blindness. Some members of the mustelid family, such as the striped polecat ("Ictonyx striatus"), also have this capacity to an extent. Pangolins can also emit a noxious smelling fluid from glands near the anus. The greater long-nosed armadillo can release a disagreeable musky odor when threatened.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie is an orange Muppet character created and originally performed by Jim Henson for the long-running children's television show "Sesame Street". He and his roommate Bert form the comic duo Bert and Ernie, one of the program's centerpieces, with Ernie acting the role of the naïve troublemaker, and Bert the world weary foil.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie has a characteristic chuckling laugh (a trait he shares with his baby cousin, Ernestine), and he also has his signature pronunciation of the word "again" (ay-gain). He is a friend and roommate of Bert; they share an apartment on Sesame Street. Ernie's appearance and clothing contrast with Bert, as he is the shorter and more rotund of the pair, and he wears a shirt with horizontal stripes, whereas Bert's shirt has vertical stripes, and Bert has a tall, narrow head while Ernie's is wider than it is high. Additionally, Ernie has no visible eyebrows, while Bert displays a pronounced unibrow.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie is known for his fondness for baths with his Rubber Duckie and for trying to learn to play the saxophone. Ernie is also known for keeping Bert awake at night, for reasons such as wanting to play the drums, wanting to count something (like sheep), to observe something like a blackout, or even because he is waiting for his upstairs neighbor to drop his shoes.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Many Ernie and Bert sketches involve Ernie wanting to play a game with Bert, who would much rather do something else (like read). Ernie keeps irking Bert with the game until Bert joins — and usually, by the time Bert starts enjoying the game, Ernie is tired of playing the game and wants to do something else.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Other sketches have involved them sharing some food by dividing it equally, only for one of them to have a bit more than the other, leading Ernie to make it even by eating the extra piece. Ernie makes appearances without Bert, usually within the framework of another double act. He has regularly appeared in skits with Grover, Cookie Monster, Sherlock Hemlock and Lefty the Salesman.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: A typical Bert and Ernie skit has Ernie coming up with a harebrained idea, and Bert trying to talk him out of it, ending with Bert losing his temper, while Ernie becomes oblivious to his own bad idea. Other sketches have involved Bert and Ernie sharing a snack by division, but finding that one of them has a bit more; Ernie humorously decides to try to make it even by eating the extra piece, which goes forth until the entire snack is all eaten up.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Others have also involved Ernie eating part of Bert's snack he prepares for himself, and when Bert comes back from somewhere, Ernie tries to make several attempts to cover up the crime in front of Bert, which is not successful mostly. Some other plotlines involved Ernie wanting to play a game with Bert who wants to do something else; he continues playing until he gets Bert in, but when Bert finally wants to continue playing the game, Ernie is tired of playing, and wants to do something else.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: However, Bert's twin brother Bart is depicted as a traveling salesman, which would mean Bert (and probably Ernie) are both adults. Ernie also appeared in the finales of "The Muppet Movie" and "The Muppets Take Manhattan", in the last of which he got a line. In "Christmas Eve on Sesame Street", Ernie decided to buy Bert a cigar box to store his paper clips in. However, as he did not have any money, he traded his own Rubber Duckie for it. At the same time, Bert decided to get Ernie a soap dish to put his Rubber Duckie in, so that it would not keep falling into the tub, but had to trade his paper clips for it. However, Mr. Hooper could tell that neither of them really wanted to give up their prized possessions, so Mr. Hooper gave them their things back as presents.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie and Bert introduced a montage of "Sesame Street" clips in "". Ernie also narrated a Christmas pageant, "'Twas the Night Before Christmas", in "A Muppet Family Christmas". In that same special, Ernie and Bert had a conversation with Doc, making them the only "Sesame Street" characters (not counting Kermit the Frog) to have interacted with Doc.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: In "Sesame Street... 20 Years & Still Counting", he and Bert got a new video camera, and he talked Bert into using the camera to record footage of Sesame Street so that they could watch Sesame Street on television.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: From Season 33 (2002) until Season 36 (2005), Ernie and Big Bird starred in a daily segment called "Journey to Ernie". Ernie was one of the hosts of the show "Play with Me Sesame", where he was performed by John Tartaglia during the second season. One regular segment that he hosted was "Ernie Says", a variation of the game Simon Says.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie sang about his affection for Rubber Duckie in a skit, which aired during the first season of "Sesame Street". The song "Rubber Duckie" from that skit became a modest mainstream hit, reaching No. 16 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 in September 1970.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie appears in both of the "Sesame Street" movies. In "Follow That Bird", he and Bert search for Big Bird by plane. Ernie pilots the plane, and eventually, after they find Big Bird, he flies the plane upside-down, singing "Upside Down World". However, after they lose Big Bird, Ernie blames Bert. Ernie and Bert also appear in "Out to Lunch", and are the hosts of this crossover special.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie appears in the video special "123 Count with Me", teaching Humphrey and Ingrid at the Furry Arms Hotel how counting can be very useful.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie is a "Live Hand Muppet," meaning that while operating the head of the puppet with his right hand, the puppeteer inserts his left hand into a T shaped sleeve, capped off with a glove that matches the fabric "skin" of the puppet, thus "becoming" the left arm of the puppet. A second puppeteer usually provides the right arm, although sometimes the right arm is simply stuffed and pinned to the puppet's chest or the second puppeteer will perform both arms.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: The original segment of the song "I Don't Want To Live On The Moon" was one of the rare instances when Ernie's full body was shown. It reportedly took three puppeteers to perform Ernie in this segment: Jim Henson performed Ernie's head and left hand, while two other puppeteers operated Ernie's right hand and feet respectively. Other puppets of this type include Cookie Monster, Fozzie Bear, Beaker, and Bunsen Honeydew.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Jim Henson's original Ernie puppet is currently on display at the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta, Georgia.


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: Ernie was one of the first characters to appear at Sesame Place theme park as a costumed character, in May 1983. (He had previously appeared at the attraction's groundbreaking event.)


title: Ernie (Sesame Street)

text: "Sesame Street" is localized for some different markets, and Ernie is often renamed. For instance, in episodes that are aired in Portugal, Ernie's name has been changed to "Egas", in Brazil, his name is Ênio, in Spain, he is renamed "Epi", in Latin America, his name is "Enrique", on Egyptian Alam Simsim (Sesame World) Ernie's name is given as "Shadi" (rhyming with Bert's which is "Hadi"), in Russia, he also known as Yenik ("Еник"), in Turkey, he is named "Edi", in Israel, he is called "Arik" (אריק) and in Norway, he is known as "Erling".


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Ottokar II (; , in Městec Králové, Bohemia – 26 August 1278, in Dürnkrut, Lower Austria), the Iron and Golden King, was a member of the Přemyslid dynasty who reigned as King of Bohemia from 1253 until his death in 1278. He also held the titles of Margrave of Moravia from 1247, Duke of Austria from 1251, and Duke of Styria from 1260, as well as Duke of Carinthia and landgrave of Carniola from 1269.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: With Ottokar's rule, the Přemyslids reached the peak of their power in the Holy Roman Empire. His expectations of the imperial crown, however, were never fulfilled.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Ottokar was the second son of King Wenceslaus I of Bohemia (reigned 1230–1253). Through his mother, Kunigunde, daughter of Philip of Swabia, he was related to the Holy Roman Emperors of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, which became extinct in the male line upon the execution of King Conradin of Sicily in 1268.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Named after his grandfather King Přemysl Ottokar I, he was originally educated for the role of an ecclesiastical administrator, while his elder brother Vladislaus was designated heir of the Bohemian kingdom. He was possibly educated by the Bohemian chancellor Philip of Spanheim, who would later become a rival for the rule of the Duchy of Carinthia.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: When his brother Vladislaus died in 1247, Ottokar suddenly became the heir to the Bohemian throne. According to popular oral tradition, he was profoundly shocked by his brother's death and did not involve himself in politics, becoming focused on hunting and drinking. His father appointed the new heir as Margrave of Moravia, and Ottokar took up residence in Brno, where he was occupied with the reconstruction of the Moravian lands devastated by Mongol raids of 1242.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: In 1248, some discontented nobles enticed him into leading a rebellion against his father King Wenceslaus. During this rebellion he was elected "the younger King" ("mladší král") on 31 July 1248 and temporarily expelled his father from Prague Castle. Přemysl Ottokar II held the title of King of Bohemia until November 1249. However, Pope Innocent IV excommunicated Ottokar, whereafter Wenceslaus finally managed to defeat the rebels and imprisoned his son at Přimda Castle.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Father and son eventually reconciled to assist the king's aim of acquiring the neighbouring Duchy of Austria, where the last Babenberg duke, Frederick II had been killed in the 1246 Battle of the Leitha River. King Wenceslaus had initially attempted to acquire Austria by marrying his heir, Vladislaus, to the last duke's niece Gertrude of Babenberg. That marriage came to an end after half a year with Vladislaus's death in January 1247, and in 1248 Gertrude married the Zähringen margrave Herman VI of Baden. Herman, rejected by the Austrian nobility, could not establish his rule. Wenceslaus used this as pretext to invade Austria when Herman died in 1250 — according to some sources, the estates called upon him to restore order.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Wenceslaus released Přemysl Ottokar very soon and in 1251 again made him Margrave of Moravia and installed him, with the approval of the Austrian nobles, as governor of Austria. The same year Ottokar entered Austria, where the estates acclaimed him as Duke. To legitimize his position, Přemysl Ottokar married the late Duke Frederick II's sister Margaret of Babenberg, who was his senior by 30 years and the widow of the Hohenstaufen king Henry (VII) of Germany. Their marriage took place on 11 February 1252 at Hainburg.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: In 1253, King Wenceslaus died and Přemysl Ottokar succeeded his father as King of Bohemia. After the death of the German King Konrad IV in 1254 while his son Conradin was still a minor, Ottokar also hoped to obtain the Imperial dignity - as King of the Romans - for himself. However, his election bid was unsuccessful and Count William II of Holland, the German anti-king since 1247, was generally recognised.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Feeling threatened by Ottokar's growing regional power beyond the Leitha River, his cousin King Béla IV of Hungary challenged the young king. Béla formed a loose alliance with the Wittelsbach duke Otto II of Bavaria and tried to install his own son Stephen as Duke of Styria, which since 1192 had been ruled in personal union with Austria under the terms of the Georgenberg Pact of 1186. Papal mediation settled the conflict : the parties agreed that Ottokar would yield large parts of Styria to Béla in exchange for recognition of his right to the remainder of Austria.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Subsequently, King Ottokar II led the two crusade expeditions against the pagan Old Prussians (1254–1255 and 1268).


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Königsberg (now Kaliningrad, Russia), founded in 1255 by the Teutonic Order, was named in his honour and later became the capital of the Duchy of Prussia.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: After a few years of peace the conflict with Hungary resumed: Ottokar defeated the Hungarians in July 1260 at the Battle of Kressenbrunn, ending years of disputes over Styria with Béla IV. Béla now ceded Styria back to Ottokar, and his claim to those territories was formally recognized by Richard of Cornwall, then king of Germany and nominal ruler of all the German lands. This peace agreement was also sealed by a royal marriage. Ottokar ended his marriage to Margaret and married Béla's young granddaughter Kunigunda of Halych, who became the mother of his children. The youngest of them became his only legitimate son, Wenceslaus II.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: During the Imperial Imperial "interregnum" of 1250 to 1273, Ottokar could increase his personal influence while Richard of Cornwall and Alfonso of Castile jostled to attain the Imperial dignity. In 1266 he occupied the Egerland in north-west Bohemia, and in 1268 he signed an inheritance treaty with the Sponheim duke Ulrich III of Carinthia, succeeding him in Carinthia, Carniola and the Windic March the next year. In 1272 he also acquired Friuli. His rule was once again contested by the Hungarians on the field of battle. After another victory, Ottokar became the most powerful king within the Empire.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: After Richard of Cornwall died in April 1272 and Pope Gregory X rejected the claims raised by Alfonso of Castile, a new election for the Imperial German throne took place in 1273. However, the Bohemian king again failed to win the Imperial crown, as the electors voted for the "little count" Rudolf of Habsburg, Ottokar's last and finally victorious rival.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Přemysl Ottokar refused to acknowledge Rudolf's election, and urged the Pope to adopt a similar policy. At a convention of the Imperial Diet at Nuremberg in 1274, Rudolf decreed that all Imperial lands that had changed hands since the death of the last Hohenstaufen emperor Frederick II must be returned to the crown. This would have deprived Ottokar not only of the Egerland, but also of the Austrian, Styrian, and Carinthian duchies. In 1275 Rudolf placed Ottokar under the Imperial ban and besieged his Hofburg residence in Vienna, while a rebellion led by the Vítkovci noble Zavis of Falkenstein disrupted the Bohemian lands. This compelled Přemysl Ottokar in November 1276 to sign a new treaty by which he gave up all claims to Austria and the neighboring duchies, retaining for himself only Bohemia and Moravia. Ottokar's son Wenceslaus became betrothed to Rudolf's daughter Judith. There followed an uneasy peace.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Two years later, the Bohemian king made a last attempt to recover his lost lands by force. Přemysl Ottokar again found allies in Bavaria, Brandenburg and Poland. He collected a large army to meet the forces of Rudolf and his ally King Ladislaus IV of Hungary in the Battle on the Marchfeld on 26 August 1278, where he was defeated and killed. Rudolf had his body laid out in state at the Minorites Church in Vienna. (In 1297 Ottokar's mortal remains were finally transferred to St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague.) His 6-year-old son Wenceslaus II succeeded him as King of Bohemia.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: On 11 February 1252, Přemysl Ottokar II married Margaret of Austria. Margaret was 26 years older than he, and the couple's childless marriage ended with an annulment. On 25 October 1261, Ottokar married Kunigunda of Slavonia. They probably had four children:


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Ottokar also had two extramarital sons and daughters. The most important was his firstborn, Nicholas. He was never accepted as heir apparent to the Bohemian crown by the sitting pope, but was given the Duchy of Opava as fief in 1269. Other illegitimate children include John, provost of Vyšehrad Chapter.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Přemysl Ottokar is considered one of the greatest kings of Bohemia, along with Charles IV. He was a founder of many new towns (about 30 — not only in Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia, but also in Austria and Styria) and incorporated many existing settlements through civic charters, giving them new privileges. He was a strong proponent of trade, law and order. Furthermore, he instituted open immigration policies through which skilled German-speaking immigrants settled in major cities throughout his domains. As noted, the historic East Prussian city of Königsberg ("King's Mountain") was named in his honor as a tribute to his support of the Teutonic Knights in their war with the pagan Old Prussians.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: As Czech traditional law was different from that of his other domains, many principles introduced during his reign formed core of the Czech law for the following centuries. From his time stems the oldest preserved source of Czech law, Zemské desky, and also the oldest written Czech communal law, recorded in the founding deeds of the respective towns. By supporting the city of Jihlava (German: Iglau) with its mines, he laid foundation of the silver wealth of later Bohemian kings. Privileges of civic charters usually excluded the towns from obedience to the traditional courts held by members of nobility. This can be seen as a step towards equality and a precursor of modern civil law.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: In the country, Ottokar's introduction of the Law of Emphyteusis into the Czech law is sometimes interpreted as "Germanization". In fact it was creative, for it freed subjects from feudal obligations, except for rent — and tax, if such was levied. Free selling and leaving of estates could also be bought and soon became common. Thus, Ottokar can be reckoned an early Bohemian ruler who furthered Bohemian rights in medieval times. This change of legal environment in Bohemia was introduced by systematic founding of villages chartered under this law.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: He issued also a general privilege to the Jews (1254), which established principles of integration of the Jews into the Czech society until 1848. The Jews were now eligible for various positions, such as servants of crown, thereby being somewhat less subject to discrimination. Instead of being able to claim only the support of individual lords, the Jews could from then on claim support of any royal officer.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Ottokar followed with a systematic policy of strengthening his domains by building fortifications. Besides supporting towns, he built many fortresses himself — Zvíkov Castle, Křivoklát Castle or Bezděz Castle in Bohemia, and the famed Hofburg Palace in Vienna — and also induced his vassals to build castles. A sign of rising strength of Bohemia, it was also a reaction to the Mongol raids of the 13th century (see Béla IV of Hungary). Conflict for the title of ownership to these fortified places built by members of nobility was probably the source of an uprising in 1276, which cost Ottokar the Austrian lands, and two years later (in an attempt for reconquest) his life.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Some of the fortresses built by Ottokar were for centuries the strongest in Bohemia. Ironically, Bezděz Castle served as a prison for his son Wenceslaus II of Bohemia for short time after Ottokar's death. The castle housed Bohemian legal records Zemské desky and many spiritual and temporal treasures during the destructive civil strife of the Hussite wars (1419–1434) in Bohemia. It was conquered in 1620, during the 30 Years' War, but by then it was long deserted, and in that state was defended by rebelling subjects against an Imperial army.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Before his conflict with Rudolf of Habsburg, Ottokar exacted influence over a number of relatives, allies and vassals in Germany, such as the Margraviate of Brandenburg — and spiritual principalities, including the Archbishopric of Salzburg and the Patriarchate of Aquileia. After the death of Konradin in 1268 he was an heir of the House of Hohenstaufen's claim to the imperial crown. However, he did not raise this claim, remaining content with informal influence in Germany. In 1267 he was appointed protector of the royal domains (of the Holy Roman Empire) east of the Rhine by the German king, Richard of Cornwall. He held this office till 1273.


title: Ottokar II of Bohemia

text: Ottokar is a significant figure in history and legend. In the "Divine Comedy" by Dante, Ottokar is seen outside the gates of Purgatory, in amiable companionship with his imperial rival Rudolf. He is also the protagonist of a tragedy by the 19th-century Austrian playwright Franz Grillparzer, titled "König Ottokars Glück und Ende".


title: Pitts Special

text: The Pitts Special (company designations S-1 and S-2) is a series of light aerobatic biplanes designed by Curtis Pitts. It has accumulated many competition wins since its first flight in 1944. The Pitts biplanes dominated world aerobatic competition in the 1960s and 1970s and, even today, remain potent competition aircraft in the lower categories.


title: Pitts Special

text: Curtis Pitts began the design of a single-seat aerobatic biplane in 1943–1944. The design has been refined continuously since the prototype first flew in September 1944; however, the current Pitts S-2 still remains quite close to the original in concept and in design.


title: Pitts Special

text: Several of the aircraft that Curtis Pitts built had a picture of a skunk on them and were called "Stinkers". After she bought it, aerobatic performer Betty Skelton called the second aircraft that Curtis built, "Little Stinker". The prototype S-2, which was the first two-seat Pitts, was "Big Stinker", the prototype Model 11 (later called S-1-11B) was "Super Stinker", and the prototype Model 12 was the "Macho Stinker".


title: Pitts Special

text: Certified versions of the Pitts are now produced by Aviat Aircraft in Afton, Wyoming. It is available as the S-1 single-seater with an up to 200 hp (150 kW) flat-4 Lycoming engine and a 17 ft 4 in (5.28 m) wingspan, or as the S-2 two-seater variant featuring a 260 hp (194 kW) flat-6 Lycoming and a 20 ft (6.1 m) wingspan. Pitts Specials have been equipped with engines of up to 450 hp (338 kW).


title: Pitts Special

text: Plans for the single-seat Pitts S-1S are also available from Aviat Aircraft. The S-1C and derivative S-1SS plans and kits are supplied by Steen Aero Lab in Palm Bay, Florida. Many hundreds of homebuilders have successfully completed and flown the Pitts since plans became available in 1960.


title: Pitts Special

text: All single-seat (S-1) and two-seat (S-2) Pitts Specials are variations of the basic design from 1944.


title: Pitts Special

text: The aircraft was popularized by Betty Skelton, Caro Bayley, and other air show performers, which led to the offering of plans in 1962.


title: Pitts Special

text: Pitts produced limited numbers of aircraft during the 1940s and 1950s. The Pitts Special became the standard by which all other aerobatic aircraft were judged. After a number of homebuilt aircraft were produced from rough hand-drawn plans produced by Pitts, more professionally drawn plans went on sale in 1962. While many homebuilt aircraft were built in the 1960s, earning the S-1 a reputation as an excellent aerobatic aircraft, Pitts worked on the design of a two-seat aerobatic trainer version, the S-2, which first flew in 1967 and gained its type certificate in 1971. Factory-built aircraft produced by the Aerotek company at Afton, Wyoming were joined in production by the single-seat S-1S in 1973.


title: Pitts Special

text: In 1977 Curtis Pitts sold his interests in the Pitts S-1 & S-2 to Doyle Child. Child later sold the rights in 1981 to Frank Christensen, who continued production at the Afton plant under the guise of Christen Industries. The rights for homebuilt versions of the Pitts were sold in 1994 to Steen Aero Lab, with the Afton factory and production rights being transferred to Aviat.


title: Pitts Special

text: Curtis Pitts died in 2005 at age 89. At the time of his death, he was working with Steen on the prototype of the new Pitts Model 14, a brand new, two-seat biplane designed for unlimited aerobatics powered by the 400 horsepower Vedeneyev M14P radial engine. The rights to the Pitts name is currently owned by Aviat which also owns the similar model to the Pitts in the Christen Eagle.


title: Pitts Special

text: The current inverted flat spin world record is 98 set on March 20, 2016 by air show performer Spencer Suderman over Yuma, Arizona. Suderman flew the Sunbird S-1x, a Lycoming IO-540-powered experimental variant of the Pitts S1. The maneuver began from 24,500' over the Yuma Proving Grounds and was recovered at 2,000' AGL. The previous world record for the number of consecutive turns in a flat spin was 81 also set by Spencer Suderman on March 13, 2014 in a Pitts S-2B from 23,000 ft altitude over the Naval Air Facility El Centro.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: James Harold Fanning (born August 6, 1942) is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Jimmy Valiant.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: Fanning was born in Tullahoma as the youngest of five children of James and Effie Fanning. He later incorporated the names of his four sisters – Louise, Christine, Charlena and Patrica – into the spider web tattoo on his upper arm.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: Fanning started wrestling in 1964 as "Big Jim Vallen". He went to the World Wide Wrestling Federation in the 1970s as "Handsome Jimmy Valiant" and formed a team with Johnny Valiant that would dominate the tag team scene for a while as WWWF Tag Team champions. In the later 1960s in the WWA, they were managed by Bobby Heenan.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: Valiant had entered the WWWF in 1971 as a babyface, originally known as "Gentleman Jim Valiant," but quickly switched to heel. He had title matches against champion Pedro Morales in secondary arenas, such as Philadelphia, and feuded with short-term tag partner Chief Jay Strongbow. Jimmy and his kayfabe brother Johnny held the tag belts from 1974 to 1975 and main evented Madison Square Garden against Chief Jay Strongbow and Bruno Sammartino (Strongbow and Sammartino won 2 out of 3 falls, but one fall via disqualification; hence the belts didn't change hands).


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: During the late 1970s – early 1980s, Valiant was a central player in the Memphis, Tennessee wrestling scene. He feuded regularly with Jerry Lawler and teamed with Bill Dundee to dominate the tag team matches of that time. He even recorded a song, "The Ballad of Handsome Jimmy", which was used in wrestling arenas as his entry music and became a mainstay on some Memphis radio stations for a few years. Despite the Memphis promotion desperately wanting to keep him in Memphis full-time, even offering to buy him a house in Memphis according to Jerry Lawler's biography, Valiant decided to move on after holding the AWA Southern Heavyweight title for roughly a year. Valiant also spent a brief amount of time in Jim Crockett Promotions in the late 1970s as the heel "King James Valiant" managed by Lord Alfred Hayes.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: In 1979, Jimmy returned to the WWWF with Johnny occasionally wrestling and went into the manager role. He managed Johnny and Jerry Valiant as they won the tag belts.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: In the early 1980s, Valiant returned as a babyface to NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions as "Boogie Woogie Man" Jimmy Valiant and called his fans "the Street People". His theme music around this time was "Boy From New York City", by The Manhattan Transfer. While in Jim Crockett Promotions, he would sometimes appear in a black bandit-style mask and call himself "Charlie Brown from Outta Town". This usually occurred when Valiant was (in kayfabe) banned from wrestling. Charlie Brown was billed as someone other than Valiant, despite "Brown" having Valiant's legendarily prodigious beard.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: January 1984, Valiant was attacked by Paul Jones and The Assassins. They tied him to the wrestling ring ropes so that Jones could cut his beard off. This led to a grudge match with hyped supershow called 'Boogie Man Jam '84' in Greensboro, North Carolina. For this match, Dusty Rhodes was in Valiant's corner and tied by a rope to Paul Jones. Valiant defeated Assassin II, who was unmasked and revealed as Hercules Hernandez. Due to the beard cutting attack, he feuded heavily with Paul Jones and his army of wrestlers, from 1984 through to late 1986. This army of wrestlers included The Barbarian, Baron von Raschke, Teijo Khan, and The Assassins. During this three-year feud, Valiant received help from Héctor Guerrero and "Raging Bull" Manny Fernandez. Although Jimmy Valiant would lose a Loser Leaves Town Tuxedo Street Fight to Paul Jones at Starrcade 1984 in Greensboro, North Carolina the feud with many from the Paul Jones stable continued, which would come to include Abdullah The Butcher. In 1985, Valiant and Ragin' Bull Manny Fernandez formed a team called "B and B Connection" ("Boogie Woogie" and "Bull").


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: During The Great American Bash 1986 summer shows, Paul Jones adopted a military style look in his long feud with Valiant and labeled his stable of wrestlers "The Army". Valiant would beat Shaska Whatley in a hair vs hair match, but with outside interference lost a hair vs hair match to Paul Jones only weeks later. In the fall of 1986, The Ragin Bull Manny Fernandez, Valiant's best friend accepted Jones' money and turned on Valiant, starting a feud between the two. Paul Jones at this point shortened his army to his newly acquired tag team of Ragin Bull and Rick Rude. The war between Valiant and Paul Jones climaxed at Starrcade 1986 with Valiant putting up the hair of his valet Big Mama against the hair of Paul Jones in a No DQ Match which Valiant won (while the Ragin Bull was placed in a cage above the ring).


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: In the late 1980s, he teamed with Hector Guerrero (then masked as Laser Tron) and Bugsy McGraw and feuded with The New Breed. When Jim Crockett Promotions became WCW, Valiant left and returned to Memphis to wrestle in the USWA. In 1990 he twice won the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship from Jerry Lawler, losing it back to him both times.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: His last match was for WrestlePro in Rahway, New Jersey, where he teamed with Buster Jackson to defeat the team of Colt Cabana and CPA on February 8, 2020.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: He now enjoys his time with his wife Angel and training wrestlers at Boogie's Wrestling Camp located in Shawsville, Virginia. Jimmy currently wrestles under the ACW Banner (American Championship Wrestling) around the Roanoke Virginia Area. He has also recently wrestled with George South, Stan Lee and Ricky Morton in ASW Wrestling and New OCW in Ashland, KY with Matty B and Violet Rayne against Beau and Misty James and Scotty Ace.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: Valiant remains in the wrestling world today with continuing to appear at independent shows signing autographs while his students appear in a few matches on the card. He keeps in touch with fans through his official Weekly website.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: Most recently, Valiant lent his name to a foreword for a fiction novel called "Only The Beginning". It is a book set in the 1980s about a girl's life during high school. While the book is not wrestling related, the author Jason Strecker is a personal friend of Valiant's and in the forward Valiant responds to his friendship with the author along with the book's message of being of strong character and doing positive actions for others. The book also has a foreword by Nikolai Volkoff.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: On May 14, 2022, Valiant came out of retirement at nearly 80 years old winning at 6 man tag team match at Patriotic Wrestling Federation in York, South Carolina.


title: Jimmy Valiant

text: Fanning married Clara, with whom he fathered three children: Robin, Rhonda, and Dana. With Monika, he has his first son Todd. With Felicia, he has his youngest son Handsome. He is now married to Angel. He has 6 grandchildren: Lonna, Jenae, Beau, Chassie, Clarissa and Delilah.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: The 2005 Ashes series was that year's edition of the long-standing cricket rivalry between England and Australia. Starting on 21 July 2005, England and Australia played five Tests, with the Ashes held by Australia as the most recent victors. The final result was a 2–1 series win for England, who succeeded (for the first time since 1986–87) in their biennial attempt to win the urn.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: In March, Australia captain Ricky Ponting said this Ashes series would be the closest since Australia's dominance began in 1989. Since 1989, when Australia started their winning Ashes streak, England had lost by more than one match in all but one of the series played, that of 1997. During that period, Australia were the pre-eminent side in the world, while England had dropped from being the top-rated in 1981 to sixth for much of the 1990s. They reached a low point in 1999 with a series loss to New Zealand leaving them bottom of the unofficial "Wisden Cricketers' Almanack" rankings. However, since the previous series in 2002–03, England had improved on their fifth place in the official rankings, and were second before this series. Australia were still top-ranked, but England had won 14 and drawn three of their 18 previous Test matches since March 2004, and had won six successive series. Nonetheless, before the First Test some Australians, including fast bowler Glenn McGrath, were suggesting that a 5–0 win in the series for Australia was a serious possibility.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: The BBC reported on the day after the series that it was "hailed as the most thrilling series ever". Individual matches were very closely fought, with one match decided by a two-run margin, one match drawn with only one wicket remaining, and one match won by three wickets. The outcome of the contest was not decided until the last day of the series.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Australia won the first Test comfortably, but in the second Test, considered to be one of the greatest of all time, England levelled the series with a two-run victory, the narrowest win in Ashes history. The third Test ended in a draw (with England one wicket away from a win), and England won the fourth Test in Nottingham (Trent Bridge) by three wickets, losing seven men in a chase of 129, after England enforced the follow-on after gaining a lead of 259 on first innings.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: The fifth and final Test started on 8 September, at the Oval in London. It entered its final day with England batting in their second innings, 40 runs ahead with nine wickets in hand. Australia needed a win to force a 2–2 series draw and retain the Ashes; any other result would give the Ashes to England and end 16 years and eight series of Australian dominance. After a day of fluctuating fortunes, England established a lead of 341 after Kevin Pietersen's maiden century, and Australia batted for one over before the teams went off for bad light, the stumps were pulled out of the ground, and the match was declared a draw, ensuring the return of the Ashes to England.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: b) An injury to Simon Jones saw Anderson come into the squad for the fifth Test, while Tremlett was dropped because he was "not on top of his game" according to England's chairman of selectors David Graveney. Collingwood was also called up again.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: The first day of cricket at Lord's saw 17 of the total of 40 wickets fall, and though Australia lost 10 of them, the BBC saw it as "advantage Australia". Ricky Ponting won the toss and chose to bat, and Steve Harmison shook up the opening batsmen early on, hitting Australia's batsmen with bouncers; the second ball of the match hit Justin Langer on the elbow but he went on to make 40 and top score for Australia. The pitch offered bounce and swing from the start, while Matthew Hoggard got a ball on line to swing between Matthew Hayden's bat and pad and into his off stump. Hayden was gone for 12, having, according to the BBC report, "played nervously from the word go". Australia still scored at a rate above 4.5 runs per over in the mini-session before drinks, which was taken when Harmison cut Ponting on the right cheek, and in his next over Harmison got his first wicket of the series as Ponting edged him to Andrew Strauss at third slip for 9. Langer was next to depart, having scored at above five an over when he top-edged a pull shot to Harmison at square-leg for 40 off the bowling of Andrew Flintoff, whose first over in Ashes cricket was a wicket maiden. In the next over, Simon Jones was brought on, he got an immediate reward, with Damien Martyn caught behind for 2, and in the penultimate over before lunch Michael Clarke was lbw to Jones, leaving Australia five down after the first session of play.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Adam Gilchrist, Simon Katich and Shane Warne all played a part in getting Australia past 100, forging innings in the 20s, but Flintoff had Gilchrist for 26 before Warne and Katich added 49 for the seventh wicket. Harmison, coming back for a second spell, was wicketless in his first two overs but after drinks he took four wickets for seven runs in 2.2 overs as Australia were all out for 190. He finished with five for 43. Glenn McGrath was the not out batsman, ending with 10 runs, and he also opened the bowling with Brett Lee. England batted for six overs until tea without losing a wicket, scoring 10 runs, but McGrath, who bowled his usual accurate line and length, reaped the rewards after tea. Marcus Trescothick fell first ball after tea, edging to slip to become McGrath's 500th victim in Test cricket, and Strauss fell in similar fashion three balls later. Michael Vaughan and Ian Bell survived six overs, adding seven runs before McGrath had them bowled in the 13th and 15th over respectively. With Flintoff bowled by McGrath in the 17th, and England had lost five wickets for 21 runs, with five of their top six batsmen out in single figures. However, Kevin Pietersen and Geraint Jones batted together to make England's highest partnership of the innings, adding 58 and, according to the BBC report, "treating Jason Gillespie with some disdain". A short ball from Lee was too much for Geraint Jones, though, and he fended it to wicket-keeper Gilchrist, out for 30. Ashley Giles hit two quick boundaries to bat out the over, but the last ball of Lee's next over was glanced to the keeper, and Giles was out for 11, and England were 92 for 7 overnight – needing 98 for the last three wickets to get level with Australia.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: England cut the deficit on the second morning, but were still bowled out before they could build a first-innings lead. Hoggard departed for a 16-ball duck, cutting a delivery from Warne to Hayden in the slips. Pietersen now started to attack, taking 21 runs off seven deliveries before he was out caught by Martyn, a diving catch just inside the boundary, and England were nine down for 122, still trailing by 68. The English 10th wicket pairing of Simon Jones and Harmison added 33 after that, a stand that was the fifth-highest of the game thus far and which reduced Australia's lead to 35 runs. In the field, England started by having Langer run out for 6 in the fifth over, but Hayden and Ponting rebuilt to bat until lunch unbeaten.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Though Hayden was bowled by Flintoff for 34 three overs after lunch, the batsmen from three to six all passed 40; it was to be the only time in the series that Australia accomplished this feat. Clarke needed an extra life to do it, but made England pay after Pietersen dropped him on 21, and thus the partnership was allowed to last for 34.3 overs, with 155 runs being scored. Flintoff was smashed to all corners, with 84 runs being scored off him in his 19 second-day overs, but in the last 10 overs England came back to take wickets. Started by an inside-edge from Clarke off Hoggard, which left Australia's 24-year-old batsman bowled for 91, and Australia lost a further three wickets for 24 runs before the end of the day. The Australian lead was still 314, twice England's first innings total and then some, and Katich was still batting, not out on 10.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Four overs into the morning, specialist spin bowler Giles was involved in a dismissal for the only time in the match, having Lee run out for 8. However, Gillespie batted for an hour and 15 minutes, and took part in a 52-run stand with the recognised batsman, Katich before Simon Jones got his reward with an away-swinger that crashed into Gillespie's off stump, after having three catches dropped. The last-wicket partnership rubbed it in with 43 more runs before Katich was caught by Simon Jones off Harmison, but England were set what would be a world record 420 to win.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: They started positively, riding some favourable umpiring decisions; Aleem Dar turned down four strong leg before wicket (LBW) appeals off Warne. Strauss and Trescothick could thus add 80 for the first wicket before Strauss edged a short ball from Lee back into the bowler's waiting hands. Vaughan got off the mark with a four with his second ball, before facing 24 dot balls in the next three-quarters of an hour. Meanwhile, wickets fell at the other end, as Trescothick departed for 44, edging a straight ball from Warne to first slip after having taken him for 10 in the previous over, and Bell was out LBW to a ball that did not turn. Three overs later, Vaughan was bowled cleanly by Lee and Flintoff gave a catch to Gilchrist, England were five down for 119, and though Pietersen once again put on more than 40 runs with Geraint Jones, England still needed 301 for the last five wickets, which would mean five partnerships higher than England had managed all match.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Rain frustrated both Australia and neutral fans who wanted to see cricket played on the morning of the fourth day, but at 1545 BST the rain relented and the covers were taken off. Then, it took 10 overs for Australia to wrap up England's innings, McGrath taking four of the five wickets required and Warne the last; Giles, Hoggard, Harmison and Simon Jones were all dismissed for ducks, and England could only cut 24 runs off Australia's eventual win margin of 239. Twenty-two of those fourth-day runs came from Pietersen who was left stranded on an unbeaten 64 to have a Test batting average of 121 after his first match.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: The psychological battles before the match included many Australian statements to the press about how the pitch "played into [their] hands", that England had been "spending too much time talking", and that their top order had been "taking bad options". England kept quieter, until just before the game stories appeared about how the Edgbaston game would be decided at the toss: whichever side won it would choose to bowl first and would win, as had happened in 12 of the 13 Tests at Edgbaston since 1991. England came out on top in the mind game after Ricky Ponting won the toss and put England in to bat; Jonathan Agnew of the BBC claimed "it was clear that his decision had backfired" once England started batting.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: England took advantage of being inserted and came back strongly, becoming the first team to hit 400 runs in a first day of Test cricket against Australia since 1938. The English scored at a pace above four an over in their opening partnership, helped by the freak injury that Glenn McGrath sustained before the match; during a warm-up (playing rugby), the paceman accidentally stood on a stray cricket ball, tearing ankle ligaments. Australia had to field Michael Kasprowicz as replacement, and missed McGrath's superior control and wicket-taking abilities in the match.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: The English innings began with Marcus Trescothick hitting nine boundaries off Brett Lee, while Andrew Strauss preferred Jason Gillespie and Kasprowicz. Their 112-run partnership was the highest by England in the series thus far; the Australians had only surpassed that once, through Damien Martyn and Michael Clarke's 155 at Lord's. To add to Australia's woes, Trescothick was caught off a no-ball on 32, and eventually went on to make 90, being the second man out shortly after lunch, with the score 164 for 2 after 32.3 overs.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: In the next five overs, England lost both Ian Bell, who notched up his third successive single-figure score, and Michael Vaughan, who pulled a short Gillespie delivery to the hands of Lee, but that did little to slow the scoring rate. 132 runs had been taken in the morning session; the afternoon yielded 157. Kevin Pietersen, in his second Test match, hit ten fours and one six, and made a 103-run partnership in 105 balls with Andrew Flintoff. Flintoff's 68 was scored off 62 balls, and Lee's 18 balls were taken for 26 runs, including two sixes.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Lee bowled 17 overs, and conceded 111 runs, but got the one wicket of Pietersen, who pulled to Simon Katich for 71 off 76 balls, and with the score on 342 for 7 with 24 scheduled overs remaining in the day. Then, Steve Harmison smacked two fours and a six in a 15-minute 17, and Simon Jones stuck around with Matthew Hoggard for a last-wicket partnership of 32, Jones making 19 not out. Shane Warne finally got the better of Hoggard, to end with four for 116, but by that time England had gone past 400 and ended up with a total of 407 in just under 80 overs. Just as Australia's opening batsman walked out and prepared for their innings, the rain began to fall on Edgbaston, and play had to be stopped.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: England's total could have been significantly higher with a bit more top-order application, especially given the high scoring rate. However, England's bowlers started well when Harmison bowled a maiden over first up to Justin Langer, and Matthew Hayden drove Harmison's new-ball partner Hoggard to short mid-off for a golden duck – the first of Hayden's Test career. Then, Ponting and Langer hit runs just as quickly as England had done, before the umpire's finger went up twice more before lunch; Ponting swept a shot off Ashley Giles to the opposing captain Vaughan for 61, and Martyn was run out taking a single for 20, again by Vaughan. Langer and Clarke continued after lunch in the same vein, hitting 76 runs in an hour and a half, but a couple of wickets within five overs took Australia to 208 for 5, needing 199 for the last five wickets for parity. The partnership between Langer and Adam Gilchrist saw them to tea with no further loss, as Langer continued his four-hour unbeaten knock and went into the tea break on 72.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: The pair looked to close England's lead and batted unbeaten after tea for eight overs, but again the England bowlers intervened, this time in the shape of Simon Jones, who got plenty of reverse swing both ways and used that to trap Langer with a yorker – gone for 82, which was to be Australia's highest score in the innings. Australia's last four, which now included Kasprowicz, who had a batting average 10 runs higher than McGrath, were nevertheless all dismissed for single-figure scores, Flintoff taking the last two men LBW with the last two balls, although there was some argument about whether the first dismissal, that of Gillespie, should have been given. Meanwhile, Giles' return of 3/78, including Ponting, Clarke and Warne, was to be his best bowling figures all series.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: However, England got their 99-run lead and continued to build their lead before stumps were drawn. After Trescothick and Strauss had hit five boundaries in six overs and taken the second innings total to 25 for 0, Ponting brought on Warne in the seventh over, and Warne broke through with his second ball of the innings; his leg break came into the left-hander's stumps and broke them completely, and Strauss was bowled for 6. Nightwatchman Hoggard survived four balls to end the day, when England held a lead of 124 runs, with nine wickets in hand.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: The third day saw a total of 17 wickets fall, with Warne and Flintoff being the leading performers for their sides. First up, Lee grabbed three wickets in 12 minutes: Trescothick slashed a wide delivery and got an edge to the keeper, captain Vaughan got his third single-figure score in the series as he failed to cover his stumps to a straight one, and Hoggard edged to Hayden in the slips for 1.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: England had lost four wickets for six runs, and were 31 for 4 with Bell and Pietersen at the crease. Pietersen survived what looked like an edge on the first ball he faced, and went on to make 20 before he was given out in a similar situation from Warne. His 41-run partnership with Bell took England's lead past 150, and with Bell having batted past the hour mark, he needed 29 more for his half-century when he gave a tiny edge to Gilchrist.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: England's last recognised batting pairing, between Flintoff and wicket-keeper Geraint Jones, saw England to lunch, but Flintoff had suffered an injury to his left shoulder and looked in obvious pain, and Jones departed shortly after lunch. Giles lasted longer, batting through 45 minutes before he was caught by Hayden, and Harmison faced one delivery to leave England at 131 for 9.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Simon Jones and Flintoff carried on, however. Jones managed 12 runs in his 42-minute stay at the crease while Flintoff took Lee for 33 off the 28 balls he faced from the Australian paceman. Flintoff also took runs off Kasprowicz, with his third over yielding 20 runs for England, including a couple of no-balls. At one point during Flintoff's innings, Ponting had nine men on the boundary, with only the bowler and wicket-keeper inside the circle. However, Flintoff hit a six over them, too, and another of his sixes landed on top of the stands. Flintoff ended with 73, as the only man to pass 25 for England, before he was bowled by Warne. Warne finished with figures of six for 46 from 23.1 overs, having bowled unchanged from the seventh over till the end.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Hayden and Langer started positively, taking runs off the occasional bad balls that were served up by Harmison, Hoggard and Giles, and by the 12th over, they had racked up 47 for no loss, and were well on the way to chasing the target of 282. Then, Flintoff came and bowled the over of the series. He failed to make the hat-trick he was on from the last innings, but with his second ball he bowled Langer with a leg cutter. His third delivery was narrowly turned down for lbw, the fourth found Ponting's edge but failed to carry to slip, an lbw appeal on the fifth was also turned down, but his sixth which Ponting left outside the offstump was a no-ball, so there was a seventh and final delivery, another leg cutter and Ponting was out caught behind. Including the previous innings, Flintoff had taken four wickets in nine balls. But more importantly, Australia had been reduced from 47/0 to 48/2.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: Hayden kept going, and his dismissal came in an over where Australia had taken eight runs from the first four balls; however, Simon Jones got the last laugh over Hayden, only to later be reprimanded and fined by the International Cricket Council for his celebrations. England kept on the pressure, getting three more wickets before the scheduled close of play; Giles getting two, dismissing Katich and Gilchrist, and an in-swinging ball from Flintoff took care of Gillespie, who was trapped lbw.


title: 2005 Ashes series

text: An extra half-hour of play was allowed, as a result was nearing, but Warne and Clarke defied the English. Warne "took the attacking approach", and took on Giles for 12 in one over. He ended on 20 not out overnight, as Warne and Clarke batted together for 40 minutes before Harmison, bowling his third spell of the day, brought the third day's proceedings to an end with a slower ball that was not read correctly by Clarke, who missed the ball completely to be bowled. Mark Nicholas, in live commentary, described the delivery as "...one of the great balls. Given the moment, given the batsman and given the match, that is a staggering gamble that has paid off for Harmison. He bowled it perfectly." England now needed two wickets on the fourth day, while Australia needed 107 runs for the victory.